DUP minister Paul Givan has “serious questions” to answer over the appointment of his party colleague and former Stormont minister Mervyn Storey as chair of the Education Authority.
Remuneration for the post, which is for a four-year term, is up to £60,000-a-year for a minimum of three days a week, plus travel and subsistence allowances.
The chair of Stormont’s education committee Nick Mathison said the appointment of the DUP man “certainly raises the potential for a conflict of interest”, while SDLP MLA Cara Hunter said it would cause “further damage to the public perception about the approach to senior appointments within our public sector”.
Mr Storey, a creationist and a Free Presbyterian, is a former chair of Stormont’s education committee, who lost his North Antrim assembly seat in the 2022 election.
The 60-year-old entered politics in 2001 as a councillor and went on to serve as minister for social development for 18 months up to January 2016, before serving as finance and personnel minister for the final two-and-a-half months of the assembly mandate.
He was co-opted onto Causeway Coast and Glens Council three months after losing his assembly seat and was subsequently re-elected to the council in 2023.
The former minister currently serves as a member of Education Authority board, having been appointed in August 2022, and is also chair of the Northern Ireland Police Fund, for which he receives £6,000-a-year.
Mr Storey replaces Barry Mulholland, a former chief executive of the Controlled Schools’ Support Council, who was previously head of the Western Education and Library Board.
Announcing the appointment, Mr Givan said his party colleague “brings a wealth of expertise and experience” to his new role.
“He has a sound understanding of the education landscape and an appreciation of the values that underpin the work of the authority,” he said.
“Delivering this transformation will require exceptional leadership. There could be no-one better placed to drive forward our agenda than Mervyn, and I look forward to working with him as we make real and impactful change to the lives of children, young people and their families in Northern Ireland.”
Mr Mathison said he planned to quiz Mr Givan “regarding the process which resulted in this appointment and how he plans to combat any accusations of partisanship in education”.
“It is concerning to see this appointment, given the person involved currently holds elected office for the minister’s own party,” the Alliance MLA said.
Ms Hunter, a member of Stormont’s education committee, said “The minister must ensure that every appointment process is completely transparent and that the best candidate prevails.”
In March, Mr Givan appointed Richard Pengelly, husband of DUP Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly as interim chief executive of the Education Authority.
It later emerged that the appointment was opposed by six members of the authority’s board, while nine voted in favour.
A Department of Education spokesperson said: “The appointment of Mr Mervyn Storey was made following an open, transparent and merit-based competition conducted in accordance with the Code of Practice issued by the Commissioner for Public Appointments for Northern Ireland.”
