A former council leader is asking for an apology after being cleared of misconduct.
A complaint was lodged against Joe Harris after he revealed he was the councillor in a counter fraud investigation by Cotswold District Council. The report did not find any fault but he went public and referred himself to the monitoring officer for "complete transparency".
"I believe it is now appropriate for the council to acknowledge that the implication arising from the counter fraud report was incorrect and to apologise for the impact this has had on me and my reputation," Harris said.
The current council leader said they will discuss the outcome of the complaint with the chief executive and the senior team.
The council's monitoring officer, in consultation with an independent person, found there was no breach of the code of conduct.
The Local Democracy Reporting Service reports the decision notice states there is no evidence Harris, a Liberal Democrat councillor, influenced the outcome of the procurement and did not take part in evaluating bids or awarding the contract.
He did not misuse his position or exert pressure on officers and did not receive any personal or indirect benefit, it also stated, and there was no undeclared conflict of interest.
Harris welcomed the outcome and asked for an apology from the council after rumours and conspiracy theories spread about him online in what he said had been "a difficult period" for his family.
Harris also said his partner was employed months after the procurement process ended by one of the firms which sought, but was not awarded, the council work.
"The outcome of this independent investigation makes clear that, in my case, no such undeclared interest existed," Harris said.
"The implication arising from that report was therefore incorrect. If the counter fraud team had interviewed me as part of their original investigation I could have set the record straight and all of this could have been avoided."
The council has identified lessons to strengthen its internal procurement processes, but these do not relate to any misconduct by Harris, Mike Evemy, leader of the council, said.
"I am aware of the pressure that this process has put on him and his family in the last five months while the complaint was live," he said.
"I will discuss the outcome of this complaint with the chief executive and her senior team, so we can learn from this and consider Joe's request for an apology from the council."