ATTACKS carried out on police by the public in the district covering Burnham and Highbridge have increased since 2005.
A Freedom of Information Act request has uncovered that during 2006 there were a total of 25 assaults in the West Somerset District.
This number represents a slight rise from the 22 affected in 2005 but is a massive drop from 2004's tally of 53.
Police have stressed that while each of the assaults relate to an individual occasion, it does not necessarily mean a different officer for each of the attacks.
The Freedom of Information Officer said: "It cannot be assumed therefore that the total in each year represents the actual number of officers assaulted, as it is possible that the same officer could have been assaulted on more than one occasion."
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