The Northern Ireland Audit Office described the failure of Stormont’s green energy strategy as ‘staggering’. Photograph: Gareth Fuller/Press Association

Stormont’s strategy to reduce energy use and cut greenhouse gas emissions has achieved just 1 per cent of its target over the past four years, despite costing £107 million (€123 million).

No matter how bad this sounds, the details are worse.

The Department for the Economy, responsible for developing and implementing the strategy, has employed a team of 134 people for the task, at an annual wage bill of £8.2 million.

If this were a business it would be in the top 2 per cent of companies in Northern Ireland by both staff and revenue, yet in almost half a decade it has achieved effectively nothing.

That is the conclusion of a rep

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