For the first time in its 156-year history the position of chief inspector of constabulary could be appointed to someone from outside the police force.

After being named as the home secretary's preferred candidate for the job, commercial lawyer Tom Winsor is expected to be given the appointment, but this has caused widespread anger among rank-and-file officers, insisting he will be there to represent the public, not the "producer interest".

Winsor, the former rail regulator, authored an official review of police pay and conditions that sparked a 30,000-strong protest by police officers last month.

Police minister Nick Herbert told the BBC he rejected Police Federation claims that Winsor lacked the "profound understanding of policing" needed to advise the home secretary. "He was by far the best candidate for the job," Herbert said.

He said that during the 18 months Winsor had worked on his official reports on police pay and conditions he had "demonstrated his ability to get under the skin of policing" and his independence both from the government and the police.

(H)