Royal British Legion: Taxpayers' money given to help lonely veterans spent on revamping branch building

Almost £100,000 of public money intended to provide activities for veterans, like craft, drama, and social meals to tackle loneliness, was spent on refurbishing a branch building, internal documents from the Royal British Legion (RBL) show. A branch in Tandragee, County Armagh, was awarded £140,000 from a charity to deliver three projects for veterans, but internal reports show that only £41,000 went on these schemes. A number of people contacted BBC News NI concerned about how the money was spent. The RBL, which conducted its own investigation, said the branch has since been "formally closed". The organisation that awarded the money, the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust (AFCF), is a charity and public body that distributes money to support veterans. It said it found the money not being spent how it was intended, was down to "poor skills and understanding" on managing public funds, "rather than any deliberate misinformation or fraudulent activity". The AFCF also noted that two of the projects were closed satisfactorily and the third did see "positive outcomes for veterans experiencing loneliness". In 2020, the RBL Tandragee branch applied for, and was awarded, three grants totallin