Mr. Ger McDermott:

Mr. Slattery referenced some of this, as did Mr. Perry. In terms of supports, Mr. Slattery made the point very well that the support network which exists among and within our referee fraternity is really strong. The Irish Soccer Referees Society is excellent and the branches do great work in supporting referees who are members. From our perspective, on the working group referred to by Mr. Perry that has been established to look at referee welfare and the next steps, we have done the regulations piece and some of the governance work. It is now about implementation and additional supports. Something we are keen to implement, and that was started in a number of leagues but which we are keen to implement across all leagues, is a referee liaison officer. This would be somebody outside the current and existing network who could link between the likes of the society, the people who organise fixtures, the referee, and the FAI. It would be important to have that additional person in place. I know everyone is aware of this but I note that those people were asking more of volunteers and asking for new volunteers. The FAI has an obligation and a responsibility to put the education piece in place to make sure we bring in the referee liaison officers and that we train them and explain the steps they need to take. They would have a key role in being that direct contact if and when something happens on the pitch.