Criticised chief 'has no regrets'

Mr Westwood returned to work at police HQ in September

Humberside Police's outgoing chief constable insists he has no regrets about the way he handled criticism of the force by the Soham inquiry.

David Westwood is retiring a year early as part of a deal struck last year with former Home Secretary David Blunkett.

Sir Michael Bichard's report into the murders said the force failed to keep proper records on killer Ian Huntley.

Mr Westwood, who was suspended after its publication, said he did "the right thing" by standing up for the force.

I took the view and still do that the truth cannot hurt you David Westwood

Huntley murdered 10-year-old schoolgirls Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman in 2002.

The inquiry into the killings in June 2004 sparked an unprecedented dispute between the home secretary and the Humberside Police Authority.

Mr Westwood made it clear he believed he was uniquely placed to carry forward the necessary reforms to his force and insisted he would stay on and not resign.

Asked on Tuesday if he had any regrets about his actions or decisions at the time, Mr Westwood replied: "Absolutely not".

"The decision that I took earlier on - right at the very beginning when we found things had gone wrong here - was to make sure that absolutely everything was thoroughly investigated in the force and that it was made public so the lessons could be learned across the country," he said.

Mr Westwood received the backing of the police authority following Mr Blunkett's suspension order but it had to back down in July after the home secretary took the matter to the High Court.

'Not personal'

The chief constable returned to work in September after agreeing to step down at the end of March.

He told BBC News: "Both my wife and I felt the same - I had done the right thing. I had made sure that I had stood up for the force.

"I had stood up for the area, I had put things right that were wrong and I had told absolutely everything that had happened as the truth and made sure it was put into the public domain.

"I took the view and still do that the truth cannot hurt you."

Mr Westwood also insisted that the public fight with Mr Blunkett was never personal.

"I know it wasn't on his part and I know it wasn't on mine," he said.

"It is the way things are. There are certain political things that happen and you just have to work your way through that."

Huntley got a job despite being known to Humberside detectives

The Bichard Inquiry was set up to find out how Ian Huntley was able to get a job as a school caretaker in Soham, Cambridgeshire, despite a string of sex allegations against him.

Between 1995 and 1998 Humberside Police had eight separate contacts with Huntley - four involving rape allegations.

Despite this he was allowed to take up a job as a school caretaker at Soham Village College, before going on to murder the girls.

Originally from South London, Mr Westwood has served with the Sussex, Avon and Somerset and Merseyside police forces as well as Humberside.

His replacement Tim Hollis, who has previously worked in South Yorkshire, takes over from the outgoing chief on Wednesday.