Micheál Carrigy (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the representatives from all three associations. I should put on the record that I am a member of the GAA. I was also a member of the ard comhairle in Croke Park for many years. I am fully supportive of the one-club model. It is something I always supported when it was discussed by the former uachtaráin John Horan at the time his memorandum of understanding was put forward. I look forward to the day when it is successful, and it will be successful. As Mr. Molloy said, it is a journey worth taking and one we must all take together in order to get to that point. Naturally, there are key challenges. In order to overcome those challenges, one thing is very important. The word "volunteers" was mentioned. I am one of those volunteers. I am still treasurer of my own GAA club in Longford. We need to maintain that and the amateur status of the association. That is key in everything we do and core to what we are as an organisation. That is why I believe we are the organisation we are - the biggest voluntary sporting organisation in the world.

The three Fs were mentioned: fixtures, facilities and finance. I would probably include an R for rules as another area where there might be issues. On funding, Mr. Ó Broin could not put a figure on it but if we, as members of Government and Opposition parties, and as a committee can make recommendations to the Government it is important that significant infrastructure funds are put in place to make sure we upgrade all the facilities he mentioned because the vast majority of our facilities were developed for men. That has changed. The new sports capital grants feature a weighting system to upgrade facilities, particularly toilets. Would Mr. Ó Broin be in favour of a specific fund being put in place? Say, something similar to the sports capital fund but that would be specifically targeted towards upgrading all facilities in the context of the integration of ladies' sports, and that the fund would be put in place by the Government?

On facilities, local authorities tend to provide pitches, but many tend to be for other sporting organisations and are not always available to the GAA. What part might local authorities play in providing facilities?