Pádraig O'Sullivan (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

It is welcome to see that €6 million has been drawn down by those 33 projects, as the Minister of State has alluded to. The fundamental point here, though, is that regarding many of these larger organisations, and the Football Association of Ireland, FAI, comes to mind immediately, it is well documented that they are fairly cash-strapped now and are incapable of progressing many of these applications without some kind of a review and a leg-up. It is, therefore, great to see that this engagement has happened. I would be grateful if the Minister of State could provide a timeline regarding when he thinks these negotiations with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform might conclude.

I am thinking of one project in particular that is especially time-sensitive and which I have spoken to the Minister of State about previously. I refer to the FAI centre of excellence in Glanmire. It received planning permission about seven years ago. Time is ticking on this project and we must see if we can get it off the ground. It may not be in the guise we initially envisaged but at least work might be started on it. This project is particularly time-sensitive and the planning permission for this project will lapse in the next two to three years. I welcome hearing the Minister of State's thoughts on this issue.

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