Brendan Griffin (Kerry, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the budget and the provisions made in all Departments in case of a no-deal Brexit, which is a distinct possibility at this stage, just a few weeks from 31 October. I will use the brief time I have to comment on the areas within the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport where we have been able to secure some helpful assistance for the related industries and everybody involved.

On tourism, the sum of €7 million that was secured yesterday for Tourism Ireland and Fáilte Ireland, to be spent immediately, is welcome. The funding, which is badly needed now, is to be used both overseas and for domestic marketing, and it is on top of the €35 million increase for 2019 that was secured in last year's budget. The sum of €7 million, to be spent by the end of the year, is most welcome news for those in the industry and I know that it will be well spent by Tourism Ireland and Fáilte Ireland.

Further good news yesterday was that the regional access fund will be doubled in 2020 to €2.5 million. For the regional airports, from Cork and Kerry to Shannon, Knock and Donegal, that is good news and it will give them a better opportunity to retain the routes they have and attract new routes through collaboration between the tourism agencies and airlines. The fund will rise to €10 million over the next three years, which is welcome news. It is on top of the €22 million that is provided to the regional airports through the regional airport fund. Increased investment is welcome news. There is also an additional €4.5 million for greenways through carbon tax, which is on top of the greenway funding we announced in June. Expenditure on greenways next year will be €27.5 million, which does not include the Smarter Travel expenditure in towns and cities for cyclists. It is money well spent that will provide a good return for the Exchequer and communities throughout the country. I will aim to secure more funding in that regard in future because it is a wise investment.

Behind all of that, there is a contingency fund of €40 million in case of a no-deal Brexit. In that event, tourism will be one of the most exposed sectors but the €40 million would represent a large chunk of the annual tourism budget. Given that we will spend €186 million next year on tourism, capital and current, a €40 million contingency package is significant. Although I hope we will never have to use it, I welcome it and in the event of no-deal scenario on 31 October, it will be welcome to the industry and everybody involved. In view of the fact that 260,000 people are employed in the industry in every community in the country, the €40 million is very welcome. The good news is that the €35 million provided last year has been provided again this year, as well as the €7 million to be spent between now and the end of the year. It is a good package for tourism and I am glad to have worked on it closely with the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Deputy Ross, and other colleagues in government.

Some €125 million will be spent on sport in 2020. It is good news because we are keeping our promises to double expenditure on sport between 2018 and 2027, as committed to in the national sports policy, and to triple expenditure on high performance sport. There was a strong budget for sport last year. We have kept in line with the increase last year and are well on course to achieve our targets. That is good news not only for every community in the country but especially for our high performance athletes. It is heartening to know that €2 million has been provided for in the budget for our Tokyo Olympic athletes next year. The provision has been secured and the Olympic Federation has welcomed the funding. Our athletes deserve the best possible support when they represent the country on the greatest sporting global stage, the Olympic Games. I am proud we are able to support them financially next year to the tune of €2 million.

There will also be provision for the four games that Dublin will host in the European Football Championship in June 2020 and for the Irish Open. The first tranche of funding towards the Ryder Cup 2026 is provided for in the budget, as is a significant increase for the women in sport programme for 2019 and 2020. The funding for 2018 was €600,000, whereas more than €3 million will be provided for 2019 and 2020. There will also be €6 million for the national sports policy and more than €30 million in sports capital will be announced in the next two weeks. We will announce the large-scale sporting infrastructure fund towards the end of the year and open a new round of the sports capital programme, either later this year or in early 2020, which is good news for every community in the country. I look forward to it being heavily oversubscribed with applications again. It is a sign of the strength of Irish sport at grassroots level that so many people seek to expand their facilities and to facilitate greater participation in sport. There will be an increase in the funding for the national governing bodies of sport this year, as a result of the funding we have been able to secure for Sport Ireland.

In addition, investment from the Dormant Accounts Fund will increase from €5 million to almost €8 million in 2020, which is good news for those from disadvantaged backgrounds and people involved in disability sports. That funding will make a major difference to them.

See this speech in context