Photo released of portrait damage at centre of Stormont row

The first picture of damage caused to a portrait at the centre of a political row at Stormont has been obtained by BBC News NI.

The image shows shattered glass in the frame of the painting of Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) peer Lord Browne after it was vandalised last year.

Police investigated the incident at Belfast City Hall as a hate crime, but the Public Prosecution Service (PPS) last month dropped the case due to "key gaps" in available evidence.

A former Sinn Féin staff member at Stormont who resigned following the incident and was questioned by police has denied any involvement.

First Minister Michelle O'Neill has defended her party's response, but Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly has urged Sinn Féin to "tell the truth about what happened".

The image was taken shortly after the painting of the former lord mayor was damaged in October last year.

It happened following an event at City Hall attended by a number of Sinn Féin representatives.

Repairs to the portrait by an artwork conservator cost the council almost £2,500.

The conservator's four-page report assessing the damage has now been released.

It said the oil painting "sustained structural damage" after it was "removed from its display" and its "glazing had been shattered by a single localised impact".

"The damaged glass has left a significant covering/deposit of micro glass residue/particles over the entire recto surface of the painting," the report read.

"This is potentially a very abrasive and damaging residue and will require urgent removal."

There was also a 10cm "scratch/burnished line" found on the varnish layer of the painting's surface.

But the report said damage to the paint layer was "minor" and there was "no structural damage to the canvas support".

The portrait has since been put back in its spot in Belfast City Hall.

The internal report was released following a complaint to the public transparency watchdog the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO).

The council had initially declined to disclose the document through a Freedom of Information (FoI) request.

The PPS last month said issues in building a "clear evidential picture" included "no CCTV coverage".

It also said the Sinn Féin employee's resignation "contained no admission", and a man interviewed by police "exercised his right not to answer questions".

Little-Pengelly called on Sinn Féin members to "tell the truth about what happened".

Speaking in the Northern Ireland Assembly on Monday, the DUP minister said the "disgraceful" vandalism appeared to be a "sectarian attack".

It comes after the first minister last week faced more questions from assembly members over what her party knew about the incident.

The DUP accused the Sinn Féin vice president of "misleading" the assembly in her statement in the chamber following the incident.

But O'Neill said she was "very confident" in the actions she and her party had taken.

She said the damage was "fully investigated" by the Police Service of Northern Ireland and the PPS "has made its decision, and that is the appropriate course of action".