MIDDLESBROUGH mayor Ray Mallon has pleaded with David Cameron to show the town ‘special consideration’ in an attempt to minimise the impact of public sector cuts.

In a letter to the prime minister he states that Middlesbrough and Teesside will stand to lose funding of £229m and £900m respectively over the five-year period leading on from 2010’s Comprehensive Spending Review.

Middlesbrough Council alone will be forced to cut its budget by more than £60m by the end of 2015/16 and emergency services also face budget pressures.

Mr Mallon wrote: "The loss of such significant levels of funding over such a short period of time can only lead to further long-term deprivation and serious hardship, issues which will become costly, both in human and financial terms, to redress."

He added: "What is becoming clear is your Government’s complete lack of understanding and, indeed, compassion for this area, the problems we face and the long-term damage your policies are beginning to inflict."