PRESSURE was last night mounting on the senior policeman at the centre of the latest scandal to engulf Cleveland Police.

Later today, Chief Superintendent Kevin Pitt will have to explain to Chief Constable Barry Shaw how it happened that he relieved himself against the Lithuanian presidential palace wall.

His actions could cost cash-strapped Cleveland Police contracts worth up to £1m. They may also cost Chief Supt Pitt his job.

He returned to the UK last night with colleague, Inspector Kerry Anderson, who was with him the night of the incident in Lithuania.

Only last month, the force warned that it faced a £6.6m shortfall in its 2002-3 budget to cover pay rises, prices increases and police pensions.

The financial black hole is the equivalent of losing 240 frontline officers. At the moment Cleveland needs every penny it can get.

Last night, critics of the embattled force were lining up to condemn Chief Supt Pitt's actions.

Lord Mackenzie of Framwellgate, a former police chief superintendent in the neighbouring Durham force, said they had brought the force into disrepute.

Ashok Kumar, Labour MP for South Middlesbrough and East Cleveland, described them as "shameful," adding: "The time has come for him to step down."

In the past few years Cleveland's critics have had plenty to carp about. Among the problems to dog the force have been:

l Long running and costly internal inquiries that ended in disappointment.

l A senior officer who couldn't remember who was driving his car when it was captured on film by a speed camera and therefore escaped a £60 fine. Detective Superintendent Adrian Roberts sparked outrage amid claims he bent the rules to dodge the ticket in April last year;.

l A police social club mini-bus that was used for "booze cruise" runs to Calais;

l A CID officer who left his job to start a new life in Australia - even though he hadn't told anyone or resigned;

l A PC who had to quit when he was exposed as a bigamist by the wife who worked alongside him;

l A detective who was allowed to leave on a lucrative medical retirement package despite being jailed for drink driving.

But some of the problems have been far worse than mere gaffes.

Like the two PCs who were jailed for six months for beating up a man in a nightclub car park

Even worse, in May 1998, police officer John Blott was sentenced to ten years in prison at Leeds Crown Court after being convicted of two rapes and one indecent assault. He was subsequently sacked from the force.

Last year, Alan Coates, a communications manager with Cleveland Police, was convicted of downloading child pornography from the Internet. The ex-member of MI6 had begun working for the force in 1988 at the equivalent rank of superintendent. He was given a two-year community rehabilitation order.

And then there is Operation Lancet.

Britain's longest running anti-corruption inquiry, which is believed to have cost in the region of £7m, was launched in September 1997.

But after more than three years, 393 allegations, and 14,000 witness statements, the Crown Prosecution Service brought no charges.

Other damaging incidents to come out of Lancet included police hiring a £200-an-hour barrister to help them deal with the aftermath of the inquiry.

Ashok Kumar, Labour MP for Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland branded Lancet an "expensive farce".

"It has been disastrous for the public confidence in Cleveland Police," he said.

The investigation left Cleveland Police racked by internal divisions. The force is still feeling the after-effects.

In the latest twist, Supt Ray Mallon, who remains suspended pending a disciplinary hearing, this week admitted 14 internal charges he has always denied.

Supt Mallon claimed his actions were those of a desperate man.

He wants to stand as a candidate in Middlesbrough's forthcoming mayoral elections. To do that, he must have left the force.

Even Cleveland's sternest critics concede that the force remains a great power for good in Teesside and East Cleveland with an honest and hardworking body of men and women.

According to its impressive five-year Strategic Plan, Cleveland Police: "Recognises and will respond positively to the changing demands placed upon us as an organisation."

Few police forces can have faced a greater range of challenges than Cleveland in recent years.