Pádraig O'Sullivan (Cork North-Central, Fianna Fail)

I appreciate the Minister coming in this evening to take this Topical Issue matter. He will be aware that earlier during the Order of Business, I raised this issue with the Taoiseach, but such is my concern about this matter that I believe it needs further deliberation.

On 8 June, the Sunday Independent's Mark Tighe wrote an article entitled "FAI 'too slow' to act over allegations of former national team manager's behaviour towards female footballers". As I mentioned earlier, the article alleged a number of things, but mainly that the FAI agreed a financial settlement with its former director of public relations to keep details of his complaints from becoming public. Second, and crucially, despite the FAI stating publicly that it only learned of these allegations in early 2024, the FAI's former director of public relations attempted to make a protected disclosure alleging the FAI had knowledge of these issues back in May 2023.

I know this because I have access to the same information as the journalist who wrote the article on 8 June. Despite the FAI claim that it had no knowledge of these concerns prior to early 2024, I can see that the former chief executive initiated a conversation internally on 4 May 2023. It is there in black and white for all to see. With the back and forth he engaged in on that day, I can see other senior officials acknowledging that they were "aware of stuff behind the scenes" in relation to this individual. Another remarked that it was an issue "to discuss privately perhaps", but that there were "potential historical complaints of his time in management". I understand from the FAI's formal correspondence with me that it internally decided not to proceed with an investigation in 2023 as it determined that suspicions, rumours and concerns that were reflected regarding the individual in question did not come in the format of a formal complaint or allegation at that time.

I am not attempting to stray into the specifics of any allegations. That is a matter for the authorities concerned. However, for an organisation such as the FAI not to act on this matter, even in the absence of an official complaint or allegation, is extremely worrying and, if I am being brutally honest, it directly contradicts its child welfare and safeguarding policy, which I have a copy of with me this evening.

That document explicitly states that in relation to any case of abuse, if a mandated person knows, believes or has reasonable grounds to suspect that a child has been, is being or is at risk of being abused, the mandated person must report this issue to Tusla under the Children First Act 2015. The same policy that I have here has provision for the standing-down of staff in circumstances where concerns are raised with the FAI outside a statutory authority investigation. This did not happen until nearly a year after the individuals first came to attention.

In addition, the FAI's safeguarding policy also states that individuals should always inform Tusla when they have reasonable grounds for concern that a child may have been, is being or is at risk of being abused or neglected. In addition, it is not necessary for the individual to prove that abuse has occurred. All that is required is that the individual have reasonable grounds for concern. Reasonable grounds include "any concern about any potential sexual abuse". Did this happen in this case? Was the child protection officer informed? Was the safeguarding officer within the FAI consulted?

Having seen the evidence, I think it is fair to ask the FAI if it reached the threshold required by its own policies. If individuals within the FAI in May 2023 conceded that they were aware of stuff behind the scenes, wanting to discuss privately offline the potential historical complaints of these individuals in management and the former chief executive conceding that they had to assume more of this could be out there, surely that is concerning. Nobody and no script from any Department will tell me that those conversations by their very nature do not point to the fact that people in the FAI had concerns covered by their own safeguarding documents. My only concern is to ensure that safeguarding in a large organisation like the FAI, to which we entrust our children and young people, is followed.

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