Naoise Ó Muirí (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)

Sport is essential to Irish life. It would be hard to find a household that was not tuned in to watch Tipperary lash Cork in the all-Ireland or to see Shane Lowry make that final hole last weekend. That spirit and such huge excitement and interest brings a real sense of belonging and identity to communities. It is so important. The previous Government recognised that with its funding paths in terms of previous rounds.

The Minister of State kindly visited Raheny Shamrocks this year. It was a very positive visit. It is a typical example of a club that needs access to funding to develop an important facility. We hope it will be a regional facility in that location. It is very important that we can continue to provide funding channels. This is one of those channels, which is important.

Manor House is a school in my area. This is a totally different angle. We have many schools working away, but they do not have access to funding channels to renew facilities. Manor House has an AstroTurf pitch, which has been there for a long time but it is not really usable now and they do not have access to a source of funding to upgrade it. Schools should be considered to be part of this system in due course.

In terms of municipal facilities, we have clubs like Mid Sutton AC and Marino AC, which are both junior clubs looking for access to athletics facilities. The local authorities have a hugely positive role to play in providing facilities and co-ordinating construction, with the support of the Government. The projects of local authorities should be prioritised in partnership with the Department. The Government should give them very strong support.

See this speech in context