A CITY councillor broke local government rules when she posed tourism questions in the council chamber without declaring she works as a tour guide.

Green Party member Nuala Young should have declared a personal interest when she asked about Oxford City Council’s tourism activities, an investigation found.

It cleared her of two more serious charges of breaching the council’s code of conduct.

She now faces a standards hearing on Tuesday where committee members could suspend her or tell her to have extra training.

But the St Clement’s councillor last night stood by her interpretation of the code and branded the complaint “crazy”.

The complaint was made by Labour councillor Ed Turner following a February 21 meeting of the council.

Two written questions from Ms Young asked about the cost of the council’s Tourist Information Centre and why it was spending £100,000 on external marketing.

And she asked Labour’s Colin Cook, executive member for city development, if services to tour guides and guesthouses had been hit by staff cuts at the Broad Street information centre.

Mr Turner said : “It is not an appropriate use of her position to ask questions at full council about matters in which she has such clear interests.”

The independent report by an external solicitor found she did not use her position to “improperly confer an advantage on herself” but said she should have declared a personal interest.

Tim O’Gara added he could not see how the answers supplied could be used for personal gain.

Mrs Young told the Oxford Mail: “I was talking for the wellbeing of the city, it had nothing to do with the wellbeing of the guides.”

Mr Turner said he accepted the report’s findings, adding: “I am sure the same thing won’t happen again.”