Seymour Crawford (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)

I welcome the opportunity to speak on the National Sports Campus Development Authority Bill. In case Deputy Kelly believes Fianna Fáil is the only party interested in sport, he only has to look at players in the Fine Gael Party such as Deputies Kenny and Deenihan, the proud holder of many medals. I would not claim, no more than the Deputy, that I was a great athlete but I am proud of those on all sides of the House who partake in sports. At the weekend, the Oireachtas Members rugby team beat the folk across the water, or as the late Brian Lenihan would have said "the old enemy". It highlights the camaraderie regarding sport in all parties.

The investment of €15 million, a small amount, in the Punchestown Equestrian Centre was good for the area. It furthers the argument that money should be spent on sporting facilities. The site at Abbotstown for the proposed sports campus has been controversial for many years. It is the Taoiseach's pet project to show his unquestionable support for all sports but also to create a living memorial to his term in office. It has become clear that his original proposal was unrealistic and unworkable. Hopefully Croke Park and Lansdowne Road, when it is eventually restructured, will be stadia that will do Ireland proud.

The work already done on Campus Ireland, including the provision of the infamous swimming pool, raises further questions. Leaks at the National Aquatic Centre have shown the workmanship on site was faulty. That part of the roof was blown off and the centre had to be closed for months raises more questions. How could such a structure be constructed in such a faulty manner, particularly when the lives of many children using the centre could have been put in danger? Some 30 years ago I was involved in the building trade, selling structured steel, and the buildings it was used in have not yet been blown down by the wind.

The independent report carried out on the damage to the centre by Kavanagh Mansfield and Partners Consulting Engineers found "the damage to the Competition Hall roof was caused by the failure of elements within the [roof] assembly", the actual workmanship. The report continued:

This failure could have occurred at wind speeds within normal design parameters for a building of this size in this location. Exceptional storm conditions need not have been present for this damage to occur. The roof failed due to lack of resistance to the wind suction forces which were exerted on the day of the storm. Those forces did not exceed those which can be estimated for design purposes as possible to occur by reference to the normal design code. We conclude that the roof decking did not comply with the normal design codes or in that regard with the Building Regulations ...

The engineers concluded they were concerned about the safety of the roof. The building was designed to accommodate young people for sporting events but was assembled in an offhand way. It is important that the proposed authority ensures no one is again put at such a risk.

The Government has approved the establishment of the national sports campus development authority to oversee the planning and development of a campus of sports facilities at Abbotstown, County Dublin. I have no problem with that other than to question the suitability of access to the location. I also question the cost of clearing the site and transferring its previous occupants to County Kildare. If a GAA club, for example, wants to avail of a grant from the national lottery, it must show ownership or long-term lease of a pitch. The land in question is owned by the Minister for Agriculture and Food. How will this be reconciled?

The Government is providing the capital cost of the project over the next five years, an estimated cost of approximately €120 million. No doubt it will justify the expenditure. I fully support all realistic sporting structures that encourage our youth into sport rather than depending on other forms of entertainment, namely drink and drugs. A recent report highlighted the seriousness of young people drinking. I again ask that legislation be introduced to deal with drinks advertisements.

Millions of euro have been spent on the site, together with the €120 million project costs. That makes it more difficult, therefore, to explain why a cross-Border project such as Scouting Ireland based at Castle Sanderson on the Cavan-Fermanagh border did not justify the expenditure of €4 million. That project, like the national sports centre, would have been a marvellous opportunity for young people and their visiting friends from international scouting organisations to have a proper and safe outdoor pursuits area. Like Campus Ireland, it was a long time under discussion. It meant the bringing together of all the scouting organisations into one body. However, no funding has yet been made available. I urge the Taoiseach to ensure funding is made available before it is too late. He visited the site before the last election when some seed money was provided. It was, however, not on the same level as that provided for Campus Ireland or Punchestown Equestrian Centre. It is difficult to advise those involved in scouting that their needs are not as high a priority.

The Ballybay wetlands project is another example. It provides outdoor activities and research opportunities for schools in the Border region. Less than €1 million would make the project viable. Ballybay Development Association has put its money where its heart is but has been ignored. The project did not even justify a visit from Fáilte Ireland. The tourism industry in the area is depressed, yet Fáilte Ireland does not believe it is worth its while to visit the site.

