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

We also have the large-scale sports infrastructure fund. I will be publishing a review of that fund soon and I hope to announce a new call under it at some point this year. We have written to all applicants regarding potentially offering a small amount of extra funding because we recognise that some projects have been delayed for various reasons. To be honest, there was a project I was trying to activate in Glanmire in County Cork but the FAI announced that it was not able to do it. We have asked it for urgent proposals on an alternative. We are very anxious for that to happen. There could well be extra funding for that depending on what comes back. We want to see that funding delivered. The Bohemians facility at Dalymount has also received planning funding. I hope that can be continued in the future.

This debate is about the FAI's vision and strategy for investment, which was published last month. I met with the association about the strategy, as I indicated. The level of Government funding the FAI is proposing is ambitious. It is at the same level as the entire sports capital budget. I do not blame the association for being ambitious. The Government is strongly committed to sustained investment in necessary facilities for all sports. In the longer term, the appropriate level of sustained investment needed to meet the needs of a growing population and to support increased levels of participation by people of all ages at all levels is a matter we are considering. The FAI strategy is a very useful input into that. Government investment in sport is money well spent. There are loads of examples of such investment working to benefit communities. I am working really hard to ensure that clubs look for the money. In my area, I have seen the GAA getting funding when soccer did not. People nearly blame me for this but, when I look into it, some clubs just did not apply. The last time, every valid application from a soccer club got funding so I am really keen for all clubs, not just those in my local area that did not apply the last time but all clubs across the country, to apply because we want to see facilities develop.

I take the point about pitch space and so on. That is a serious issue all over the country, especially in Dublin and suburban areas such as my own. Sport Ireland is conducting and has nearly finished an audit of sports facilities. This is a fantastic project that it has undertaken. On the one hand, there is a public-facing aspect. It will be a guide to local facilities, including walking trails and so on, across the country. On the other hand, at the back end, it will give really good information to central government as to what is there and what is missing. It will be possible to match this data with information from the census, Pobal and so on. That is a really useful project that Sport Ireland is in the process of completing. We will continue with that. That national digital database is a very exciting project.

I will go through some of the other issues that were raised. Deputy Paul Donnelly mentioned a really good example in Porterstown in west Dublin. It is a fantastic football and athletics facility funded by the sports capital programme. There are examples of funding working well. I will say to Deputy Munster - Deputy Nash will also know this as he has almost met the club - that I have met with Drogheda United about its plans for the future. It would like to get a better facility, if it can. I will not go into detail here but I have said that I am here to help it to do that, just as I am available to Meath GAA with regard to Páirc Tailteann. An application was made to the large-scale sports infrastructure fund in respect of Páirc Tailteann a number of years ago and a lot more applicants were successful in that programme. We want to change that. A new round of funding under that fund is upcoming. We are not going to oppose this motion.

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