Statement by TUV vice chairman councillor Allister Kyle:
“The report published today is nothing but an attempt to kick up dust around the outrageous demands for public money coming from the GAA.
“With the announcement on Wednesday of the subregional stadium funding, the Minister set the benchmark for Casement. The £36.2 million figure announced on Wednesday by the Minister is identical to the sum announced and ring fenced by the executive in 2011. By that standard, it is only fair that the GAA receive the same amount as originally promised and no amount of spin should obscure that.
“At the heart of all this is the reality that Euro 2028 is a football tournament which should leave a football legacy. Grassroots football fans would much rather see the money go into the local game than into the GAA in order to obtain a handful of matches in a stadium which isn’t even a football ground.”
“As someone who attends Irish League games regularly throughout the country, I recognise the need and importance there is to upgrade our facilities, but with so many recent reports surmising that Casement may cost over £300m rather than the original £62.5m, it’s highly disappointing that the much anticipated Sub Regional fund was not increased at all. Instead, the monies ring fenced in 2011 were simply circulated with the promise to release them in 2025. Compared to Casement, football got roughly a fifth for the money in comparison.”