Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
£435m spend by ministers at Stormont
Advice from senior officials overruled
STORMONT’S former caretaker ministers made more than £435million of spending decisions in their last eight months in office which senior civil servants refused to endorse.
Fourteen ministerial directions – formal instructions to overrule advice from senior Stormont accounting officers – were issued between February and October, details obtained by the Mirror show.
It comes amid warnings of a multi-million-pound “black hole” in Stormont’s finances as the UK government moves to set a budget in the absence of a power-sharing Executive.
Most of the spending, almost £363million, was by UUP Health
Minister Robin Swann via three ministerial directions issued during the period. A party spokesman said: “Had those directions not been issued it literally would have cost lives.”
Sinn Fein Communities Minister Deirdre Hargey had three ministerial directions for spending decisions worth almost £25million, while DUP Education Minister Michelle Mcilveen issued two worth nearly £21million.
The former Justice Minister, Alliance leader Naomi Long, made one ministerial direction for £20million of spending on legal aid.
Sinn Fein’s Conor Murphy, who was Finance Minister at the time, approved 10 of the ministerial directions, according to the Department of Finance.