Mr. Kieran Mulvey:

I thank the Chairman and members of the committee for inviting me to address them this morning in regard to my nomination by the Government as chairman designate of the new entity of Sport Ireland. I look forward to my engagement with the committee today and I hope that members will, on the basis of what I have to say, endorse my appointment to this critical role in Irish life. I was very privileged to be appointed chairman of the Irish Sports Council and I humbly acknowledge the honour that has been bestowed on me by the Government, and will I hope be bestowed on me by this committee, in being appointed to the chairmanship of Sport Ireland.

As members will be aware from their deliberations on the act leading up to its report of March 2014, the proposal which arises is the merging of the Irish Sports Council with the National Sports Campus Development Authority and the creation of one statutory body, Sport Ireland. That has to be a welcome development in the context of maximising synergies and resources and enabling concentration on the development of sports in Ireland, at local and national level and through the national governing bodies. It will also utilise the physical capacity and capability of the national campus itself, which is a hallmark development for the positioning of national sports in one campus and should add value to that effort.

Sport Ireland will be a composite of four bodies, including Coaching Ireland, the Irish Institute of Sport, the high performance section of the Irish Sports Council and the campus. Creating synergy is important and has already been achieved through Coaching Ireland and the institute of sport working under the Irish Sports Council. The new board will focus on developing potential within the one entity. I do not think it will be difficult to achieve as both the Irish Sports Council and the National Sports Campus Development Authority have worked very closely with the Department and Ministers over the past number of years. It is not as if it is a shotgun marriage - it is a joint venture that has the support of everybody involved. It is positive that we have worked in tandem in the past and hopefully we will do so as one entity in the future.

Since my appointment as chairman of the Irish Sports Council, I have made it a point, subject to the time available, to visit as many NGB occasions as possible, be they conferences, special events, dinners or award ceremonies. I think I have got to most of them, even the Irish Amateur Boxing Association and its national competitions. I have established a very good working relationship with the chief executives, the presidents and the honorary officers of the boards of those organisations. I have met them individually and collectively and listened to them on the subject of their funding arrangements for each year. Despite some difficulties, 99% of the time spent there constitutes a good working relationship among the campus, the Sports Council and the NGBs. Of particular importance to me have been my relationships with the Olympic Council of Ireland and its president, Pat Hickey, Paralympics Ireland and its chief executive, Liam Harbison and Matt English of Special Olympics Ireland. These are very important bodies that do very important work, both nationally and internationally, on behalf of athletes of all capabilities. That is important because dysfunctional relationships among individuals and organisations have riven sport in the past, leading to unseemly rows about certain issues, although thankfully this is not happening at the moment.

Managing the situation over the past five years has been a challenge with the restraints in public expenditure and cutbacks in sport. Particularly important aspects of that have been the continuation of the sports capital programme, which has been a vital component to NGBs, and the effective and generous use by the Department and the Minister of dormant accounts for equipment. That has put Irish sport and the NGBs in a good place, both from the point of view of facilities and equipment, and we are getting a payback from those organisations for the investment of a considerable volume of taxpayers' money over the period. We cannot have much of an argument with the various sports for the return they have made on the taxpayers' investment, through the Government and the Oireachtas. They are largely excellent people of calibre, integrity, ability and achievement.

At an international level this success has been reflected in medalling, which has been a feature in international competition in the past five years. This is the pinnacle which enables us to wrap the green flag around us and we enjoy seeing podium finishes for our athletes and teams and the tricolour alongside the flags of other nations of the world. To use a phrase which may be a bit unfortunate in the current circumstances, we box above our weight in a multiplicity of sports. One of the excellent features in sport in the past number of years is the extent to which, outside our own national sports, participation levels have increased. We are now getting back into sailing and, hopefully, rowing has come of age. We are bringing though individual athletes in track and field to follow what John Treacy and Senator Eamonn Coghlan achieved before them. We have identified and brought forward really good junior talent, particularly through the women in sport programme, without which we would not have Annalise Murphy or Katie Taylor to set an example of excellence. There are hundreds coming through the system.

The high-performance endeavour and special programmes such as women in sport are bearing reward for the nation, not just in our national sports of Gaelic Football, Hurling and Camogie but also in minority sports such as cricket, hockey, equestrian sports, sailing and judo. Merging athletes such as triathletes and modern pentathletes are now featuring at international level, having had little or no participation or excellence in the past. The one great sadness of the Olympic Games in London was that we had two fourth places. We were so close to additional medals and those athletes have continued to perform at world level. The Irish Institute of Sport has been a marvellous development. Coaching Ireland, based in the University of Limerick, is also an outstanding organisational arrangement for developing coaches in all the disciplines.

Those who participate in our main field sports now perform to a level not achieved before. The numbers are on an upward trend and, according to the ESRI's Irish Sports Monitor assessment, we have almost reached parity in terms of female and male participation in sport. We hope to have this parity within the next two or three years.

