AN increase in the number of migrant workers has seen police interpreter costs soar from £7,800 to £77,000 in six years.

DCI Jerry Reakes-Williams said the expense of funding interpreters was now a major issue in south Worcestershire.

He said the division spent £7,800 on interpreters between March 1999 and March 2000, but that rose dramatically to £77,000 for March 2005 to March 2006.

"We have basically seen a tenfold increase in six years," he said.

"That's not to say that all of those people have got into trouble with the police, it's just they are people who we have needed to have contact with, because they are a victim, witness or a suspect."

Mr Reakes-Williams spoke to the Worcester News after Cambridgeshire's police force called for more Government funding to cope with the influx of migrant workers following the broadening of the European Union.

He said a priority for the force was to ensure workers understand differences in legislation, especially concerning driving.

"There's probably a similar culture in Poland to ourselves here in the UK, with a heavy drinking culture among some groups in society," said Mr Reakes-Williams.

"We do see that and therefore do see a higher proportion of Polish workers in drink drive cases.

"In some cultures it's okay to carry knives and in this country it isn't and we have to try to communicate that."

He said racial tensions are rare, but when problems do occur they can lead to an increase in violent crime.

Mr Reakes-Williams said it is vital to forge links with the diverse range of community groups, which include Polish, Iraqi Kurds, Lithuanians, Albanians and Portuguese workers.

He said the force distributes multi-language leaflets, especially in Wychavon, explaining legislation.

A spokeswoman said police in south Worcestershire are currently faced with at least 20 different languages, including dialects.

Latest figures show between May 2004 and March 2007 about 3,500 migrant workers registered in Worcestershire, including 650 in Worcester.

However, DCI Jerry Reakes-Williams said he did not believe this was an accurate reflection of the real numbers.

Worcester MP Mike Foster said: "In the scale of the budget, £80,000 is a lot of money, but in terms of the overall police budget it's still quite a small proportion."

When asked if he would be taking on the issue he said his lobbying was directed more at "core" police functions such as ensuring there were enough officers on the beat.