A MEDIA consultant controversially hired to help promote York’s stadium project will not be used again on that scheme, council officials have said.

City of York Council came under fire earlier this year when it used taxpayers’ money to recruit Jim Knight, to help with the publicity for their multi-million-pound project.

But a council spokeswoman has now said Mr Knight would not be used again.

She said Mr Knight had “completed the piece of work that he was asked by CYC to do”.

As revealed in The Press in February, City of York Council hired Mr Knight ten times to help promote their plans for a new community stadium, which will house York City FC, York City Knights Rugby League Club and cater for the wider community.

The council has now released additional details about his work, following a Freedom of Information Act request by The Press.

The authority confirmed that Mr Knight was employed by the council from November 2010 until February this year.

It said Mr Knight was paid to: coordinate and begin the implementation of a communications strategy; give advice to allow a timely response to communications issues that arose; support the project manager through the process, advising him how to respond to media queries; attend briefings with journalists; help in presenting and communicating the council’s memorandum of understanding; and work with the council press office to help coordinate coverage.

The council refused to say how much Mr Knight had been paid, or to release copies of his invoices.

Conservative leader Ian Gillies criticised officials earlier this year over the hiring of Mr Knight, saying it was a waste of money.

Stadium project manager Tim Atkins was quoted on Mr Knight’s website, saying he had helped him become “capable of turning virtually any situation to my advantage”.