NORTHERN IRELAND FIRST Minister Michelle O’Neill has said she is determined that Casement Park will be rebuilt in time for Euro 2028.
But Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly said any funding for the GAA stadium must be provided on a “fair and equitable basis”.
The Stormont leaders addressed the saga during a visit to a GAA club in west Belfast, close to Casement Park.
Preparation work for the long-planned redevelopment of the stadium began last month. The derelict ground has been earmarked as a venue for the Euro 2028 football tournament, which will be jointly hosted by Ireland and the UK.
But plans by the GAA to redevelop Casement Park with a 34,000 capacity have been delayed by a series of legal challenges and was further complicated by the lack of a functioning Executive at Stormont for two years.
The redevelopment has also been hit by rising costs, with an original projected price tag of £77.5 million (€91 million) now believed to have spiralled well above £100 million (€117.5 million).
Reports over the weekend suggested the cost of building a new stadium on the site for the Euros could cost £308 million (€359 million).
In 2011, the Stormont Executive committed £62.5 million (€73 million) to the project. Last month, the Irish Government offered €50 million towards it, and the GAA has said it will contribute £15 million (€17.5 million).
However, a leaked letter reported by UTV on Friday suggested the UK Government had reservations around plugging the remaining funding gap.
O’Neill said: “Casement Park is a flagship project for the Executive, it is the remaining stadium to be built and I am determined to see that that is the case.
“We are still working our way through the detail. I have read some of those figures and I think we need to dissect that a lot further,” she said.
“I hope we can move very quickly to get Casement built because that is part of the Euro bid which is going to be such a huge economic benefit for the people here.
I am determined for us to get this project over the line and to secure the Euros here. The Euros is a huge opportunity for us not to be missed.
Little-Pengelly said no guarantees could be given until the costs are confirmed.
She said: “Costs have increased, we have yet to see what the cost of that is and we will consider that fully in the Executive in terms of proposals that come forward.
“But just to be absolutely clear, any funding must be done on a fair and equitable basis. We have to have that fiscal responsibility, we consider projects as they come up. Of course we have to consider the business case.”
Sinn Féin Finance Minister Caoimhe Archibald said she continues to engage with the UK Treasury over funding for Casement Park.
She said: “We will continue to raise the issues that are being raised by Executive ministers to us.”
Asked if she was concerned that the UK Treasury would not provide the money, she replied: “We have seen the announcement by the Irish Government in relation to the funding for Casement Park and we haven’t yet had clarity from the British Government in relation to the commitment they made to provide the funding.
“We do need to continue to seek that clarity from the British Treasury and the British Government.”
With reporting from Jane Moore
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