Eastbourne MP Nigel Waterson is demanding to know exactly how many asylum seekers are living in the seaside town.

His call follows official discrepancies about the numbers - according to police there are as many as 1,700 asylum seekers living in Eastbourne, but if you listen to East Sussex County Council, there are no more than 1,000.

To add to the confusion, the local Primary Healthcare Group reports there are just 600 refugees - more than a thousand less than police figures.

The inconclusive results have angered Mr Waterson, who is concerned about the strain refugees put on local services.

For almost a year, he has been trying to gain a definitive figure of the number of refugees in his constituency.

The Tory MP has accused the Government of running a conspiracy of silence over asylum seekers.

Mr Waterson said he had been constantly frustrated in his attempts to discover the number of refugees currently living in his constituency.

He is anxious for exact figures to be revealed in the light of added pressure on social services charged with looking after families and individuals seeking refuge in Britain.

Mr Waterson said: "I have been trying for quite a long time now to find out from the Home Office what they reckon to be the number of asylum seekers currently living in my constituency. All efforts so far have been to no avail so I decided to undertake some research of my own."

The MP is now repeating calls for the Government to release exact figures for the benefit of all communities currently taking in refugees.

Large numbers have taken up residence in the Pevensey Road area of Eastbourne. Many are also living in Hastings.

Mr Waterson said: "This is either incompetence on behalf of the Government and its agencies or there is a conspiracy of silence.

"How can we expect to deal with the problem when we don't even know the size of the problem we are dealing with?"