A senior civil servant has been cleared of any wrongdoing, following an independent investigation into alleged breaches of discipline.

The investigation came about after an examination of e-mails sent by senior DHSS official Trevor Cowin, over a period of almost a year, led the Chief Secretary to believe there had been a number of potential breaches of discipline and that 'management' had failed to deal with them.

However, an investigator has concluded that Mr Cowin's actions throughout the period were 'transparent', were carried out with the full knowledge of his line manager, and did not constitute misconduct.

The DHSS says there was no case to answer.

Beth Espey reports:

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Among other things Mr Cowin was alleged to have contravened the Civil Service Code.

It was claimed he may have used the e-mail system in a way which breached government policy, and which may have constituted bullying and harassment against staff of the Civil Service Commission.

Another claim was that the copying of his emails to trade union officials could have contravened laws of confidentiality and may have contravened the Official Secrets Act.

DHSS political member, former MLC and MHK Dominic Delaney (pictured), says he is delighted the obvious flaws in the original complaint, from the Civil Service Commission, have been identified.

He says Mr Cowin, and his line manager, acted in the best interests of the department, the civil service and the taxpayers of the Isle of Man.