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Fresh calls for police commissioner Barry Coppinger to stand down have been made after Cleveland Police was placed into special measures.

The national body who inspects police forces have taken the unusual step to place monitoring conditions on the scandal-plagued force.

Cleveland will come under the 'national oversight process' of Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS) after inspectors visited Teesside in May this year.

Now, Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen - a long-time critic of the police and crime commissioner - has said it would be "embarrassing" if Mr Coppinger didn't stand down.

He said: "Today’s announcement is long overdue. Under the leadership of the Cleveland Police and Crime Commissioner we've had journalists’ phones being hacked, we've had accusations of institutional racism, we've had millions of pounds worth of compensation paid out, we've had more chief constables than I've had hot dinners and we now see that HMI have put the force into special measures.

"We should be proud of our force and proud of our officers and until Barry goes, this will be impossible to achieve."

Responding, embattled Mr Coppinger said the responsibility to make changes lies with new Chief Constable Richard Lewis, and added that he would "hold him to account on that".

And Mr Coppinger said he would continue to campaign for fairer funding to provide extra officers, and welcomed the chance to engage with inspectors.

The full report from Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services, which confirms its performance will be monitored, has yet to be released, but Mr Lewis had written to local leaders to get them round the table to discuss how to improve.

(Image: Cleveland Police)

The chief constable, who admitted in June the force was "letting down" the people of Teesside , said he would "continue to be honest about the scale of change necessary".

He said: "Our communities continue to have my absolute commitment that we’re already working tirelessly to make significant improvements and when necessary we will bring in experts from outside Cleveland Police to support us.

"We hope that the public will continue to show support for our front-line officers and staff while challenging us to live up to our pledge."

The scandals that continue to haunt Cleveland Police Racism and discrimination Former traffic officer, Sultan Alam, right, fought a 17-year battle for justice after he was wrongfully sacked by the force and jailed for a crime he didn’t commit. Mr Alam was awarded £841,428 at Leeds County Court in April 2012. Cleveland Police admitted liability for his “malicious prosecution” after the force was sued by Mr Alam, who was jailed for handling stolen goods in 1996 - two years after being wrongly accused of “car ringing”. A civil case heard that Mr Alam had been “stitched up” by fellow officers after he launched industrial tribunal proceedings in 1993, complaining of racial discrimination. In November 2016, the force was ordered to pay more than £457,000 to Nadeem Saddique, a firearms officer who was the subject of racist abuse by a colleague. In January 2017, Cleveland Police agreed a payout worth more than £185,000 to four officers over claims of racial discrimination and victimisation of whistle-blowers. It also agreed to pay Mark Dias £500,000 after the ex-acting inspector “endured negative responses” for challenging “institutional racism and wrongdoing” at the force. The resignation of Mike Veale The appointment of Mike Veale as chief constable in 2018 was supposed to usher in a new era for Cleveland Police and he pledged not to "brush things under the carpet" when asked about an era of scandal at the force. However his arrival from Wiltshire Police was mired in problems from the start. There were concerns over how Wiltshire Police pursued allegations into historical child sex abuse relating to former Prime Minister Sir Ted Heath while Mr Veale was in charge. The IOPC police watchdog later found that Mr Veale had lied after carrying out an investigation into how a phone had been damaged after playing golf. Mr Veale resigned in January 2019 after it was revealed he was facing an investigation into alleged serious misconduct. The IOPC is now conducting a further investigation into allegations Mr Veale behaved inappropriately and acted in a discriminatory manner. Unlawful spying on journalists Cleveland Police also admitted to unlawfully accessing the private phone records of two journalists at a tribunal in December 2016. The force illegally used anti-terrorism powers under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA) to spy on journalists who had been in contact with whistle blowers who were lifting the lid on racism within the force. The case featured on national television and in newspapers across the world and made the pages of the New York Times and the Washington Post. Following the scandal, the then Stockton South Tory MP, James Wharton, said Cleveland Police should be abolished unless “serious problems” were tackled. Simon Nickless, former Cleveland Police assistant chief constable, was one of two more officers being investigated by the IOPC for their role in the scandal. That brings the total to nine, following the troubled force's use of anti-terror laws to spy on journalists and ex-officers. Top officer suspended Assistant chief constable Adrian Roberts was arrested on suspicion of gross misconduct in April. The force suspended Mr Roberts and the matter was originally referred to the police watchdog the IOPC, but it sent the issue back to the force as the alleged misconduct took place outside of England and Wales. The National Crime Agency (NCA) took over the investigation but has not revealed any further details. ‘Sleazy detective’ probe Detective Inspector Simon Hurwood used his position as a senior officer in the Cleveland Police to take advantage of women between 2004 and 2018, coercing them into sex and persuading them to send him explicit photos and videos of themselves. The force has launched Operation Gosport, which will look into whether a senior officer took appropriate measures against Hurwood once his inappropriate sexual behaviour was brought to light. A senior officer was suspended for allegedly failing to take appropriate measures against Hurwood once his inappropriate sexual behaviour was brought to light. Operation Sacristy Operation Sacristy, the long-running investigation into alleged corruption at Cleveland Police Authority, was launched in 2010. Comprised of both criminal and misconduct investigations, it has led to the arrest of several high-profile figures with connections to the authority. In October 2012, Sean Price became the first chief constable to be sacked in 35 years after he was found guilty of gross misconduct after he lied about his role in recruited the daughter of the authority’s then chairman, Dave McLuckie. In March 2013, deputy chief constable, Derek Bonnard, was also sacked for gross misconduct after six counts were found against him including misusing public funds, deliberately obstructing the investigation into him and accepting inappropriate hospitality. And former authority chairman, Dave McLuckie, was jailed for eight months in July 2013 for perverting the course of justice. Operation Lancet The £5m Operation Lancet inquiry was set up amid allegations of corruption within Middlesbrough CID. In December 1997, 61 officers were investigated following accusations of misconduct. Among the claims were that detectives had exchanged drugs for confessions. In February 2002, detective superintendent Ray “Robocop” Mallon, resigned having pleaded guilty to 14 disciplinary charges. Following his resignation, chief constable, Barry Shaw, described Mallon as “a liar at the centre of an empire of evil”.

In his letter to leaders, Mr Lewis said the force had talent but he would leave no stone unturned to develop a strong, new leadership team.

And he said the problems found by HMIFRCS included the force's lack of understanding of demand, and its inability to service that demand.

Mr Lewis pledged to bring back neighbourhood police teams earlier this year, after they were scrapped to focus on 999 response before his appointment and after the resignation of former Chief Mike Veale.

"This also feeds into our historic failure to prioritise prevention activity," he wrote.

"Additionally responding to the needs of the most vulnerable in our communities, must improve – significant remedial work has already been undertaken."

An HMICFRS spokesperson said: "The most recent PEEL inspection of Cleveland Police was carried out in May 2019. As is standard practice, an early draft of the PEEL inspection report has been shared with the new Chief Constable and Police and Crime Commissioner of Cleveland Police to consider how to respond.

"Following on from that inspection Cleveland Police will enter HMICFRS’s national oversight process, to help the force improve."

The full report is due to be published at the end of September.