Letter: There are other flagship projects NI desperately needs first, but if the NIO wants to encourage a stadium in west Belfast, here's a plan for how Casement Park could be made to work for all the people of NI

Regarding the so-called flagship stadium project proposal for Falls Road, Belfast, it is a waste of public funds where, if the government shells out some 200 million pounds plus, all future profits go to a private sports organisation.

The GAA project is flawed, given that no concessions have come from the Antrim GAA board.

During the past decades, billions have been spent on rail links in and around London. The UK government’s Levelling Up policy applied to Northern Ireland should prioritise infrastructure, such as the Westlink–M2 motorway intersection, a rail link to the international airport, and improved road infrastructure. Such projects would bring economic benefits for all – especially for business users. How many European football supporters are predicted to arrive by air to a Belfast airport? If they want to fly to Belfast, will air travel routes to Belfast exist and if not, why not?

The flagship project that Northern Ireland needs is a fast-tracked Belfast International Airport train station development first and foremost, with air passenger duty (APD) on long-haul flights forever abolished. Belfast International Airport has been disadvantaged in comparison to Dublin Airport, from the day that long-haul APD was introduced.

If the NIO wants to offer encouragement for the stadium project in West Belfast, I suggest that the GAA be told, in no uncertain terms, that they will have to relinquish ownership of the site to a joint enterprise, funded through Stormont channels, so that the substantial capital outlay that the UK prime minster mentioned will reap returns for a group of new shareholders.

A concession can then be put in place for the GAA to have rent-free use of the stadium for, say five years; then having a 50 per cent cost reduction for stadium use during 10 more years. After that, the GAA could have, eg, a 25 per cent cost reduction during a further decade. The detail of this formula could be worked out, proportional to the GAA share of investment funding.

A concession to those of a unionist persuasion could be a name change from Casement Park to, say Mountain View Park (in the Irish language, a rough translation is Pairc Radharc Sleibhe).

The current ownership of Casement Park is definitely not for all the people. If a new NI Holdings Company were set up to hold a majority shareholding, then with a private-public contract in place, any future stadium profits could be allocated to stakeholders according to an agreed formula. He who pays the piper calls the tune. The Holding Company would be answerable to new a new quasi-political agency of government – let’s call it NIAMA (outlined below).

For a model, look to the “state within a state” models in Luxembourg (Kirchberg plateau development organisation, the Fonds Kirchberg) - or Temasek Holding company, Singapore – an investment company financed by government reserves, with “a portfolio of nearly $306 billion and has a total shareholder return of 15% since its inception in 1974” (Source: Wikipedia). Closer to home is the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF), managed and controlled by the Irish Republic’s National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA.ie).

The NIO should note that many citizens in Northern Ireland are against the GAA becoming an enduring beneficiary of a mooted investment of over 200 million pounds – especially when our public infrastructure lags behind modern standards.

“Blue sky thinking” is that a new NI Assets Management Agency (NIAMA) at arm’s length from government could be established with Treasury approval, to empower funding of infrastructure, sporting and industrial assets that can generate an enduring income for the NI people as a whole. The viability of new proposals could be assessed by a firm of consultants, with fees being paid by the proposing department at Stormont.

An independent NIAMA could take advice from both the Northern Ireland Office and Stormont department of finance-managed NI Strategic Investment Board, without being answerable directly to either. This assumes that the controlling entity would be the executive office at Stormont.

Finally, an independent NIAMA would need to be free of influence from the Republic of Ireland government, because Stormont politicians cannot influence what the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF) in Eire does.

Dave Bustard,

North Down