Noel Harrington (Cork South West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I apologise for being late. I travelled from west Cork this morning but I was caught out in Dublin by the traffic restrictions due to the protest. I welcome the uachtaráin and ard-stiúrthóir of the GAA.

Some of the lads here do not have inter-county experience but I was a club player for the bones of 20 years. I was very glad to have won a Cork county senior football medal which I treasure. I would like to touch on the following aspect again, namely, the voices that were not heard and where I come from views were divided on the deal. I welcome the deal and view it as a positive approach. However, I understand how the negotiations could be sensitive and kept reasonably close. I listened carefully to the answer given to Deputy Ann Phelan's query on the management structure. Does the delegation envisage bringing a decision or a suite of decisions before congress on, perhaps not the minutiae, but the parameters of a commercial broadcasting deal with the GAA?

One of the biggest problems, and one of the reasons there has been so much conversation about this matter, is due to what I call an apparent consultation lacuna, for want of a better word. The GAA is an organisation that operates on a decision-making basis that ranges from the club, through the delegate structure and right up to congress but it cannot apply that to this decision. Does it envisage changing that scenario? The GAA was caught out because a potential win for the association, the games, supporters, etc., became controversial. Does the GAA's communications strategy need to be addressed? There was a lot of hyperbole about the decision. There are pros and cons for any balanced decision. Can the organisation learn something from the communications element of the decision?

Has the GAA assessed the impact the contract could have on games? Gaelic games are a minority sport abroad. Pay-per-view or subscription television, particularly by Sky, have completely changed some minority sports into commercial sports and beyond what was envisaged when the deal was originally made. For example, the sport of darts has completely changed with such a development. Has the GAA considered the possible impact of a contract? Has there been any discussion about its potential? This matter has been touched on already. The appetite for the games to be broadcast abroad, and within Irish communities, will become insatiable. They will want every county's games broadcast and they will demand access to them. In trying to satisfy demand, will it lead to further issues for the GAA? Will the matter need to be brought to congress?