I raise these issues to highlight the lack of fairness. I am not against the Abbotstown project. It is vital that our young people have the best possible facilities to train for national and international sport. Ireland has seen positive results in the past few weeks. The gold medal winner in athletics, the ten victories in Cheltenham and the rugby team's victory in London attracted positive publicity and were good for our sporting and national image.

Sport is our great national passion. Involvement in sport provides a source of well-being and an emotional outlet for people of every age and from every corner. The Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism emphasised that sports funding in 2006 exceeds €243 million and that the Government has spent more than €750 million on sport since 1997, although the budget was only €17 million then.

When one examines the overall figures and goes through the annual allocations on a county-by-county basis, there are clearly enormous differentials, which worry me. I pay tribute, however, to the Minister, Deputy O'Donoghue, and his personnel who facilitated Monaghan Town Council and county council in building a very impressive swimming pool and leisure centre. The county council and town council staff, together with the builders and all concerned, deserve enormous credit for the speed at which the project is moving forward, in spite of the long delays in getting initial agreement. Monaghan's swimming clubs have a proud record and, hopefully, this new facility will once again give them an opportunity on their own doorstep.

The people of Cavan and Monaghan, with the support of many others who cross the Border twice a week to take part in the national lottery, provide more than their fair share of funding for sports grants. I urge the Minister to ensure that this generosity is returned at least to the two projects I have mentioned.

Only recently, I, together with my Oireachtas colleagues and a group representing St. Tiemach's Park, Clones, met the Minister regarding the future restructuring of that vital facility for the nine counties of Ulster. This cross-Border facility has been the centre of activity for the majority of Ulster finals over the last century, but without proper funding that may not continue. The centre of activity could easily move nearer to Belfast and would thus not only be a major loss to counties Monaghan and Cavan, including Clones, but also to the Irish taxpayer as significant money is spent on food and beverages during those activities in the Border region. I would welcome an early commitment on that project.

On a positive note regarding the national sports campus, there is no doubt that the selection of London as host city for the 2012 summer Olympics will open up opportunities for us to present Ireland as a high quality centre for elite athletes and teams as they finalise their preparations for the games. We must move quickly and use this opportunity to provide such facilities.

I clearly remember when my colleague, Deputy Gay Mitchell, as Lord Mayor of Dublin, urged the capital city to bid for the Olympic Games, and his remarks were treated as a joke at the time. The provision of such services would be a start towards that end, however, and perhaps some day we will see his dream fulfilled. We should not be shy about promoting that goal.

Major questions remain to be answered about this organisation, including the issue of the shell company and other question marks that hang over the National Aquatic Centre. In recent days, some of the issues regarding the use of the centre have been raised in court. I would also question the formation of the authority and to whom it will be answerable. I have no doubt that the Minister of State will tell us who he has chosen to go on the authority. I am worried that all these independent authorities are not answerable to this House and that the House is becoming irrelevant. As a farmer, I was a member of such an authority, the Irish Livestock and Meat Board, for some time.

Only recently we established the Health Service Executive. I tabled a fairly simple question to the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children the other day, but she said she had no responsibility for the matter I raised. She had to refer it back to the HSE for a reply. The National Roads Authority is another example, although I am a lot happier with the work it is doing now, mainly because it is doing a really good job in Monaghan. We must ensure that these groups are answerable to somebody so perhaps the Minister of State will clarify that matter in his closing address.

Section 25 of the Bill gives authority to withhold consent to the renewal of a lease or tenancy where such a lease or tenancy would prejudice the running of the site. This is an important point because we have already seen the difficulties with people who were involved.

As regards membership, section 18 contains the standard prohibition on members of the authority holding political office. I presume the Minister is referring to Members of the Oireachtas as well as members of town or county councils. What worries me, however, is that once these people are appointed one discovers that they are highly political. The only reason they got those positions is that they are political and hold membership in certain political parties. There is an onus on the Minister to ensure that the best people are appointed to this authority and that it is seen to be independent, understands what it is doing and knows something about sport. While I would not put myself forward as such a person, the situation should not be treated lightly.

The national sports campus development authority can have a major role in the future of sport in Ireland and in that context there is an onus on the Minister to ensure that the right chairperson is appointed with an appropriate board to ensure that the authority is run independently and properly for the benefit of all sports people and the economy generally. We cannot hand over €120 million of taxpayers' money and national lottery funding to any old group that will do any old job. We must ensure that those in control know what they are doing and will ultimately deliver for sporting organisations.

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