Ulster secretary favours multi-purpose stadium

THE construction of a multi-purpose sports stadium in Belfast is still favoured by Ulster Council secretary Danny Murphy.

“Much has been stated about the involvement of the Association in this project. From the first time it was mooted until now our position is that if a stadium is being built from public funds, then our Association reserves the right to play our games in the proposed stadium,” he states.

“It became apparent that the GAA needed to consider matters arising from the appraisals already carried out. There are many outstanding issues to be resolved before any further decision can be made, but it needs to be stated that our Association has been involved and responded to each stage of the appraisal process to date.

“And, as a result of the decision taken nationally last autumn, a sub-committee has been appointed to examine any future proposals and to refer them to both the Ulster Council and ultimately to the Central Council for decision.”

Dealing with the province’s Modernisation Programme, Mr Murphy explains how the council had to meet government requirements before they could proceed with their plans.

This included a review by an external audit firm from London on a range of fronts such as organisational strategy, effectiveness, structure, legal status, finances, and human resources. The rationale for this, he explains, is that the government can only invest resources in organisations which are deemed ‘fit for purpose’.

The end result was that the council was ‘in a state of readiness’ to justify the expenditure of public money.

“After a few years, which included many meetings, volumes of correspondence, and the possibility of a high profile court case, the government finally conceded that this Association would not accept anything less than parity of esteem and equitable treatment in relation to distribution of resources in line with other sporting organisations in the Six Counties,” he adds.

The programme will entail expenditure of €11 million of government, Croke Park and Ulster Council resources in the Association in Ulster.