The long-delayed portraits of three Sinn Féin former Belfast lord mayors which have cost ratepayers up to £40,000 are to be unveiled in a civic reception.
All 60 councillors have been invited to the evening event next week in the banqueting hall of Belfast City Hall, with a finger buffet to be provided.
The portraits of Deirdre Hargey, John Finucane and Daniel Baker are being unveiled following numerous delays some years after their mayoral tenures came to an end.
Read more: Cost of living: Belfast residents facing 12.5% rates rise, councillors warned
It comes at a time when councillors have warned that rates in Belfast could be increased by 12.5% next year due to council spending pressures.
The DUP said the planned civic reception felt "inappropriate at a time when we are trying to encourage others to show restraint".
Belfast City Council is the only local authority in Northern Ireland which routinely commissions painted portraits of its civic leaders, spending almost £200,000 of ratepayers' cash on them since 2005.
Public spending campaigners have previously branded such displays an "expensive vanity project", but the council has defended it as a tradition "popular with citizens and tourists alike".
Ms Hargey was lord mayor in 2018-19 and has since become Stormont's Communities Minister. Her portrait was created by artist Catherine Creaney with a budget of between £10,000 and £13,000.
Mr Finucane was lord mayor in 2019 until his election in December that year as MP for North Belfast. He was replaced for the remainder of his term by Mr Baker, who has since become an MLA for West Belfast.
Mr Finucane's portrait by Lia Davis was estimated to cost £12,000, while Mr Baker's portrait by Tony Bell cost £14,950.
Councillor George Dorrian, the DUP's group leader at city hall, expressed concern about the planned three-way civic reception to unveil the portraits.
He said: "The DUP group on Belfast council has been warning for some time that careful consideration needs to be given around spending in light of pressures on council.
"Some events are justified and necessary, for example, to promote the city and secure investment, but others feel inappropriate at a time when we are trying to encourage others to show restraint."
His party colleague Frank McCoubrey, who was lord mayor in 2020-21, unveiled his portrait in February amid the Covid-19 pandemic. It was painted by Co Antrim artist Stephen Johnston at a cost of £10,000.
Mr Dorrian added: "In this case, following his term and due to the health emergency, Alderman Frank McCoubrey unveiled his own portrait with only two family members present, which was appropriate.
"We urge others to show the same restraint."
On Monday, a Sinn Féin councillor said the Belfast City Council area could be facing a rates increase of 12.5% next year due to local government spending pressures.
Calling for Stormont power-sharing to be restored, Ciaran Beattie said the potential surge was "absolutely scary" for ratepayers already struggling with the rising cost of living.
The DUP, which has blocked Stormont in protest over Brexit's Northern Ireland Protocol, said the trade deal is "driving up the prices on our shelves" and "must be replaced with sensible arrangements which unionists can support".
Belfast City Council said the pandemic and the process around the commissioning of artists contributed to delays in the three former lord mayors' portraits.
It is understood the cost of the civic reception is unknown at this stage as numbers attending have not yet been confirmed.
A spokeswoman said: "A small civic reception hosted by the current lord mayor is held each year, to unveil the official portrait of their predecessor. All councillors, the former lord mayor and their family, and the artist(s) and their families are invited.
"There is a long-standing tradition to commission a portrait of each lord mayor of Belfast to mark their term in office. The portraits are on public display in Belfast City Hall and are viewed by thousands of visitors each year, during public tours of the building.
"The portraits are considered important historical artefacts and contribute to the fabric of the building's rich history."
Sinn Féin was also approached for comment.
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