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Arlene Foster has said she is accountable for her former special adviser, but not responsible for him.<\/p>\nArlene Foster has said she is accountable for her former special adviser, but not responsible for him.<\/p>\n
The appointment and actions of DUP special advisers (spads) came under scrutiny on Tuesday at an inquiry into a botched green energy scheme.<\/p>\n
The former first minister for Northern Ireland made the distinction when asked about her former spad Dr Andrew Crawford.<\/p>\n
Mrs Foster claimed while giving evidence to the RHI inquiry that Dr Crawford never raised with her allegations that the Renewable Heat Incentive scheme was being abused, or the potential for a spike in applications.<\/p>\n
She told the inquiry she now believes both of those issues should have been brought to her attention when she was Stormont\u2019s finance minister in 2015.<\/p>\n
The inquiry also heard evidence Dr Crawford sent confidential government documents to family members who were RHI claimants.<\/p>\n
Counsel to the inquiry David Scoffield asked Mrs Foster that if the panel finds Dr Crawford breached standards, to what degree is she responsible for his actions as his former minister.<\/p>\n
Mrs Foster responded by telling the inquiry that she was accountable for Mr Crawford\u2019s behavior, as she was for other officials in the departments she had served in.<\/p>\n
But she insisted that she is accountable, but not responsible.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf he had committed a criminal offence as a spad, I don\u2019t see how the panel would be asking me to be responsible for that,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m accountable but I\u2019m not responsible.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mrs Foster also defended her party\u2019s spads after the inquiry previously heard evidence from former enterprise minister Jonathan Bell about his difficult working relationship with them.<\/p>\n
Mr Bell claimed the DUP \u201ccamouflaged\u201d how they were appointed.<\/p>\n
Mrs Foster said the DUP is no different to other parties in how it appoints its spads.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll of the special advisers that the DUP appointed were people who had third-level education, and who had an ability to work within the system,\u201d she told the inquiry.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am not sure that that can be said about every other special adviser.\u201d<\/p>\n