THE cost to the taxpayer of a review of all claimants under the Renewable Heat Incentive scheme remains unclear, following the announcement by First Minister Arlene Foster that all recipients are to be inspected.
The Department for the Economy did not respond to a request from The Irish News yesterday on how long any inspection would take and how much the review will cost.
More than 2,000 people, it is understood, applied to the botched scheme before its closure in February, and it is feared it could cost Northern Ireland taxpayers £400 million over the next 20 years.
Mrs Foster, who was the Enterprise Minister at the time the programme was launched, said that there would be "100 per cent inspections" of all those claiming under the scheme, which she said was being abused by a "very small minority".
She did not go into further details, but said that the review would be "looking to see if (claimants) are keeping within the spirit of the scheme and if there are abuses happening".
"It is important that we know the uptake of the scheme...and that those who are claiming properly can hold their heads high."
The First Minister also said that the department would write to every recipient on the scheme to see "whether they mind their names being published."
Arlene Foster: "What we're seeing now are names being plucked out of that list (of claimants) and being publicly exposed. A lot of these people actually applied to the scheme in a very legitimate way."
The Department of Finance confirmed last week that the overspend would impact on next year's budget, which is due to be unveiled by Máirtín Ó Muilleoir on December 19.
