Olivia Mitchell (Dublin South, Fine Gael)

While that is a lot of talk, it does not hide the reality that in this Olympic year the Irish Sports Council's allocation, in effect, decreased. While there is a €3.3 million increase in money terms on last year, that figure coincides exactly with the amount of money to go to the GAA players. It had been promised that this money would be additional. In effect, the Irish Sports Council, which is responsible for grant aiding the Olympic Council of Ireland and the athletes, has less money in this Olympic year.

I am sure the Minister must be aware that far more intensive preparation is required this year. The athletes need to go abroad and participate in more events in order to qualify for the Olympics. We must be the only participating country with less money available to sport than last year. There is no point comparing to the last Olympic year. In comparison to last year, the Irish Sports Council effectively has less money to give to athletes. Can we really be serious? Was the Minister lobbied in any way? Did anybody point out to him that this is an Olympic year and that if we are serious about giving the type of high performance that encourages young athletes to come forward, we need to allocate at least a small token increase to show that we regard it as something important?

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