The £5,000 twits! Town hall shells out taxpayers's cash on 'Orwellian' probe into councillor's tweets... and finds him totally innocent, Alison Austin who made the compliant, photo below.

The Follies are aspreading to North Tyneside Tories The £5,000 twits! Town hall shells out taxpayers's cash on 'Orwellian' probe into councillor's tweets... and finds him totally innocent • Row erupted when Labour's Jim Allan criticised decision by previous Tory administration on North Tyneside council to outsource jobs to private firms • Complaint was made by Tory councillor and an inquiry launched into whether councillor's conduct had damaged authority's reputation By Chris Brooke UPDATED: 01:10, 23 November 2013 Daily Mail A town hall spent £5,000 on an investigation into Jim Allan's tweets - and then decided he'd done nothing wrong Town hall chiefs spent £5,000 on an ‘Orwellian’ investigation into a councillor’s tweets – before deciding he had done nothing wrong. The row erupted when Labour member Jim Allan used Twitter to criticise a decision by the previous Tory administration on North Tyneside council to outsource jobs to private firms. A complaint was made by a Tory councillor and an inquiry was launched into whether Mr Allan’s conduct had damaged the authority’s reputation. It is estimated that the full cost of the investigation exceeded £5,000, including wages and travel expenses. There was even a two-day hearing at the Langdale Centre in Howdon, North Tyneside. The tweets, published towards the end of 2012, related to a council decision to outsource 800 jobs to private companies Balfour Beatty and Capita Symonds. Mr Allan, who leads the Labour group that now has control of the council, said on the social networking site: ‘How could they make a decision without looking at the risks.’ He later tweeted a link to a news item about outsourcing at Barnet Council in London, saying: ‘We have already crossed the line via a Tory cabinet who did not consider the risks.’ On Wednesday, the hearing concluded that Mr Allan was not in breach of the council’s code of conduct. He said: ‘The amount of money spent on the investigation has been an absolute disgrace. ‘We are all in financial difficulty at the moment, and North Tyneside council is no different. ‘The money and time could have been spent in far better ways. ‘I have the right to freedom of speech. There was nothing nasty in what I tweeted, nothing slanderous, and nor did I refer to the council by name. ‘The whole thing was politically motivated. It has been stressful, but I am glad it is over, and the hearing ruled in my favour. ‘I am shocked they spent so much time investigating something that has not affected anybody. ‘It is beyond belief.’ It is estimated that the full cost of the investigation exceeded £5,000, including wages and travel expenses The TaxPayers’ Alliance also criticised the expense. Campaigns chief Robert Oxley said: ‘It’s ludicrous that North Tyneside council has wasted money on an Orwellian investigation into a simple, and perfectly legitimate, tweet. ‘Councillors should be allowed to express an opinion, that’s what we elect them for after all. This appears to be a spurious complaint that should not have been allowed to consume so much council time and money.’ A spokesman for the council confirmed at least £5,000 was spent on the investigation. She added: ‘The council has an agreed procedure, in line with national guidance, that it must investigate any complaints in relation to breaches of the code of conduct by any member. ‘We received a complaint and, in view of the allegation made, agreed it was important that an independent investigation was carried out into this matter. ‘That investigation culminated in the hearing this week. After giving full consideration to the evidence, the panel decided on a majority basis that councillor Allan was not in breach of the code of conduct.’ She said the council had engaged an independent agent to conduct the investigation.