Former justice minister Shahid Malik (pictured) has been cleared of breaching the ministerial code over a rental agreement.

Malik stepped down last month while the prime minister’s independent adviser on the code, Sir Philip Mawer, examined the financial arrangements of a £100-a-week rent deal on a property in his Dewsbury constituency. The Daily Telegraph alleged he had received preferential treatment by paying reduced rent for his home and office in Dewsbury. It was a claim Malik strenuously denied.

The two-week inquiry received evidence from both Malik and the newspaper. Sir Philip also commissioned independent valuations of the minister’s Dewsbury home and his office. Evidence showed that, contrary to the Telegraph’s allegations, Malik was in fact paying the market rate for both properties.

On being cleared, Malik said: ‘Naturally, I am very pleased and relieved that the inquiry into allegations that I had breached the ministerial code has cleared me of any wrongdoing. I always welcomed Sir Philip’s inquiry as an opportunity to clear my name and I am delighted that this has now been achieved.’

Gordon Brown restored Malik to the government today as a junior minister at the Department of Communities and Local Government.