A GOVERNMENT appointed auditor is to investigate claims that equipment was misused at a parish council.

Private auditor Emma Prince of HLB Auditors, has been appointed to look into the accounts of Thornaby Town Council, Thornaby, near Stockton.

She has already conducted a standard inspection at the council but will now look at a number of other issues concerning finance, including allegations town council equipment was wrongly used to print political literature ahead of an election.

She said: "It's true that we have been asked to look at a number of issues at the council. The inspection will be on-going and we cannot say how long it will last."

It is thought the second inspection could cost Thornaby tax-payers between £8,000 and £14,000.

Meanwhile, the first part of an investigation by a Government body, the Standards Board of England, into the allegations involving both Thornaby town councillors and Stockton borough councillors has been completed.

The board looked into claims that the photocopier had been misused and allegations that councillors had overstepped the mark in making public accusations against each other.

Details will be published in the coming weeks. However, a spokesman for the Standards Board revealed that it had been found that there was no evidence that councillors Steve Godwin, Dave Kennington or David Jackson had failed to comply with the councillors' code of conduct.

It had also found that there had been breaches of the code by councillors Alan Fleming, Alison Trainer, Ken Craggs, Michael Moore and Raymond Godwin but no further action would be taken. Other investigations will continue into allegations against a number of other councillors on both Thornaby town council and the borough council.