Shane Moynihan (Dublin Mid West, Fianna Fail)

Without doubt the shared island initiative is one of the signature achievements in taking forward the spirit of the Good Friday Agreement and ensuring there is reconciliation and also that we see this shared island as our common home place. I am struck also by the Taoiseach's mention that sports governing bodies have been engaged by applying to the various funds for activation across the island. I wonder whether he could say more about how his Department and the Department of foreign affairs are pro-actively engaging with the sports governing bodies to see what initiatives are working well for them in terms of achieving the objectives set out by the shared island fund. I met representatives of Basketball Ireland recently. They told me about a number of initiatives they are seeking to explore in Northern Ireland. As we know, the vast majority of governing bodies on the island operate on an all-island basis. There is potential here for us to encourage that integration and the objectives of the shared island initiative by pro-actively engaging with the likes of Basketball Ireland, Cricket Ireland, the IRFU, the GAA and so on. I would love to hear the Taoiseach's thoughts on that matter.

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