A FIVE-year nightmare is over for Middlesbrough Mayor Ray Mallon.

No action is to be taken against the ex-detective superintendent who was "required to resign" from the police service in February, after admitting 14 disciplinary charges at an internal hearing.

Mr Mallon has always maintained he admitted the internal charges in order to be free of the force and be able to run for mayor.

The Government's prosecution service has told Cleveland Police Mr Mallon's admission did not amount to new criminal evidence and there was no case to answer.

Chief Constable Barry Shaw announced yesterday said he is not taking the matter any further.

Mr Mallon said: "This decision is a clear vindication of the stance I took in February after discovering that the disciplinary inquiry into me was being deliberately strung out to prevent me stranding as mayor.

"If I was to stand for political office, the only option left open to me was to admit disciplinary breaches of which I was innocent, in the full knowledge that this would allow me to resign from the force."

Suspended from duty for "alleged activity that could be construed as criminal'' in December 1997, as a result of the Operation Lancet investigations into allegations of police misconduct, he was officially cleared of any criminal wrongdoing after a review of evidence by the Crown Prosecution Service in June 2000, but remained suspended from duty.

He said yesterday: "After five years of having every aspect of my life investigated in minute detail, I am now finally free of Lancet. I predicted it would come to nought and that is exactly what has happened."

Mr Shaw told a meeting of the Cleveland Police Authority yesterday that he had considered referring Mr Mallon's' admission to disciplinary charges to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).

"I have given that matter appropriate consideration and I shall not be referring matters back to the CPS.''

Cleveland Police sent the CPS a transcript of the findings of the disciplinary hearing and the Lancet file.

A spokeswoman said: "The CPS's initial views were sought following the receipt of written information which included details of the disciplinary hearing.

"We considered it and gave our advice. The Chief Constable considered our advice and decided not to make a formal referral.''

Home Office advisor Lord Mackenzie said: "To me it illustrates the whole mess Lancet is. It seems the left hand does not know what the right hand is doing when this involves public money."