Cabinet Office minister Josh Simons. A government minister accused of organising a smear campaign against journalists has quit. Josh Simons announced his resignation as a Cabinet Office minister after it emerged he had been cleared by Sir Laurie Magnus, the government’s ethics adviser, of breaching the ministerial code. In a post on X, he said: “The Independent Advisor on Ministerial Standards has cleared me of breaching the ministerial code. “But with regret, remaining in office has become a distraction, so I have resigned from government.” A friend of Simons said: “The investigation found that Josh never sought to smear and investigate newspaper reporters. “He has done the responsible thing to resign to end the distraction, putting the interests of the party first.” This is a breaking news story and will be updated. Follow HuffPost UK on Twitter , Facebook and Instagram . Related... Labour Minister Left Red-Faced After Accidentally Revealing He Faces Sleaze Probe Government Ethics Watchdog Launches Probe Into Minister Accused Of Smear Campaign Why Is A Minister Being Investigated Over An Alleged Smear Campaign Against Journalists?