Mr. Tom Ryan:

The Senator touched on two aspects at the outer reaches of our control. On spectators, that proves difficult. One of my colleagues from another sport referred to it a minute or two ago. There can be a distinction between people attending games and our members. Members can be and are identified and prosecuted under the rules of the GAA. If people are not members, it can be difficult. I do not want to be defensive about this but such incidents are not all-pervasive in the GAA by any means. I do not say that to minimise them. It is not a question of relativity. I heard David Gough on the radio this morning and he made comparisons with other sports. That is not particularly relevant. If there are any incidents in the GAA, they need to be taken seriously and dealt with. I am not interested in where we rate compared to other sports; we need to look after our own house. That can be difficult when the people we look to pursue are not members. In fact, it is almost impossible.