Steering groups’ members in had any say or influence over

DEE Stitt, Adrian Bird, Brian Kingston, Bob Stoker and Gerry McConville have all denied that they used their role in Social Investment Fund steering groups to benefit projects linked to organisations they were also members of.

And many of the organisations associated with the projects told the Belfast Telegraph that they did not feel they had benefited due to their links to steering group members.

Stitt, who was a board member of Kilcooley Community Forum prior to it becoming a charity, said he had “stepped out of the room” when the football pitch project was being discussed.

In September the Charity Commission ruled that Stitt was unfit to serve as a trustee of Kilcooley Community Forum amid concerns regarding his past criminality and how his home was targeted in a police drugs raid.

“I wasn’t involved in any decision-making processes,” he said.

“I stepped out of the room when the discussions were going on about that project, so I wasn’t involved in any discussions or decision-making on that project being funded.

“I declared my involvement to the SIF group from the very start.”

Stitt is a former chief executive of Charter NI, which received £1.7m from SIF.

However, he was put under pressure to resign after footage emerged of him giving an interview to The Guardian newspaper during which he described his North Down Defenders flute band as “homeland security”.

Stitt claimed that the fact Charter NI had not been mentioned in the NIAO report showed it had “done nothing wrong”.

“Charter NI was the SIF whipping boy for the whole project,” he claimed.

“Charter NI is not mentioned in the report anywhere, because there was no malpractice and there was no misappropriation of funds.

“The whole thing was sensationalised around Charter NI.

“I’ve always said, let the NIAO do its work and let’s go on the actual report.

“The report’s out and Charter NI have done nothing wrong.

“But nobody’s saying that, because it’s not sexy and it’s not politically motivated.”

Jim Rea, acting chair of Kilcooley Community Forum, said the football pitch funding would be held by Newry, Mourne and Down District Council, which is the lead parter.

He added that he believed Kilcooley Community Forum’s project had “definitely not” enjoyed an unfair advantage from having Stitt on the steering group.

Meanwhile Bird, director of the Resurgam Trust, said that he had declared a conflict of interest to the south eastern SIF steering group.

“I declared a conflict of interest, and Laganview Enterprise Centre and Resurgam 3D handled no finances and handled no contract — it was managed through Lisburn and Castlereagh City Council,” he said.

“There was no money came through our bank accounts whatsoever.

“I wasn’t part of the conversation regarding the award of funding to Laganview or West Lisburn Community Centre (Resurgam 3D).

“I declared an interest and left the room.

“And then I insisted that Resurgam Trust or Laganview wouldn’t be the lead partner.”

He added that the Resurgam Trust was not being paid to manage either completed project, and leases the youth centre from the council.

He said it had a contract with the Public Health Agency in relation to the Healthy Living Centre at Laganview Enterprise Centre, but said it “doesn’t’ make any money from that”.

❝ I didn’t have any role in application ... scoring process for centre was done independently