Stormont FM rejects proposal to probe role in botched scheme
STORMONT’S First Minister Arlene Foster has bluntly rejected a proposal from her Sinn Fein partners in government to investigate her role in a botched green energy scheme.
The Republican party had demanded that Mrs Foster temporarily step aside while a judge-led independent panel examine an error-ridden initiative that has left the powersharing administration facing a £490 million bill.
The under-pressure Democratic Unionist leader, who developed the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) during her time as economy minister, has steadfastly refused to stand down, insisting she has done nothing wrong.
Asked if she accepted Sinn Fein’s proposed terms of reference as she left a school in her Fermanagh and South Tyrone constituency, she replied “no”.
Earlier, Mrs Foster, who has faced down a barrage of calls to step aside, posted a meme on Facebook of a guinea pig wearing a pair of pink love-heart shaped glasses below the phrase: “Can’t see all the haters when I’ve got my love glasses on.”
The DUP leader has claimed many of the calls for her to quit are motivated by misogyny.
The state-funded RHI was supposed to offer a proportion of the cost businesses had to pay to run eco-friendly boilers, but the subsidy tariffs were set too high, and without a cap, so it ended up paying out significantly more than the price of fuel.
This enabled applicants to “burn to earn” – getting free heat and making a profit as they did it.
Claims of widespread abuse include a farmer allegedly set to pocket about £1 million in the next two decades for heating an empty shed.
Sinn Fein has insisted that an independent investigation into the affair cannot go ahead unless Mrs Foster steps aside.
The party’s Health Minister Michelle O’Neill said the key element of their proposals is the need to be able to compel witnesses and subpoena documents.
The scandal has erupted at a time when Sinn Fein Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness has been experiencing health problems.
Mrs O’Neill said her party colleague remained at the “core” of the party’s response to the RHI affair.
The lack of consensus over the form of an investigation comes amid similar disagreement on DUP proposals to reduce the overspend. The DUP has claimed its proposals could wipe out the bill, but Sinn Fein has rubbished them.