A council chairperson has denied a breach of conduct following a report of his behaviour to a public services watchdog. The Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) understands that Mournes Alliance rep, Jill Truesdale has made an official complaint against Newry, Mourne and Down District Council (NMDDC) chairperson, Pete Byrne (SDLP). The alleged conduct is said to have occurred during an emergency Mourne Gateway programme board meeting on Friday 2 May. READ MORE: Co Down soccer and GAA clubs 'astounded' by council pitch upgrade delays. READ MORE: National Trust to “answer questions” over decision to pull out of Mournes Gateway project. A spokesperson for NIPSO (Northern Ireland Public Services Ombudsman) said: "We have received an allegation that the conduct of a councillor at a meeting of Newry, Mourne and Down District Council may have breached the Councillor’s Code of Conduct. “An assessment is being carried out under our Local Government Commissioner for Standards function. This part of our organisation looks at allegations against councillors." Last week, the National Trust pulled out of NMDDC's £44m Mourne Gateway project causing it to collapse. The programme board of six councillors (1 Alliance,1 SF, 2 SDLP, 1 DUP & 1 UUP) and three council officers held an emergency meeting following the sudden decision by the National Trust not to provide a lease of land for a planned gondola ride and tourist centres in Newcastle. The tourist attraction was to be funded by £30m from the Belfast Region City Deal (BRCD), which could potentially be redirected in the NMDDC area if an alternative project could be approved. Cllr Byrne speaking to the LDRS said: "This is the first I have heard of this and I am not surprised at the actions of Alliance as they have done this before and it was thrown out at its early stages. My conduct was robust, professional and factual and there was no breach of conduct. "In a meeting between councillors and officers it is completely factual and I will absolutely stand by that. There is absolutely no basis for this, for me it is politicking on an issue when we should all be gathering together in order to try and retain the £30m in the district. "We should be working cross party to do this and not trying to grab headlines about allegations on breaches of conduct, where there are no breaches." The LDRS also contacted Cllr Truesdale, though she did not "wish to comment at this time". For all the latest news, visit the Belfast Live homepage here and sign up to our daily newsletter here.