Stormont watchdog 'won't have the teeth' to avoid RHI scandal repeat

An independent budget watchdog set up to look at public finances in Northern Ireland won't have the "teeth" to avoid a repeat of the "cash for ash" scandal, a Stormont committee has heard.

The Finance committee has been hearing options for the fiscal council.

Evidence was presented by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Dependence (OECD) and the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS).

The creation of a new fiscal council was announced in March.

Finance Minister Conor Murphy unveiled Sir Robert Chote as chair of the council.

Sir Chote was the chair of the Office for Budget Responsibility for a decade.

The other members are Prof Alan Barrett, chief executive of the Economic and Social Research Institute in Dublin, Dr Esmond Birnie, senior economist at Ulster University and economist Maureen O'Reilly, who advises public and private sector bodies.

Scott Cameron, policy analyst at the OECD told MLAs a new fiscal council would not have the teeth to make the government change its actions.

"They don't have that - that's up to the committee to do," he said.

Jim Wells MLA asked could this new group prevent a repeat of the Renewable Heath Incentive (RHI) scandal - could it intervene?

Scott Cameron said: "They cannot comment on the policy or say whether it's a good policy or not, but they can decline to endorse the budget which means it has to go back to the drawing board."

The scheme, which opened in 2012, paid businesses to switch from oil and gas to environmentally friendly heating, but the subsidy payment was higher than the cost of the fuel.