More than four years after the completion of the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) Inquiry, it is unlikely that all of the Inquiry’s recommendations will be fully implemented. That is the conclusion of a report, published today (Tuesday 15 October 2024) by Northern Ireland’s Comptroller and Auditor General.
Dorinnia Carville’s report summarises progress against 42 recommendations (organised into seven thematic groupings) made by the Inquiry in March 2020. The report fulfils the Inquiry’s recommendation that the NI Audit Office (NIAO) assesses and validates progress in implementing the lessons learned from the RHI Scheme, and that it reports on such progress periodically. A previous NIAO progress report was published in June 2022.
Today’s report finds that, out of the 42 recommendations, a total of 26 have been implemented, with a further 11 likely to be implemented in the future. It observes that, while NI Departments have undoubtedly made progress since the NIAO’s previous assessment, the overall pace of implementation has been slow. More than four and a half years since the Inquiry’s recommendations were published, 16 have still not been fully implemented. Furthermore, planned actions by NI Departments in relation to five recommendations are unlikely to fully address the Inquiry’s concerns. In the case of two of these, the status has regressed since 2022.
Particular concerns have been raised with regards to records management, with the overall position of the ‘Record Keeping’ theme having regressed since 2022. Additionally, the report notes difficulties encountered by the NIAO in securing timely access to adequate records as part of its review. Despite the Department of Finance having published a progress report in March 2024, a complete and readily accessible audit trail of the relevant documentation to support this assessment was largely absent when requested.
Commenting on the report’s conclusion, Dorinnia Carville said:
“Considering the seriousness of the RHI Inquiry’s findings and the level of public interest, the lack of progress is concerning. The Inquiry’s findings demonstrated the significant learning and improvement that was needed from the NI Civil Service to rebuild public confidence. Four years on, a significant number of recommendations have yet to be fully implemented and, in our assessment, several are unlikely to be properly addressed by the actions currently planned.”
“Appropriate oversight will be vital going forward. An Executive Sub-Committee, previously established for this purpose, last met in December 2020 and no equivalent sub-committee has been constituted since the Executive was restored earlier this year. As a result, this report calls on the Department of Finance to explore suitable oversight mechanisms for the remaining recommendations - both those of the Inquiry and those in today’s report.”