RAY Mallon's decision to plead guilty to 14 disciplinary charges is borne out of frustration and political expediency.

He maintains his innocence but sees a guilty plea as the only way to free himself from the shackles of Operation Lancet so he can bid to be the elected Mayor of Middlesbrough.

We believe Mr Mallon has made a serious error of judgement because the value of an untarnished reputation is far higher than a political career, no matter how passionate the desire to serve the public.

Year after year, Mr Mallon has defended his good name in the face of fierce pressure and, throughout that time, The Northern Echo has been a consistent critic of Lancet: It has dragged on for far too long, cost far too much public money, and exposed glaring flaws in the way internal police investigations are handled. We stand solidly behind that view.

We have defended Mr Mallon's right to stand as an elected mayor and called for Lancet to be concluded to enable him to pursue that ambition.

We shared his frustration at the lack of progress and his concern that democracy would be undermined if the people of Middlesbrough were denied a candidate with clear public support.

We fully expected him to be found guilty of disciplinary offences. After four years, in which he was cleared of all criminal misconduct, there had to be some kind of end result for the police.

But we cannot support his decision to plead guilty because it is alien to everything he has stood for.

Once his sentence is passed - either today or tomorrow - he will be back on the offensive by insisting: "I had to plead guilty but I'm innocent really."

We do not underestimate his powers of persuasion, but the record books will always show that he admitted charges including neglect of duty, lying, and discreditable conduct. That will provide plenty of ammunition for his opponents and the knives are already out of their sheaths.

Much more worrying was the negative reaction from ordinary members of the public last night.

Political expediency or professional suicide? Ray Mallon has made the gamble of his life - and it is one we fear he will live to regret.