AN event where business people paid to meet the head of the civil service was cancelled yesterday at short notice.
Organised by lobbyist Terry McErlane, the £86-a-head event had been due to take place at an east Belfast hotel.
It was billed as an opportunity for "round-table" discussions with David Sterling.
Mr McErlane has defended charging money to access the man who is effectively running Northern Ireland in the absence of an executive.
He said he was disappointed the event had been cancelled but stressed that none of the money was going to Mr Sterling.
The Executive Office confirmed that the senior civil servant would not have received a fee but said it was "part of his role to explain the wider challenges the public sector finds itself facing".
When asked by the News Letter if people wanting to meet the head of the civil service should have to pay to do so, Mr McErlane said: "They shouldn’t have to pay to have an opportunity to raise their concerns."
He said no-one had questioned the principle of paying or the level of the charge for the event.
However, he told Radio Ulster's The Nolan Show that he took the decision to cancel yesterday's event "in light of comments made on Facebook and Twitter".
