A COUNCIL breached its own policy on attending events when it paid £1,500 for a table at a DUP dinner hosted by Ian Paisley, a watchdog has found.
Mid and East Antrim Borough Council (MEABC) has a spending limit of £500 on attending gala dinners or events.
But the council "did not discuss its attendance at the dinner in line with this policy", the Northern Ireland Audit Office (NIAO) said in an internal report obtained by The Irish News.
It emerges amid concerns over how MEABC plans to change its policy in response to the controversy.
The proposals remove the spending limit and allow senior staff to use ratepayers' cash on events involving officials without seeking councillors' approval.
SDLP councillor Declan O'Loan described it as "very dangerous". MEABC declined to comment.
MEABC and another council each paid £1,500 towards the DUP dinner in September 2017 at Tullyglass Hotel, Ballymena, which featured British government environment secretary Michael Gove.
The payments are being investigated by the Electoral Commission because they are being treated as 'donations' to the North Antrim MP and councils are not considered "permissible donors".
NIAO separately investigated and issued public recommendations to both councils.
But details from the watchdog's internal report to MEABC – obtained through a Freedom of Information request – reveals further issues.
The report describes how MEABC chief executive Anne Donaghy "received a verbal invitation" in August 2017 from Mr Paisley to attend an event featuring Mr Gove.
Approval to attend was secured later at a monthly council meeting, but the "cost was not specifically mentioned".
A formal invitation was received by Ms Donaghy on September 5, which described the event as Mr Paisley's "annual constituency dinner" and confirmed the £1,500 cost.
"At this stage the September council meeting had already been held," the NIAO report said.
It added: "The council has a policy on attending gala dinners and events with a normal limit of £500 on attendance in any one event.
"The council did not discuss its attendance at the dinner in line with this policy."
A revised policy has since been presented to councillors at committee level and will go to full council for approval.
The new document makes no mention of any spending limit.
It also says that while council will decide on events relating to councillors, "in the case of officers, the final decision would be made by the chief executive or director".
SDLP councillor Declan O'Loan said the council "was in clear breach of its own policy" in relation to the DUP dinner and "inadequate information was given to council when it agreed to attend".
He also expressed concern over the new draft policy as it "removes existing protections".
"A clause which allows council officers to attend annual dinners at the cost of the council, even of organisations to which they personally belong, and without having to seek council permission, is very dangerous in my view," he said.
A council spokeswoman said: "The policy is yet to be ratified by full council so it is inappropriate to comment on any changes until they've been approved."
