Paul Lawless (Mayo, Aontú)

It is good to be able to speak on the sports capital today. It has been a tremendous scheme for many rural communities across Mayo and the country. I recently attended the opening of my own club, Aghamore, which received sports capital to develop a gym and dressing rooms, etc. Parke Keelogues Crimlin recently opened a floodlit pitch and a walkway around its facilities. It will be hugely valuable for that club, and Westport Athletics Club.

One of the key things that struck me over recent months and years is the value for money and efficiency achieved by the sports capital funding. The reason for that is it is given to local communities, many of them engaged in fundraising, that want the best for their facilities. When we see such a level of waste from the Government as set out in the most recent report by the Comptroller and Auditor General on the lack of regulation and the void of accountability in respect of IPAS centres, we can compare it with the money spent in local communities and see the value of that. It is really important that we continue to invest in sport and in our young people. It is an investment in the future and in the next generation. When we consider the many issues in terms of drug and alcohol misuse and screen use, we see the value of investment in sport and the fun, joy and satisfaction it brings to people. We also see the traits it imparts to participants. The competitive nature of sports and the teamwork aspect are fundamentally important.

It is really important that we invest in swimming facilities. There are large parts of County Mayo that have no such facilities. Ballinrobe in south Mayo, for example, had a pop-up swimming pool this summer. I look forward to working with the Minister of State to see whether we can develop a swimming pool in that area in the years ahead.

Athletics is becoming a really fast-growing sport in Ireland. It is important that it be prioritised.

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