THE leader of City of York Council’s Conservatives said new rules over how members answer questions from the media was unfairly biased towards the ruling Labour group.

Coun Ian Gillies is angry at a media protocol drawn up by the Labour group which, states that the relevant cabinet member will be put forward for press interviews “relating to policy issues or contentious decisions.”

However, Coun Gillies believes that with all cabinet members now being Labour, any response to the media would inevitably have a Labour spin. The protocol makes it clear that council officers (employees of the authority) will only be able to give “factual and technical information.”

Coun Gillies said: “If it’s a contentious issue, who decides that? It’s easy to be negative, contentious or political, but what do these all mean?

“It’s right that they (cabinet members) are responsible for the decisions they make, but there are no definitions about those words. Who decides what is contentious to whom? My fear is that they will hide behind spin.

“How do you know there won’t be spin put on a response?”

James Alexander, Labour group chief and head of City of York Council, said the changes brought York into line with 87 per cent of other councils.

“I don’t hear Councillor Gillies complaining when Conservative North Yorkshire County, Conservative Selby or Conservative East Riding quote their cabinet members in press releases,” he said.

He said the media protocol was about being “open and accountable” and it was wrong for cabinet members who make decisions to “hide behind faceless bureaucrats when the going gets tough.”

“They should be holding Labour to account on policy not procedure,” he said. “Instead they are only interested in personal attacks, committee chairs and who is quoted on a press release. Local Conservatives have got their priorities wrong.”