AN investigation into the use of council money to sponsor a table at a dinner hosted by Ian Paisley and attended by Tory Environment Secretary Michael Gove is to be carried out by the Electoral Commission.
The commission is investigating money paid by Mid and East Antrim Council to sponsor a table at a constituency dinner at Tullyglass Hotel in Ballymena, last year.
The commission investigation is focusing on £1,500 "donation" to Mr Paisley for a table at the dinner. The DUP MP has insisted the money was paid directly to the hotel.
Under electoral commission rules, councils are not "permissible donors" and money from such bodies must be returned within 30 days.
The Electoral Commission described the money for the table as a "donation from Mid and East Antrim Council to Ian Paisley MP".
However, Mr Paisley said the money went to the hotel: "I can confirm that the Electoral Commission is continuing its investigation into Mid and East Antrim purchase of a table at my constituency dinner last year."
"I look forward to them concluding this matter soon," he added.
Council officials have also denied paying any money to the DUP with a spokesperson saying it received an invitation to the business dinner.
"Council made payment to the Tullyglass Hotel via electronic payment. No money was exchanged between Council and the DUP. Council will fully co-operate with any investigation," a spokesperson said.
Sinn Féin Mid and East Antrim Councillor Patrice Hardy, who had made a complaint to the commission, welcomed confirmation that a formal investigation had been launched.
"I raised concerns at the time of the DUP dinner hosted by North Antrim MP Ian Paisley last year that rate payers' money may have been used", she said.
"I attempted to get to the bottom of the matter by submitting Freedom of Information Requests to the council and requesting that the Electoral Commission investigate it because local authorities are not permissible donors to political parties
"Therefore I very much welcome confirmation that a formal probe has now been launched.
"The ratepayers have a right to know whether the DUP benefited financially from the council's money, and if so, what is going to be done about it", she added.
Confirmation of the investigation comes as figures show political parties received almost £300,000 in donations and from public funds in three months between January and March of this year.
The Electoral Commission said Sinn Féin had failed to meet the deadline for reporting donations for the first quarter of 2018.
Ann Watt, head of the Electoral Commission welcomed "the public scrutiny and transparency that publishing the data brought to the democratic process".
The donors list showed that Belfast International Airport gave £4,000 in cash to the DUP's North Antrim Westminster Association.
In February the airport also admitted it had sponsored a DUP constituency dinner at the Galgorm Hotel in Ballymena, where Ian Paisley interviewed the Conservative MP Priti Patel about Brexit.
Most of the cash received by Northern Ireland's parties came from public funds such as grants from the House of Commons, the House of Lords, the Northern Ireland Assembly and the Electoral Commission, which they are entitled to in line with the votes they attract.
The DUP received the largest amount of donations, £107,848 with Sinn Féin receiving £80,327.
The SDLP got £27,481 in donations while the UUP netted £25,926, Alliance received £18,615 and the Green Party £16,842.
