The Home Office today admitted it was too early to conclude that Britain's new licensing laws had been a success despite the publication of figures suggesting a dramatic fall in violent crime.

Charles Clarke this morning told reporters that there had been an 11 per cent drop in violence in November and December of last year, immediately following the introduction of 24-hour drinking.

In a rejoinder to those who warned that the laws would lead to an escalation in drink-related crime, the Home Secretary said that the figures were a "credit to all those tackling alcohol-related disorder".

The basis of the figures was immediately called into question by opponents who described them as "bogus, inappropriate and spun."

The raw data includes all violent crimes - from murder to causing death by dangerous driving. It was also gathered during a £2.5 million police clampdown which targeted alcohol-fuelled violence.

Today's statistics compare the total number of violent crimes from October with those for December. Normally, the Government would wait until April to publish figures for the last quarter of the year, which could then be compared with those from the previous year.

Officials now accept that it is too soon to draw any definite conclusions, but insist that results so far are encouraging.

The confusion has lent further ammunition to Conservatives, who accuse the Government of manipulating statistics to political ends. The Statistics Commission, the UK's numbers watchdog, warned last month that the public was losing faith in official figures.

The October to December period saw a £2.5 million, six-week national campaign designed specifically to clamp down on alcohol-related violence. During this time, officers dealt with 33,358 offences, made 24,586 arrests and issued 8,179 on-the-spot fines.

Announcing the figures this morning, Mr Clarke said: "Today's figures are a credit to all those committed to tackling alcohol related disorder. Delivering results, reducing violent crime and underage sales in local communities takes us another step closer to removing such unacceptable behaviour from our streets."

Tessa Jowell, the Culture Secretary, said: "We won't eradicate alcohol-related crime and disorder overnight, we know that. But today's figures show a problem in the process of being dealt with."

Chief Constable Michael Craik, of the Association of Chief Police Officers, said: "The figures speak for themselves."

Mark Hastings of the British Beer and Pub Association said: "The projections of Government and the industry have proved far closer to the truth than the prophesies of the peddlars of doom and gloom."

In response to questions from Times Online, a spokesman for the Home Office admitted this afternoon: "It's too early to draw any huge positive conclusions from these statistics, but they are encouraging. We've run this campaign and would be accused of covering up if we didn't give out the results."

David Davis, the Shadow Home Secretary, said "What this shows is that if you put more bobbies on the street you will cut crime. However these figures are a result of a six-week crack down on violence which cost £2.5m - what happens when this money runs out?

"The Government should not use these bogus, inappropriate and spun statistics to justify its 24 hour drinking proposals - especially just after the Home Secretary admitted how concerned he was that Government crime statistics were confusing. They should wait and assess the effect of longer drinking hours over a 12-month period at least."

He added: "Licensing officers up and down the country have told us that it is too early to assess the impact of extended licensing on crime. They also told us that cold weather means less people tend to go out and less trouble is caused – we have just experienced one of the coldest winters in nine years."

Richard Ford, Home Affairs correspondent for The Times, said that it was too early to assess the full impact of the licensing changes on crime.

"I think we need to wait a little longer before we can draw any genuine conclusions about the effects of the new licensing laws on crime and society. We need to go through a World Cup, a hot summer and a full cycle before we can assess whether longer drinking hours lead to a reduction in crime, or more binge drinking."

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