The functions of Sport Ireland have been laid out and I will now discuss its targets for the next four or five years. These include: ensuring the board and executive operate effectively; that the interchange with, funding for and arrangements in respect of national governing bodies are brought forward and that targets in respect of participation, winning medals, coaching and success which can be achieved but which are both realistic and challenging are set for them. The national governing bodies will, therefore, be very important. Sport Ireland must also ensure the facilities, coaches and high-performance directors are in place and that local sports partnerships are structured and funded to bring about synergies between sports.

The committee's report dealt with the facilities in which the State has invested and I am very glad of this. The State has provided billions of euro for physical facilities for all sports throughout the country. These must be shared and utilised appropriately and properly, and it is the same for third level and second level institutions, which must be utilised and maximised, with the agreement and support of all of the national governing bodies, to bring forward greater participation. This is not just about people engaged in sport, it is also about wider community activity, including on the part of older and younger individuals who may not be involved in competitive sports but who are involved in leisure sports. I hope we will make more effort in the capital sports programme to ensure that those high-cost and expensive facilities do not lie fallow and are utilised by local communities. I appreciate there are ownership and leasing issues and that individual sports must take priority in the context of using their own facilities. However, there are times when there is greater availability for local communities and other non-competitive training and coaching activities.

We all remember the controversy about what was euphemistically termed "the Bertie bowl". However, the decision to acquire the 500 acres of land where it was to be situated was a far-sighted one. My regret is that this is top-quality agricultural land and my heart goes out when I see it being dug up in order that buildings might be erected. The land is strategically located in Abbotstown, which is located off the M50, and the facility there is tremendous. It is probably the hidden gem of Irish physical sports development but it is coming on stream in leaps and bounds, with buy-in from the various sports organisations. In addition, some 20 national governing bodies - including that of the FAI - have located their headquarters there and there are more to come on board, including Sport Ireland. We are supposed to be accommodated in Abbotstown House, which is to be renovated. If the yard is available and is restructured and renovated, Sport Ireland will go in there to show there is a physical location for all of the agencies.

I hope that in the next five years we will complete the indoor arena - the project relating to which is proceeding on schedule - and tender for and complete the construction of a velodrome, particularly as we have to win medals in the sport of cycling. From the point of view of developing cycling in Ireland, there is a need for a velodrome and it is the next infrastructural project. After this are two considerations I have heard from certain national governing bodies, particularly the FAI, the GAA and the IRFU, namely, that there is a need for covered stadia, particularly in view of the nature of Irish weather, in order that training can take place on a year-round basis. Perhaps we can examine this matter in the context of development.

There is a need for accommodation on the campus. I am not sure as to the nature of the accommodation required but the project seems right for a public private partnership of some description, particularly in view of the proximity to Blanchardstown Institute of Technology, Connolly Hospital and Dublin City University. In addition, there is a need for the IRFU, the FAI, occasionally the GAA, and hockey and other sports to be accommodated on the campus. There may be a prospect for commercial development, perhaps a hotel or whatever. The big issue regarding the future development of the campus is making it pay so it does not become a burden on the taxpayer and at least breaks even or makes a profit. Perhaps we do not need all of the land. I would need to be reassured about this. There is pressure in the area for further business park expansion and for Connolly Hospital to be developed further. Perhaps we could generate additional funding for public private partnerships which would not be a burden on the taxpayer as private money could be generated to build some of the facilities.

The committee is aware of the legacy issue regarding an outstanding legal case with Dublin Waterworld. This matter is still before the courts and I do not wish to comment further on it. It is an issue to which I must devote my attention immediately because it has proved to be an extraordinary drain on resources and has required major input on the part of the executive of the organisation. We must resolve this matter, either through the courts or by means of another arrangement.

A meeting will be held later today with Cricket Ireland about developing Malahide. We need a national cricket ground because 10,000 people will go to see the Irish cricket team play tests. We want to be a test nation. We have done a deal and signed a memorandum with Fingal County Council, under its chief executive, Paul Reid, and it is ready to go. I hope the Minister can show some largesse because the project will cost approximately €3 million to complete. We cannot erect stands every time Ireland needs to play a cricket match. It is an ideal venue and has North-South connectivity.

The North-South dimension with Sport Northern Ireland is important. A meeting was recently held with Ministers and chief executives, and we have decided to have an annual meeting. We will continue to share operations because we have all-Ireland sports and it is very important that we do not overlap and duplicate facilities which can be available on all of the island to everybody. Everywhere is within driving distance now and one does not need to fly anywhere. The more we keep our coaches and athletes at home, the better it will be for them in the context of increasing capability and creating additionality.

In broad scope, these are the areas I hope to develop. There will be others which the committee will require us to address in our annual reports.