Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the beirt Airí for coming in and giving us their time today. Like the Minister of State, I will be leaving early to attend the Business Committee meeting.

I want to ask about GAA clubs, especially rural clubs, which have suffered, as have soccer and many other clubs.

They were trying to put on activities and found themselves with 5 km runs, including virtual runs. My GAA club, Caisleán Nua na Súire, has had to cut the 5 km virtual run three Sundays in a row owing to deaths of family members of club members. It is very difficult on the clubs themselves to get money. At national level they may get money, and I know the gate receipts are down, but clubs are stretched, especially clubs that are involved in projects and have applied to and have perhaps been successful with the sports capital grant. They have to make up other money and pay for the ongoing insurance and running costs and everything else.

I also want to ask about golf. I have never played golf in my life but I cannot understand how two or four persons at a golf club cannot continue playing - or a tennis club, for that matter, where there is no contact and there is plenty of space and plenty of fresh air.

I also want to ask about places such as Brú Ború in Cashel. It is a wonderful cultural centre run by Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann, by Labhrás Ó Murchú agus a bhean chéile, Una. Iar-Sheanadóir is ea Labhrás. Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann has done work there over the decades giving tuition and training, instilling confidence into young people, ag rince agus ag ceol agus gach rud, travelling the world and exposing our Irish culture to the world, literally every continent. It has gone out on various presidential visits as well and has entertained people from all over the world. It needs supports. It has not approached me but it is a wonderful venture. There are a number of branches in the country and they need supports to be able to get back up and running. There are archivists working there as well. These places that are locked up are suffering. Is there any way the Department might be able to reach out to them? I know it is all sport today, but there is the thorny issue all the time of the various kinds of dance schools, na scoileanna rince, that have felt discriminated against and felt, with the onset now of a return to youth sport, which is great, that they will take the buachaillí óga agus na cailíní away from the dancing and that maybe they will lose interest. It is hard enough to keep young boys interested in dancing. This will be direct competition for the dance schools because people want to get out and take part in whatever activities they can, and if the sport is available and dance schools are not, that will be denied to them.