Sir Paul Stephenson: I wish phone-hacking officers were catching robbers

Met chief Sir Paul Stephenson today admitted that he would rather his detectives were tackling robberies than investigating phone hacking at The News of the World.

In an appearance before MPs, Sir Paul said that about 45 Met officers were involved in the probe and that the force had a duty to uncover any criminal wrongdoing.

But asked by the home affairs select committee whether he felt that too many resources were being devoted to phone hacking, he conceded that the inquiry was diverting officers from crime-fighting tasks. "Would I wish that these very experienced detectives were rather investigating robberies, of course I would," Sir Paul told MPs.

His comments will heighten concern among some observers about the burden placed on the Met by the phone hacking inquiry.

In further remarks, Sir Paul also warned that any attempt to shift counter-terror policing to the Government's new National Crime Agency would be "very foolish".

Ministers have postponed a decision on control of counter-terrorism policing - which is currently run by the Met - until after the Olympics, but have left open the possibility that it could then be shifted to the new national crime body.

Sir Paul warned, however, that any decision to move the Met's internationally admired counter terror unit into a new untested agency would potentially harm its effectiveness.

He said the change would also damage the fight against organised crime - which will be dealt with by the National Crime Agency - because counter terrorism would always "trump" it in a battle for resources, meaning less money and manpower would be available.

Sir Paul said the Met now had 32,300 officers compared with a peak of 33,000 last year. He insisted that better use of officers could ensure this reduction did not leave the public more at risk from crime.