FORMER education minister John O'Dowd approved a prep school closure in his successor's constituency on election day.
In one of his last acts as minister, Mr O'Dowd confirmed the closure of Cygnet House, the preparatory department of Glenlola Collegiate in Bangor.
The school had expected to shut saying it could not survive with diminishing numbers and budget.
The decision was only approved on May 5, the day of the assembly election.
The Department of Education said Mr O'Dowd was permitted to make decisions up to the time the polls closed.
It is the second prep to close in new minister Peter Weir's North Down constituency, and fifth since government slashed the sector's funding.
An independent review said subsidising fee-charging schools was an "inequitable use of public funds". Preps charge annual fees of between £3,500 and £4,500 per pupil.
Connor House, which was attached to Mr Weir's former school Bangor Grammar, closed in in 2011.
