Members of the Ulster Farmers’ Union who own biomass boilers accredited under the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) have been advised by the union not to disclose their names unless an audit has been carried out on their installations.

Owners of biomass boilers have until 10 January to contact the Department for the Economy to opt out of their names being made available to the public.

“We fear this is not about transparency but efforts to shift the focus from those who failed to safeguard the taxpayer,” UFU chief executive Wesley Aston said.

He also criticised delays by the Department in getting audits carried out. However, more delays are to be expected with the poultry sector now in lockdown with the threat of bird flu.

Review

Aston pointed out that the majority of RHI claimants are using the scheme legitimately and that the UFU supports a review of the RHI scheme.

“The focus now must be on finding out how they got it so badly wrong and ignored lessons from elsewhere, not on trying to change the rules to punish those who made legitimate investments,” he said.

The union has said it has also reviewed its involvement in talks surrounding the closure of the scheme.

The UFU warned Department officials in July 2015 about the potential for a spike in applications, and proposed a grace period for applicants that had already invested in boilers but were not yet accredited.

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