AN MP has called on the Government to contribute to the increasing bill for the Operation Lancet inquiry, set up to investigate corruption in the Cleveland police force.
Stockton North MP Frank Cook has backed efforts to persuade the Government to finance the three-year inquiry, which has cost more than £3m. So far, only one officer, Superintendent Ray Mallon, has been charged with disciplinary offences.
Home Office Minister Charles Clarke has already agreed to meet a delegation from the Cleveland Police Authority to discuss the issue.
Mr Cook said: "The actual responsibilty for the conduct of investigations rests with the Police Complaints Authority, yet local people, through the police authority, have to foot the bill.
"I believe that the experience throughout the country of a number of major investigations over recent years, including Lancet, has proved beyond doubt that this system must be changed. The Cleveland Police Authority finds itself facing a very significant financial burden as a result of an investigation over which it had no control."
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