Lyons says he is 'not a magician' on Casement funds

The minister says his department does “not have the budget” to increase the amount.

Northern Ireland’s sports minister has said he is “not a magician” when it comes to funding for Casement Park.

Gordon Lyons said he “stands by” the £62.5m previously pledged by the Stormont executive but his department does “not have the budget” to increase the amount.

The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) minister said there was a need to consider the “budget envelope” and “what other sources of revenue are available”.

He was speaking after meeting the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) on Thursday to discuss the stalled Belfast stadium project.

The GAA was granted planning permission for a 34,500 capacity stadium in 2021, but costs have risen significantly beyond the initial estimate of £77.5m.

'Basic and modest'

Plans to redevelop the stadium in time for the Euro 2028 football tournament were halted last month after the UK government said it would not provide funding.

It said the estimated build costs had “risen dramatically” to “potentially over £400m”.

GAA president Jarlath Burns last week said revised plans for Casement would be "basic and modest" but would still cater to more than 30,000 fans.

In the Stormont assembly on Monday, Lyons was asked whether he would provide more funding for the project.

"Let me repeat what I have said before, which is there is a commitment from this executive which I stand by - the sum of £62.5m as originally agreed in 2011,” he said.

“We do not have the budget to increase the resource that is there for that at this time.

“Therefore we need to be looking at what is possible within the budget envelope that we have and what other sources of revenue are available."

UK Government says the estimated build costs have “risen dramatically” to “potentially over £400m”.

Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) assembly member Matthew O’Toole, leader of the assembly’s opposition, said it was a “real problem” if the minister was “not going to budge from £62m that was agreed more than a decade ago”.

Lyons responded: "I am not a magician. I do not have a blank cheque where I can get money together and just say, 'Yes, whatever it's going to cost, here is the money that is available.'”

The DUP minister said he has been “crystal clear on this issue”.

“I was not the one that was standing saying that things were going to be built and things were going to be done in time when that was never going to be the case,” he added.

"I know there is a game that is played sometimes by members on the other side of this house - let's blame unionists and let's blame the DUP for everything."

Lyons said that “we are keeping our end of the deal” but people needed to “understand the budgetary environment that we currently find ourselves in".