Jennifer Murnane O'Connor (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

On Monday I was delighted to have the Minister of State, Deputy Byrne, in Carlow. We met an awful lot of clubs and the big question was when applications will open for the sports capital grants and when will the funding be in place. It is a huge issue and we need to let the clubs know. I also want an update on the merger of the Ladies' Gaelic Football Association, LGFA, and the GAA. What is the timescale for that?

I got an email yesterday and I want to relay some of it to the Minister of State. It says the Irish Dragon Boat Association is being threatened with extinction because Canoeing Ireland is changing its constitution and memo of association to state that it governs, controls and regulates all paddle sports in all its forms in Ireland. That is a huge concern for me. We have the dragon boat association headquarters in Carlow and there is a massive female membership there and it needs to remain viable. I ask the Minister of State to come back to me on that and I thank him again for visiting Carlow. It was a great day.

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