TOP officers at City of York Council will no longer be able to earn extra cash by running arms-length companies for the authority, it has been confirmed.

The clampdown was agreed at a council executive meeting on Thursday night, after a long-running row over the way two high-ranking staff were paid thousands for running the council's money making arm.

The row resulted in a Public Interest Report by auditors Mazars, as first revealed in The Press in February. On Thursday night the authority's ruling executive reeived an update on what had happened since.

The council agreed not to give any more extra payments of that kind.

Chief Executive Steve Stewart said it was a "definitive decision" and would leave no further actions arising from the issue.

The report confirmed that the two staff involved, Ian Floyd and Pauline Stuchfield, had agreed to pay back the money, and Mazars had agreed the payments did not have to be retrospectively approved.

Changes to the council's rules of procedure and webcasting protocols were also agreed, to remove a ban on any criticism of council officers in public meetings.

But governance campaigner Gwen Swinburn, who has spoken out on the issue, told the committee she was not satisfied with the staff agreeing "pay day loan style repayments" of cash they should not have had.

She criticised the council for not apologising or acknowledging wrongdoing, and for failing to address why thousands had been spent on external legal advice when the authority has in-house lawyers.

Mr Stewart told the committee that new reports were being prepared to check the current governance of existing council owned companies, and to lay out future governance guidance for any new companies that could be set up.