Casement Park redevelopment: British government offers £50m to back scheme
Uncertainty over the British government's commitment to rebuilding
Casement Park
in west Belfast ended at lunchtime on Wednesday.
After weeks of speculation, a £50 million (€59 million) investment was offered by the treasury to Stormont to 'support the redevelopment' of the stadium as part of the British government's spending review. This sets out the government's spending plans over the coming years, subject to 'sufficient finance' being raised elsewhere.
And therein lies the rub, given that there is a £90 million shortfall remaining of the estimated £260 million cost to transform the dilapidated site.
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Government 'absolutely committed' to pursuing redevelopment of Casement Park for Euro 2028
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But for the GAA and those who have long campaigned for a redeveloped Casement Park, the government's funding commitment gives fresh impetus to a project mired in controversy for more than a decade.
READ MORE
'This needs to be the beginning of the end of the saga,' said former Antrim County Board member Brendan Mulgrew.
'Funding is place by the British government. Some very hard conversations need to take place very quickly around what's the maximum that can be given by other bodies ... today is an opportunity to inject urgency into this project.'
To date, Stormont, the Irish Government and the GAA havejointly contributed £120 million towards Casement. And for many campaigners, its fate now rests with them.
Legal challenges, political disputes and spiralling costs have delayed progress on plans to build the proposed 34,500-capacity venue.
The stadium, the home ground of Antrim GAA, closed in 2013.
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'People said it will never happen but I was firm believer it would'
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Preparatory work at the Andersonstown Road site began last February when it was chosen as a venue for the
Uefa
Euro 2028
soccer tournament. The plan was pulled when the British government said seven months later it could not bridge the gap in time for the games.
'Stormont Ministers, the Irish Government and the GAA need to get round a table and decide how they are going to get this over the line,' said Mulgrew.
Within 20 minutes of
British chancellor of the exchequer Rachel Reeves
confirming details of her government's spending plans,
Tánaiste Simon Harris
welcomed its investment and said he 'will now engage' with the GAA, British and Northern Ireland authorities 'to deliver a redeveloped stadium'.
Up to €50 million was offered through the Irish Government's
Shared Island fund
last February.
The GAA recently confirmed it will also increase its contribution from an original £15 million.
However, the Stormont contribution could prove to be a stumbling block as Casement has become an increasingly politicised issue.
Northern Ireland First Minister Michelle O'Neill has welcomed a commitment of €50 million from the Irish Government towards the rebuild of Casement Park.
Stormont Ministers committed £62.5 million to Casement in 2011, as part of a strategy to revamp it along with Windsor Park and the rugby ground at Ravenhill.
While the two other Belfast-based projects proceeded, the GAA scheme stalled.
As recently as Monday, DUP Deputy First Minister
Emma Little-Pengelly
said that no 'special case' should be created to fund one particular organisation or sport in Northern Ireland, when asked about her support for Casement ahead of Wednesday's announcement.
With Sinn Féin First Minister
Michelle O'Neill
calling for Casement to be built in the wake of the British funding commitment, the onus will now be on her Executive team to deliver. The project is an Executive 'flagship project' and 'more than just a sporting venue', she said on Wednesday.
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