MLAs clash with minister over school pitch funding

Stormont assembly members have clashed with the education minister in a row over funding for a school football pitch in Londonderry.

Paul Givan, of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), denied having "any influence" on a decision to award £710,000 for the pitch upgrade at Lisneal College.

Sinn Féin members of the assembly's education committee branded it a "pet project" for the DUP which "smacks of cronyism".

But Givan rejected the allegation, saying that the funding decision was made by the Education Authority (EA) in Northern Ireland.

Members of the legislative assembly (MLA) have been asking questions about the project in recent days.

It follows the Belfast Telegraph reporting details of a meeting Givan and DUP colleagues held with the school in June last year.

The EA said the project has been planned for several years and followed "normal minor capital works procedures".

It denied the project was "influenced by any recent discussions".

Speaking at the education committee on Wednesday, Givan said he "didn't bring any influence to bear" on the pitch upgrade.

He said the EA had confirmed "there was no influence brought to bear on their decision-making process as a result of my engagement on this particular project".

Givan said Lisneal had been "victimised and targeted in a very political manner" in the debate over the funds.

However, he said there were "legitimate questions" the EA board "could be asking of the expenditure of these schemes".

"When it comes to the decision-making process, I did not take the decision," he added.

There were some tetchy exchanges as the DUP minister addressed questions from MLAs.

Sinn Féin MLA Pat Sheehan, deputy chair of the committee, questioned why the pitch upgrade was being provided to a school which "has already got state-of-the-art facilities".

"This is the issue where a considerable amount of funding has gone into, when it doesn't need it. Now you explain that," he said to the minister.

"And I'm not criticising the school in any way, but this seems to be a pet project for your party and it's beginning to smack of cronyism."

Givan rejected the claims and said the EA's board includes different party political representatives, including from Sinn Féin.

The minister said that people would "rightly ask questions of schools that have and schools that have not", and he wanted to address disparities.

Sheehan accused Givan of "bluster", "belligerence" and "insulting people who ask questions, when what we're looking for is honesty, integrity and transparency".

The minister responded: "I reject the characterisation of everything that Mr Sheehan said in terms of the lack of transparency, honesty and integrity.

"I find it a bit rich coming from Sinn Féin."

Alliance MLA Michelle Guy claimed the minister responded to questions in the assembly on Monday by "having a bit of an insult at my colleague".

Givan said the debating chamber "can be robust", but added that Guy had posted remarks about him online which were "not particularly appropriate".

"I don't think then it really gives you a lot of credibility to then question me on how I respond," he added.

Cara Hunter, of the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP), told the minister that many people online were "calling for your resignation".

She pointed to issues including controversy over Givan meeting with the Loyalist Communities Council, a group which includes representatives of paramilitaries.

Hunter added: "Do you think you should resign, minister? Or why do you think people are asking that question?"

In response, Givan said he has faced an "unparalleled" amount of abuse online.

He said that "rather than indulging the spurious, factually incorrect information that has been on Twitter", the SDLP MLA should condemn it.