POLICING costs for the All Football Fans/Firms March Against Islamisation march in Dudley hit almost £60,000 after hundreds of officers were called in to keep control of 200 anti-mosque demonstrators.

The protest on June 13, which also saw a counter demonstration by Unite Against Fascism, was relatively peaceful, with no public disorder and just one arrest.

But the heavy police presence had a £59,900 price tag and Dudley Council also forked out an estimated £10,000 for security and clean-up operations.

Following the demo, Kevin Smith, the man behind AFFFMAI, vowed that football fans would return to Dudley to further highlight their opposition to Dudley Muslim Association’s plan to build a state-of-the-art mosque and community centre on Hall Street.

The group, which now goes by the name United Against Islamisation, were rumoured to be staging a protest in the town on September 12, but a West Midlands Police spokesman said current information suggested it may not go ahead.

The spokesman added: "We continue to work with the organisers to understand more.

"As one of the largest police forces in the UK, West Midlands Police remains in a constant state of readiness and is able to respond to any scale event or incident whether planned or spontaneous."

West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner David Jamieson said he believed people in Dudley were "clearly fed-up with these constant protests and the effect they are having on their local policing".

The force has spent £414, 700 this year policing three anti-mosque protests in Dudley, which Mr Jamieson said he would have rather seen spent elsewhere.

He added: "The protests in Dudley mean that police have to focus their efforts on that instead of on local policing in the West Midlands and the rest of Dudley.

"We would much rather that this money was spent on something else, but the police have no choice other than to facilitate protests that are peaceful."

The long-running saga surrounding plans for the replacement mosque looks set to rumble on in the Court of Appeal in October after Dudley Council rejected a £325,000 cash settlement from the DMA, instead decided to set up an action group to look at alternative sites.