Jack Wall (Kildare South, Labour)

We are all aware that a person in receipt of unemployment assistance or unemployment benefit must at all times be available for work. The issue is this debate is in regard to athletes who are in receipt of sports grants. As such some may be in full-time employment and may be allowed time off by their employers for training camps or for international appearances. Unfortunately, others are not in employment. In those instances the athletes sign for unemployment assistance or unemployment benefit. Given that they are in receipt of a sport grant of approximately €11,000 they are not eligible to apply for unemployment assistance. In many cases they depend on the sports grant to survive. Many of those young athletes are wonderful ambassadors for the country. They appear on the county, national, provincial, and international stages proudly representing their sport. Because of the rules that pertain in regard to unemployment assistance they are solely dependent on the sports grant. If one subtracts the unemployment assistance of €7,436 from the sports grant of €11,000, it shows the sports grant has a value of approximately €4,000 to these athletes. They are required to give consideration to their diet and acquire equipment. It is only the joy of performing and doing well in their sport that keeps them going. A great fuss is made of the sports grant but unemployment assistance is being taken back from those who, unfortunately, need it.

The Department should recognise the sports grant is specifically attached to an athlete's performance in the international, national or county arena. They need that grant to prepare themselves for participation in their sport. It is not a grant designed to cover the daily needs of food and drink but rather to allow them perform better through the equipment, training and back-up services required. Many of the national sporting associations do not have the financial resources to provide for the athletes in training camps or at international competition. The application for unemployment assistance only arises when they are at home and not competing in international competitions but they are not paid for that period of time. We expect these athletes to give the example to young people who are the men and women of tomorrow and to help avoid the development of social disorder. Young people follow their idols in a given sport.

There are not many cases where an athlete needs to apply for unemployment assistance. I ask the Department to reconsider the situation and allow those people to be granted unemployment assistance during that period.

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