A SENIOR member of a police authority has resigned after being caught kerb crawling in a notorious Teesside red light district.

John Whiteman, the deputy leader of Northumberland County Council, was found in a "state of undress" with a prostitute after he paid £35 for sex in his car, a court heard yesterday.

Whiteman, 55, who is married, admitted soliciting a prostitute from a vehicle when he appeared before magistrates in Middlesbrough. He was fined £300 with £40 costs.

The court was told how Whiteman, from Solingen Estate, Blyth, had been spotted picking up the prostitute by officers in a marked police vehicle in Middlesbrough last Saturday night.

Later in the evening, an unmarked car found his Ford Mondeo parked in a layby in Riverside Park Road - near the town's well-known red light area.

And when officers took a closer look they found Whiteman with the prostitute.

Ms Annelise Hougstad, prosecuting, said: "When officers approached the vehicle they found the defendant in a state of undress.

"The female with him was also in a similar state of undress.

"When questioned at the police station, the defendant admitted that he had picked up the prostitute and that he had agreed to pay £35 for full sexual intercourse."

Whiteman, a member of Northumbria Police Authority since 1987, defended himself and denied he was in a "state of undress".

He said: "Since the incident I have resigned all my positions with the council and police authority. Apart from that I have nothing else to say."

Cleveland Police Vice Unit officer, PC Graham Bland, said: "We have problems with people coming from outside the Teesside area looking for sex on the streets of Middlesbrough.

"This sends out a message that, whoever you are and whatever your position, whether a senior councillor, doctor or vicar, we will not tolerate it."