A SINN Féin junior minister has accused the DUP leader of "talking out of both sides of his mouth" over his party's stance on a controversial waste incinerator on the outskirts of north Belfast.
Sir Jeffrey Donaldson has written to Infrastructure Minister Nichola Mallon urging her to make a decision on Arc21's planning application "as soon as possible".
Approval for the waste-to-energy plant at Hightown near Mallusk was overturned by the courts in 2018.
Campaign group No Arc 21 met Sir Jeffrey recently and subsequently issued a press statement that claimed the letter to the minister indicated that the DUP did not support the project.
The Lagan Valley MP's correspondence says "that at no stage has the DUP as a party collectively taken a formal decision to support the application". However, in the letter Sir Jeffrey goes on to stress that DUP elected representatives "are at liberty to express their view on the planning application on behalf of the communities that they represent".
Arc21 is an an umbrella waste management body for six of the north's 11 councils and its planned incinerator would burn waste derived from more than half the region's constituencies, including Sir Jeffrey's.
Support for the £240m plant among DUP representatives is split.
Previously, DUP South Antrim MP Paul Girvan has declined to say whether or not he backed the controversial incinerator, while his party colleagues Jim Shannon, the MP for Strangford, and Trevor Clarke, an MLA in Mr Girvan's South Antrim constituency, both penned letters supporting the waste burning facility earlier this year.
But fellow DUP South Antrim MLA Pam Cameron has used social media to signal her continued opposition to the incinerator .
Sinn Féin South Antrim MLA Declan Kearney said his party opposed the incinerator due to "the risk it poses to the health and safety of the local community and the environment".
“Residents will be dismayed that the DUP leader is talking out of both sides of his mouth by failing to take a clear position on the incinerator despite previous cross-party support for the NoArc21 campaign," the Stormont junior minister said.
“The DUP need to make their position clear on the Arc21 incinerator and whether they support the residents or not."
No-Arc21 chairman Colin Buick said the DUP delegation led by Sir Jeffrey heard a number of concerns about the planned plant, "including the many environmental issues linked to visual impact, traffic, pollution and health".
He said that as well as saying the DUP did not support the venture, the DUP leader had agreed that the technology being proposed by Arc21 "is outdated and better alternatives now exist to manage waste".’
A Department for Infrastructure spokesperson said: "The department is keen to bring a resolution to this long standing application for all involved, and officials are continuing to progress the application at pace to the point where a sound decision can be made."
The DUP did not comment.
