Belfast City Council has been branded "tone deaf" after spending almost £1,000 during the cost-of-living crisis on civic receptions to unveil portraits of three Sinn Féin former lord mayors.
A food-and-drink reception in the banqueting hall of Belfast City Hall to reveal portraits of Sinn Féin MP John Finucane and party MLA Daniel Baker cost ratepayers £820.
And a further £156.25 was spent on a separate event in the lord mayor's parlour to unveil former Communities Minister Deirdre Hargey's portrait after she was unable to attend the earlier reception.
