Editorial: The DUP should make clear how it will respond if Casement GAA stadium is funded at massive expense

Morning View

Chris Heaton-Harris, the outgoing Northern Ireland secretary, said a number of striking things at the British-Irish Council yesterday.

He seemed to imply, in response to a question, that UK prime ministers should attend such events. But should they? The UK is a nation of 70 million people and its premiers have far more on their plate than any other participants in the event.

Then Mr Heaton-Harris was asked if the government was reneging on its commitment to fund the Casement stadium. He said there will "almost certainly” be an announcement by the new government “which will suggest the premise of your question might not be correct”.

What does he mean? That a decision is made to fund it and that whatever government returns will deliver it? He already caused problems with his foolish implication that funding for the stadium would be found, full stop.

It is reasonable – indeed appropriate – for the government to pay the £62 million originally pledged to Casement, uprated for inflation, about £90 million. But under the auspices of the GAA, delays to the project have seen projected overall costs soar to maybe £300 million.

While London has been repeatedly urged to commit to funding it, the GAA has been almost entirely exempt from such questioning, and so has felt comfortable about saying it will not pay more than the £15m it originally pledged to the stadium. Perhaps not even that trifling sum uprated for inflation.

Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly said yesterday she has been “privy to some” discussions with the government.

The DUP has expressed concern before about the cost of the project. And it might be that the party is unable to stop Casement getting a massively outsized amount of money, all granted to prevent the wealthy GAA paying for an immensely valuable asset that, apart from a few football games, will be entirely its own, but the DUP should make clear that it would view such an outcome with the contempt it would deserve.