CLEVELAND Police's chief constable Jacqui Cheer was aware that the force had a problem with institutional racism as soon as she took over, she admitted under oath today (Tuesday, June 16).

Mrs Cheer took to the stand in an employment tribunal to defend her force against allegations of racism by firearms officer, and former VIP protection officer, Nadeem Saddique.

He claims some "racist" superiors referred to him in private as a "P**i", he was overlooked for promotion, and an Equality Review set up to look into racism within the force was "watered down".

But Mrs Cheer denied the allegations, saying the four versions of the review were intended to be read like chapters in a book, rather than each being a diluted version of the previous one.

She said on her first day as acting chief constable in 2011 she received an email highlighting that there were concerns about institutional racism and set up the equality review to look into the issues, which "was never meant to be in any form an investigation".

But she said: "If people had told me through the review what was wrong I had a determination and a desire to do something about it."

She admitted there were trust issues with the force's Professional Standards Department, which investigates police over misconduct complaints, but she said this was a UK-wide problem in many police forces.

She said when she took over: "The force was a highly autocratic organisation in which the chief appeared to have made most of the chief officer's decisions. It was a top down organisation. We needed to create a culture from the bottom up."

Mrs Cheer also said she could identify with PC Saddique's experiences of prejudice.

She said: "I do understand this because of some of my experiences. It took me back. It is often the simplest things that is the straw the breaks the camel's back."

Some officers were afraid of dealing with complaints about racism in case they got it wrong, and sometimes did nothing rather than take action, she said.

Mrs Cheer also denied "misleading" local MP James Wharton by assuring him some things were being investigated when they were not, saying somebody else had written a letter on her behalf and had made an error.

The tribunal, at Teesside Magistrates Court, continues tomorrow.