Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Cuirim fáilte roimh na páistí atá anseo ó Scoil Mobhí i nGlas Naíon. Tá fáilte rompu isteach sa Dáil inniu. I was talking about my wife playing sport. Coincidentally, she used to play Gaelic in Na Fianna, next door to our visitors. That is a complete coincidence.

The Deputy raised important questions. I, the Minister and the Government are very committed to the issue. We will work with the Deputy and the Government bodies. At the meetings I have with every body, including the FAI, the issue of women in sport is top of the agenda. I do not agree with the Deputy's point about moving away from the sports capital programme. I complete reject that. However, I absolutely agree with him about facilities. The most recent sports capital round included the allocation of €25 million to multi-sport facilities. Much of that funding would go to education and training boards, ETBs, local authorities or sports clubs that happen to allow different sports. We do not have the figures broken down, and I am trying to get such a breakdown, but football is a big beneficiary. The size of the pitch in a multi-sport facility is, generally speaking, the size of an all-weather soccer pitch. We will continue to do that. Under the sports capital programme, clubs or organisations that provide for multi-sport facilities or allow access to other sports gain an advantage. We want to help increase participation. I am committed to the issues the Deputy raised in this question. We will continue to work on those issues.

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