Charlie O'Connor (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)

I, too, thank the Ceann Comhairle for the opportunity to join Deputy Brian Hayes in raising this issue with the Minister of State, Deputy Haughey. The importance I ascribe to it can be gauged from the fact that I have rushed back from Croke Park where I was cheering on my Tallaght neighbours, Robbie Keane and Richard Dunne — I am not quite in their age group so I cannot call them colleagues. I was there for Robbie Keane's goal but then returned to the House and missed him getting injured. The Minister of State knows I would not leave Croke Park if my being here to raise this issue tonight were not important.

My colleague, Deputy Brian Hayes, has emphasised we are referring to the County Dublin Vocational Education Committee facilities in Palmerstown, Collinstown, Firhouse and Killinarden. I will not talk too much about the former two because I have no plans for them in respect of the European elections but I will concentrate on Firhouse and Killinarden. I was at the official opening of the centre in Firhouse with the former Minister for Education and Science, Deputy Hanafin.

We must impress upon the Minister of State the importance of this issue, regardless of his reply tonight. It is a question of sport. It is interesting that I referred to being in Croke Park and sports persons from Tallaght given that we are discussing two excellent facilities that are under threat. Not only do these facilities provide an excellent service to the primary schools and communities generally, they are used in the school completion programme. This is the case in respect of Killinarden community school, which is in a disadvantaged RAPID area.

It makes no sense to get into a bind over who should fund first-class State facilities. As a former member of County Dublin Vocational Education Committee and former member of South Dublin County Council, as was Deputy Brian Hayes, I campaigned for the PE halls in both Killinarden and Firhouse. The battles were well fought and the communities got right behind the campaigns. They now support the facilities in a very definite and positive way. I receive many calls on this issue from young people, employees whose jobs are in jeopardy and others who, for all sorts of reasons, want to use the facilities. I make a special appeal to the Minister of State to acknowledge this issue, which is so important to me and my community in Tallaght. We really hope he will help us.

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