CLEVELAND Police Authority was last night hopeful of Government help to offset the costs of long-running corruption inquiry Operation Lancet, following talks with a Home Office minister.

A delegation from Cleveland Police Authority met Home Office Minister Charles Clarke, yesterday.

They pressed for metropolitan status for Cleveland Police, an acceleration of recruitment, and help with the multi-million pound cost of Operation Lancet, and associated inquiries.

Members of the deputation described the meeting as both "positive and constructive".

Councillor Ken Walker, chairman of the police authority, said: "No one expects to get instant answers from a meeting of this kind, but it was a useful opportunity for us to underline to the minister key issues we had raised in our letter asking for talks."

Under present Government plans, the police authority will be receiving funding to recruit 74 extra officers by March 2003, but Cleveland Police's wish is to achieve that target much earlier.

On the subject of the costs of Lancet, totalling £3.75m for just this year and the previous 12 months, Mr Clarke suggested the authority had further discussions with his department.

Coun Walker said: "One of our central concerns remains that, whilst costs have to be met locally by the authority, the conduct and control of major investigations rests elsewhere, with the national Police Complaints Authority.

"We do not believe that is right, and we hope the Government will take that into account in its review of police complaints procedures.''

Ashok Kumar, MP for Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland, said: "Unless there is a commitment by both the Police Complaints Authority and by the Cleveland Police and the Cleveland Police Authority to both speed up and impose a strict time limit on all outstanding disciplinary measures that have burgeoned under Lancet, then there will remain the suspicion that extra resources will simply go into continuing, what most people now regard, as probably the country's most expensive wild goose chase ever.''

A Home Office spokeswoman last night described the talks as "constructive and wide ranging''.

Chief Constable of Cleveland Police Barry Shaw was also positive about the meeting and seemed to accept the decision.

He said: "The costs of investigations of this nature are normally borne from within a police force budget."