Manx education minister 'did not bully union'

The accusation was made against Education Minister Graham Cregeen in July

The Manx education minister made "errors of judgement" during meetings with a teaching union, but was not a bully, an independent review has found.

An investigation into Graham Cregeen's conduct and language was launched after a complaint by the National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT) in July.

The Cabinet Office-commissioned review found "some errors of judgement [but] this did not constitute bullying".

Mr Cregeen said he was "sorry if any comments made were misunderstood".

The NAHT has declined to comment on the investigation and the full findings of the review have not been made public.

In a statement, the government said the investigating officer "did conclude that Minister Cregeen made some errors of judgement and demonstrated a lack of awareness of the sensitivities of others", but "this did not constitute bullying".

Chief Minister Howard Quayle said the review had been launched after the union asked for a formal investigation into the "serious allegation".

"Whilst mistakes have been made, the independent reviewer has made it clear that there was no evidence of bullying," he said, adding that the report "draws a line under the issue".