Mansfield West member Coun John Carter was accused of potential conflicts of interest while he was the cabinet member for finance and property at Nottinghamshire County Council — but he has now been cleared of all but one minor allegation.

He told Chad he was pleased the two-year investigation by the Standards Board for England was over, but questioned why it had taken so long.

Coun Carter said: "I am not pleased it has taken so long. I had no doubt about the outcome right from the beginning and that is why I stood down as cabinet member because I thought it would be over with quite quickly. It has not been a very nice period for my family and myself.

"I was very pleased with my performance on the cabinet and am very happy with the support I have had from officers and members of every political party, people in Mansfield and the trade unions, so I would like to thank them."

The inquiry centred around a number of property transactions Coun Carter was involved with, including the former Mansfield Brewery site.

A complaint about his actions was initially investigated by the Audit Commission, which raised concerns Coun Carter had pursued his private business interests in the brewery while acting for the council in considering the site.

But the newly-released report from the Standards Board said Coun Carter had considered buying the site several years before, but had stopped pursuing it and helped the council with his knowledge about it.

Further concerns were raised about his involvement as a cabinet member in two property deals with charities he was a trustee of.

And the ethical standards officer investigating said Coun Carter had breached the authority's code of conduct by not registering his trusteeship of the Allotments Trustees for the Labouring Poor — but he had always declared an interest at meetings so no further action needed to be taken.

Coun Carter, who has been a county councillor since 1989, had held the finance and property portfolio for more than 10 years but stepped down when concerns were raised.

And council leader Coun David Kirkham told Chad this week: "I am pleased it is finally over. In my opinion, it should have been sorted out a long time ago and I think it is totally unacceptable."

Two years ago, it emerged that a local MP had been the one to initially report Coun Carter, but Mansfield MP Alan Meale told Chad he had just referred concerns from other people to the authority.

He said: "The people who had the complaints came to me and I simply asked for a meeting with the county council and told them about the concerns. I had little option, but to refer it on. Any subsequent action was taken by the local authority."