WILTSHIRE Police have closed an investigation into Chippenham MP Michelle Donelan, having found no evidence that she broke General Election spending rules.

An investigation was launched following reports by the Daily Mirror and Channel 4 that Conservative MPs failed to declare expenses regarding the party's Battle Bus, which visited constituencies during the General Election last year.

Police concluded that the Battle Bus in question did not visit Chippenham during the election campaign, despite receiving a number of complaints from members of the public.

Wiltshire Police said: “Wiltshire Police received a number of e-mails in the early part of 2016 from members of the community who were concerned that Michelle Donelan, the MP for Chippenham, and her agent had misrepresented their expenses in the 2015 General Election.

“This was in relation to the Conservative Party’s use of the ‘Battle Bus’ which had been reported by Channel 4 News and the Daily Mirror.

“Wiltshire Police have investigated these allegations and are satisfied that the details as reported were in fact not present in Michelle Donelan’s campaign.

“The Electoral Commission's information would also tend to suggest that the ‘Battle Bus’ in question did not visit the Chippenham constituency.

“Wiltshire Police have closed their investigation and conclude that Michelle Donelan and her agent were not in breach of any offences contained in the Representation of the Peoples Act 1983.”

Miss Donelan said: “I'd like to thank the police for their thorough and reassuring investigation.

“While I am of course pleased that the police have officially confirmed that the misinformation spread by both Channel 4 and the Mirror was without foundation, I regret that police and court resources, as well as tax payers’ money, have been wasted in confirming the allegations made by the media were ill-informed, and, some might say, politically-motivated nonsense.

“I will now ensure that media outlets who have misreported the truth either print or air retractions.”

Ms Donelan said in a statement in May: “I would like to be absolutely clear that the Battle Bus did not visit my constituency.

"The Prime Minister did visit the constituency in a Leader’s bus, significantly, this is not the bus in question.

"The Battle Bus filled with activists toured constituencies in the last 10 days - a simple fact check shows that it never came to Chippenham.

"Whilst in one way I welcome the investigation that I know will show these claims to be entirely false, it is a shame that police resources are being wasted in such a way.

"Given that the Battle Bus never visited my constituency I expect the police’s investigations to be concluded swiftly."