Vandalised lord mayor painting cost £2,500 to fix

The portrait of former Belfast Lord Mayor Lord Browne is on display again at City Hall

Almost £2,500 was spent by Belfast City Council repairing a vandalised portrait of a former Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) lord mayor.

The painting of Lord Browne was damaged in October after it was removed from a wall inside City Hall and the glass in its frame was smashed.

A Sinn Féin employee resigned after admitting involvement in the incident, which is being investigated by police as a hate crime.

The DUP said "questions remain unanswered" and that whoever damaged the portrait should foot the bill.

'Minor repair works'

The council employed a conservator to assess and restore the portrait.

It was reinstated in December after some "minor repair works", the council said at the time.

The council has now confirmed the cost of dealing with the damage was £2,460.

The figure is more than a quarter of the £9,000 price of the original painting, which was created by Israel Zohar.

The repair bill was disclosed in response to a freedom of information (FoI) request.

The council had initially declined to provide the information, citing an "active police investigation".

It subsequently released the figure following an internal review.

It upheld a decision to withhold details of spending on any security measures introduced in response to the incident.

A new security camera appeared to have been installed beside the painting when it was reinstated.

'Serious questions'

DUP councillor Dean McCullough said the damage to the portrait was "a disgrace" and that it was right that it was back on display.

He said those who damaged it should pay for the repairs, rather than the public purse.

"Restoring the portrait doesn't make this go away," he said.

"Those responsible must be identified, held accountable, and face the full force of the law."

DUP councillor Dean McCullough said the incident had damaged public confidence

"When you talk about cost, there is a huge cost here to public confidence and serious questions remain unanswered," he said.

In a statement, a council spokesperson said the work to repair the damaged portrait was carried out by a professional conservator.

When asked if anyone else would be covering the cost of the repairs, the council said it "wouldn't have anything to add to the previous statement".

The painting was damaged following an event at City Hall to celebrate an Irish-language group's 20th anniversary.

Glór na Móna said it was "extremely disappointed" to learn of the incident and would assist the council with its enquiries.

The Police Service of Northern Ireland said a man attended an interview voluntarily on 19 November.

Police said their "enquiries remain ongoing" and appealed for anyone with information to get in touch.

The incident came just days after a decision to remove former Sinn Féin lord mayor Niall Ó Donnghaile's portrait from city hall.

It followed controversy after it emerged Mr Ó Donnghaile had quit the party over sending inappropriate texts to a teenager.