THERE were calls last night for any additional funds for a controversial Belfast City Council energy relief scheme to be withheld until concerns about its administration are addressed.
The council's £1m Fuel Poverty Hardship Fund, which was launched at the beginning of last week, has faced criticism over the manner in which households were expected to secure the £100 worth of vouchers available.
Distributed on a 'first come, first served' basis, the scheme is administered on the council's behalf by nine "partner organisations".
However, concerns about the scheme raised by councillors include forcing people to queue in public for vouchers, sometimes in vain, and the dissemination of information about availability.
It has been speculated in recent days that a council underspend of up to £500,000 could be allocated to the hardship fund, which is understood to be fully subscribed.
The SDLP's council group leader Dónal Lyons said a review of the scheme was required before the council committed any more money.
Mr Lyons said his party recognised the "need for help and support" but voiced concern around the "regrettable scenes that have played out due to the way this scheme has been managed".
“At the start of this process we put on record our belief that there was a better way to manage the roll-out of this funding by working with existing organisations who help those most in need," he said.
"Before any further funding is allocated to this scheme we need to review the way it has been operating and listen to the organisations that have presented entirely valid criticism of its outworking so far."
People Before Profit representative Fiona Ferguson said that in the absence of an executive, the council was right to allocate funding to those in need.
"Unfortunately, there is a concerning lack of transparency over how the funding is allocated, with groups cherry-picked and swapped without explanation or scrutiny," she said.
"This process has led to issues such as vouchers being allocated to those known by community groups before the scheme was even advertised publicly by the council."
The NI Audit Office (NIAO) said it had met Belfast councillors who had raised concerns regarding the scheme's delivery through the partner organisations.
The watchdog said it was aware that the council had commissioned an independent financial audit in relation to the allocation of Covid-19 related funding awarded to the same organisations.
"The NIAO requested that a copy of the independent financial audit report is shared with the local government auditor once it is available," the statement said.
"The council has agreed to do so."
A council spokesperson said: "The allocation and distribution of vouchers from the fuel poverty hardship fund is being looked after by partner organisations in each part of the city, as agreed by our councillors.
"As expected, the fund has received a lot of interest, and all the vouchers for a number of areas have now been allocated."
