Police have been mocked over a rudimentary e-fit image of a man wanted for questioning that "looks like it was made using Microsoft Paint."

The computer generated picture was circulated by Cheshire Police in the hunt for a suspect seen with a knife in a pub in Macclesfield, according to the Manchester Evening News.

But a serious appeal descended into farce as his apparently drawn-on beard prompted social media users to question how much money was left in constabulary budgets.

Manchester Evening News and Macclesfield Express readers mocked the e-fit on Facebook (Dominic Gibbs/Facebook)

"There's budget cuts, and then there's using snapchat to take a picture of your mate and scribbling on his face. This is Cameron's fault," said Dominic Gibbs on Facebook.

Another commentators, Ed Coley, said: "When you're in charge of a criminal investigation but only have access to Microsoft Paint."

Some Twitter users simply expressed bewilderment and disbelief at the image.

"I genuinely thought this was a joke," said Anna Gough on Facebook. "Looks like the image was made on someone's PC using Paint."

One Twitter user gave the police a possible "lead" - by drawing a similar beard on David Cameron's face.

One Twitter user, @WeahsCousin, said he thought he had caught their culprit (@WeahsCousin/Twitter)

Others suggested a charitable collection to go towards training courses to help police improve their drawing skills.

"Is this a joke? Do we need to sort some kind of collection? I'm sure there's a course people can go on," said Tor Bullock.

Other Facebook users said they were worried about budget cuts to the police (Joanna Tinitankgirl Tierney/Facebook)

The culprit being searched for entered The Park Tavern in Macclesfield on January 12 and sat alone, with AA batteries in a plastic case around his waist.

He was white, in his late 30s, with short black hair, a dark beard and a slim face.