Last night I met the Home Secretary Sajid Javid to discuss Cleveland Police. I requested this after the resignation of Chief Constable Mike Veale, the latest in a long line of scandals that have crippled the Force.
I’ve called for a full review of the future of Cleveland Police, and Ben Houchen, our Tees Valley Mayor is meeting the Home Secretary later this month.
Local Labour figures, including the candidate for this constituency, are now banding together to try to defend "business as usual". That won't work this time.
Labour also talk about funding. Last night, I alone of our local MPs voted to *increase* the funding for Cleveland Police from £125m to £132m. Labour voted AGAINST.
They then try to muddy the waters further by saying it's a small increase compared to other Forces that serve much larger populations.
The truth is that Cleveland has the third highest funding *per head of population* of all the 43 Forces in England and Wales - £221.48 this year. This is the highest outside London.
By contrast, Durham, our neighbouring Force which is ranked Outstanding, receives £183.49 per person.
I've told our PCC I'm always happy to urge even more funding - but clearly this is NOT all about money. It's about leadership. And we need change.
The Teesside public want an end to the broken culture of leadership we’ve seen for far too long - both they and the men and women of the Force deserve better.
Please share the facts so people understand the full story.