HAMPSHIRE'S top cop was forced to go undercover in the guise of television's nononsense DCI Gene Hunt, it has emerged.

Chief Constable Paul Kernaghan adopted the name of the hard-hitting, heavy-drinking character from hit BBC show Life on Mars in a bid to glean information about perks for chief police officers.

Mr Kernaghan, who announced his retirement last month, was trying to obtain the information in his role as chairman of the Chief Police Officers' Staff Association, to use in pay negotiations with the Home Office.

Butwhen his initial inquiry was stonewalled Mr Kernaghan, 52, put in an anonymous Freedom of Information request using the name Gene Hunt.

In a statementMr Kernaghan said: "I can confirm that I submitted a Freedom of Information (FOI) request on behalf of the Chief Police Officers' Staff Association (CPOSA).

"The request was submitted in order to establish the reality of the benefits packages paid to chief officers by individual police authorities.

"CPOSA initially approached the Association of Police Authorities (APA) for the information, which they were unable to provide.

An FOI request was submitted in order to rapidly establish the facts which will then be used to inform ongoing negotiations into the pay deal for chief officers.

"The FOI request was submitted under a third-party pseudonym because a public authority might argue that the information could be obtained as business as usual' if they knew the body or staff association seeking that information.

"FOI legislation ensures a full response is provided and does not take into consideration the identity of the applicant."

Mr Kernaghan refused to comment on his choice of alias.

The information he was trying to obtain related to the benefits officers of the rank of Assistant Chief Constable and above were entitled to at forces across the country, including car allowances, health benefits and performance- related bonuses.

A spokesman for Hampshire's Police Authority confirmed that they too had received and replied to a request for the information from an applicant named Gene Hunt.