Opposition Tory health spokesman Andrew Lansley, who obtained the figures, said the Labour government had cut maternity beds by 2,340, or 22 percent, since coming to power in 1997.

At the same time birth rates have been rising sharply, up 20 percent in some areas.

Jon Skewes, a director at the Royal College of Midwives, told the paper: 'The rise in the number of births in other than a designated labour bed is a concern. We would want to see the detail behind these figures to look at why this is happening.'