Apr 03 - GSD Urges Government To Give Stadium Location “Further Thought”
The GSD Opposition says that it fully supports UEFA football in Gibraltar as it demonstrated while in Government in its support for the GFA Team 54 UEFA bid. It has however today urged the Government to give the location of the proposed new UEFA stadium “further thought” and to “take heed” of public opinion on the matter.
The Opposition says it has refrained from expressing a view on the project until it had all the facts at its disposal including the answers provided by the Chief Minister in Parliament as to whether this is the only site available.
The Opposition’s starting premise is that it would not have built the stadium at Europa Point if it had been elected into Government in 2011. The GSD regards Europa Point as an “iconic location” which is important to the community from a “social, cultural, heritage and environmental point of view.”
The GSD believes that all these positive features will be adversely affected by the construction of the stadium and that, from a traffic and congestion point of view, this is also not a good site to locate an 8,000 seater stadium.
The party is not persuaded, on current information, that there are no alternative sites adding that it believes it is possible to redevelop Victoria stadium to host UEFA matches and that this could be achieved at an affordable cost to the taxpayer. In this context the GSD notes the advertorial placed today by the GFA in the Gibraltar Chronicle which states that Victoria Stadium “is currently being upgraded to a Category 3 Stadium”. This may affect UEFA funding for the works but the end product would remain, says the GSD, in the hands of the community as a multi-purpose sports facility. The party explains that current UEFA rules provide that UEFA football must be played in a Category 4 Stadium or a Category 3 Stadium if there is no Category 4 Stadium available (see appendix). By the GFA’s own admission, argues the Opposition, Victoria Stadium is going to be developed into a Category 3 Stadium anyway. In any event, the GSD believes that reducing capacity would make it easier to identify alternative sites. While accepting that this would reduce the capacity of the proposed stadium from 8,000 to 4,500, the GSD insists that it remains legitimate to ask why an 8,000 seater stadium is absolutely necessary when other small countries have not had Category 4 Stadiums and still enjoyed UEFA football. Given the wider public interest, the party urges the Government to carefully consider alternative sites and indeed whether a Category 4 Stadium is needed at all.
A statement concludes: “In that spirit and given the importance of the issue to Gibraltar, we are prepared to work with the Government and the GFA to look at those alternative sites. A number of weeks ago, as part of our outreach program we asked for a meeting with the GFA and the response was that the committee would not be able to meet with us for a number of weeks. We welcome the opportunity to discuss this and other matters with the GFA as soon as possible.
“The Government should not rush into making a final decision when it does not need to do so. It should concentrate on trying to get it right instead.
“The GSD also takes this opportunity to categorically deny that it is providing institutional support to the petitioners who are against the stadium being built at Europa Point as has been alleged. It is understood that the petition is in fact receiving cross-party support and assistance which must be the case given that the issue has clearly engaged public opinion across the political divide. It is not for the GSD as a party to get involved in the petition.”
APPENDIX
ARTICLE 28.01
Unless stipulated otherwise in these regulations, European Qualifiers matches must be played in a stadium which meets:
a. the structural criteria defined in the UEFA Stadium Infrastructure Regulations for Category 4 stadiums, or for Category 3 stadiums if no Category 4 stadium is available;
