A REPORT has backed a police authority - despite it having to scrap the hunt for a new chief constable.

Durham Police Authority was forced to scrap interviews for the job last year and start again, after concerns were raised about the process.

The authority was ready to choose from a shortlist of one for the post - current temporary chief constable Jon Stoddart - going against Home Office guidance.

The only other candidate shortlisted for interview dropped out, unhappy at the way the process was being run.

It is thought this was partly because the authority, which has a multi-million pound deficit, was reluctant to reveal details of its finances to the external candidate.

After the collapse of the interviews, the authority's chief officers appointments committee commissioned a report, at a cost of just under £2,000, into the process.

The report, by Sir Dan Crompton, a former chief inspector of constabulary and chief constable of Nottinghamshire Police, was requested by The Northern Echo in a Freedom of Information inquiry.

After initially refusing the request, and taking legal advice, an edited version of the report has now been released by the police authority.

The report states that, after reviewing the appointment process, Sir Dan believes it was fit for purpose and "open and transparent".

But he suggests that in future any planned appointment should include adopting the practice of inviting shortlisted candidates to be directly briefed by chief officers about the job.

In the report, Sir Dan says it was significant that no detailed questions were prepared for the interviews based on the financial plight of the police force, which could have given Mr Stoddart an advantage.

The police authority has since re-advertised the chief constable's post with interviews planned for the end of next month.

Councillor Anne Wright, chairwoman of Durham Police Authority, would not comment when contacted by The Northern Echo.

However, a source close to the police authority said that despite the report's conclusion, the handling of the chief constable's appointment to date had been "amateurish".

The source said: "They should have never gone ahead with interviews involving just one person for a job of that significance.

"Now they are trying to be seen to be fair, but what has gone on already sends a signal out to other applicants in that everyone knows the person who will get the job.

"I would be amazed if any applicants other than Jon Stoddart are there for anything other than interview practice."