FORMER finance minister Máirtín Ó Muilleoir last night said the Department for the Economy should say "how close we are to getting state aid permission from the EU" to address the RHI debacle.
The Sinn Féin MLA was speaking following the publication of a list of companies claiming subsidies under the botched green energy scheme.
The party had called repeatedly for the names of RHI beneficiaries to published in the interests of transparency.
Mr Ó Muilleoir said there are "questions that may need to be asked by the Department of Economy" following the release of last week's list.
[ RHI: The biggest claimants revealedOpens in new window ]
"However, we also need to remind ourselves that this is not the full list of recipients on the non-domestic scheme and that should be brought forward. Only then will we have full insight into the full range of non-domestic RHI recipients.
"In the meantime we are still losing £85,000 a day as a result of the DUP's RHI debacle.
"In that regard, the Department of Economy should tell the public how close we are to getting state aid permission from the EU to address this scheme given that the deadline for introduction of new regulations, the 1st of April, is fast approaching."
The Irish News asked all the main political parties for their response to the list, but only Sinn Féin and the Ulster Unionist Party commented.
UUP South Antrim MLA Steve Aiken said: "RHI, as originally conceived in the GB scheme, had merit, and still provides in the rest of the UK a proper renewable scheme. However, in Northern Ireland the scheme was deliberately altered for reasons that the public inquiry will need to get to the bottom of.
"As the publication of recipients gathers pace, the public will rightly question the competence of Arlene Foster, Simon Hamilton and the debacle they have presided over."
The Alliance Party told The Irish News it was "planning to look closely at the information released and will comment further once we have".
