Results 1,181-1,200 of 12,487 for speaker:John O'Donoghue
- Sports Funding. (1 Mar 2006)
John O'Donoghue: The Irish Sports Council was set up as a statutory body in July 1999 with responsibility for the development of sport, increasing participation at all levels and raising standards. The provision in funding for the Irish Sports Council in the 2006 Estimates is â¬40.9 million, in comparison to just over â¬13 million in 2000. The council provides funding to recognised national governing bodies...
- Sports Funding. (1 Mar 2006)
John O'Donoghue: I am a great fan of the Community Games. Unlikely as it might seem, as Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform I was also involved in giving grant aid to the Community Games. Indeed, the current Minister today added to the funds which I, in that office, had allocated so between us we have allocated â¬800,000 to the Community Games at Mosney. The Taoiseach is correct that the amount...
- Sports Funding. (1 Mar 2006)
John O'Donoghue: Volunteerism is an important issue. Few organisations of the country boast of a greater level of volunteerism than the Community Games. The men and women who volunteer to assist in sport are the true heroes and heroines of sport in Ireland. In that context, the Community Games movement has a registered adult volunteer complement of approximately 20,000 people and approximately 250,000...
- Sports Funding. (1 Mar 2006)
John O'Donoghue: The amount of money allocated to the Sports Council for 2006 is the highest ever, at â¬40.9 million. Clearly, this gives greater scope to the Sports Council to fund various non-governmental organisations and bodies in the State. The Community Games is one example. The organisation has received the highest amount ever. It is also welcome that the organisation has been greatly facilitated by...
- Tourism Promotion. (1 Mar 2006)
John O'Donoghue: I propose to take Questions Nos. 37, 41 and 61 together. Having good levels of tourism growth throughout the regions has become an increasing challenge for tourism policy. As a result, Fáilte Ireland and Tourism Ireland have incorporated a strong regional focus in their current strategies. In this year's Estimates, I obtained substantial additional funding to help the agencies address this...
- Tourism Promotion. (1 Mar 2006)
John O'Donoghue: The Deputy and I will need to agree to disagree. If I had taken Dublin out of the eastern region, I would have needed to ensure Dublin was marketed on its own. The market has completely changed. We now have cash-rich and time-poor visitors coming to Ireland. People are booking at shorter notice and coming for shorter breaks. I will deal specifically with the eastern region as requested by...
- Tourism Promotion. (1 Mar 2006)
John O'Donoghue: The core product very much remains. Last night I presented the CIE Tours International awards and I could not believe the satisfaction ratings, with up to 96% of people saying they were either satisfied or very satisfied with their holiday in Ireland and that they would recommend Ireland to a friend. We have probably the best product in the world. Regarding the regions and rural tourism, the...
- Tourism Promotion. (1 Mar 2006)
John O'Donoghue: A very serious marketing campaign is ongoing in Ireland, which we are not ignoring. While foreign revenue generated as a result of tourism stands at â¬4.3 billion, revenue from Ireland was at its highest level last year at between â¬1.3 billion and â¬1.5 billion, which represents a very significant market. The significance of the Irish market is not lost on me. The Irish tourist, more than...
- National Stadium. (1 Mar 2006)
John O'Donoghue: I propose to take Questions Nos. 38, 51 and 53 together. I refer the Deputies to my reply to a priority question earlier today about the progress on the Lansdowne Road stadium refurbishment project. I am aware of the issues in the dispute between the Irish Rugby Football Union and Wanderers Football Club, and that discussions have been taking place between the parties. I have been informed by...
- National Stadium. (1 Mar 2006)
John O'Donoghue: Lansdowne Road is the oldest rugby stadium in the world, and Wanderers is one of the oldest, if not the oldest, of rugby clubs in Ireland.
- National Stadium. (1 Mar 2006)
John O'Donoghue: It is particularly sad that agreement could not be reached between the IRFU and Wanderers, given the history of rugby in Ireland and the inextricable link between Wanderers and the IRFU. In that context, it is important to point out that the IRFU has been engaged in talks with Wanderers for over 14 months. The IRFU put before Wanderers what it considered a very fair offer. I have outlined...
- Written Answers — Official Travel: Official Travel (1 Mar 2006)
John O'Donoghue: I visited India last January as part of a major mission led by the Taoiseach. The purpose of this mission, which visited Bangalore, Delhi and Mumbai, was to move the long-standing relationship between Ireland and India to a broader and deeper level of co-operation and partnership, particularly in the light of India's emerging importance as a global player. The departmental objectives of my...
- Written Answers — Tourist Accommodation: Tourist Accommodation (1 Mar 2006)
John O'Donoghue: As I have previously advised the House, I do not have responsibility for the registration and listing of tourist accommodation facilities. This is a day-to-day function of Fáilte Ireland under the National Tourism Development Authority Act 2003. However, I understand that the key issues affecting the performance of the bed and breakfast sector have been examined in a major review...
- Written Answers — National Stadium: National Stadium (1 Mar 2006)
John O'Donoghue: I propose to take Questions Nos. 42, 46, 60, 64 and 143 together. Deputies will recall that in November 2005 the Government gave its assent to the commencement of phase one of the development of the sports campus at Abbotstown. CSID, the company charged with developing the project, undertook an in-depth preparatory process and has drawn up proposals for the development of the sports campus in...
- Written Answers — Departmental Expenditure: Departmental Expenditure (1 Mar 2006)
John O'Donoghue: In 2005, my Department's total expenditure on sport amounted to â¬184.5 million on the sport capital programme, the local authority swimming pool programme, the redevelopment of Lansdowne Road, Campus and Stadium Ireland Development Limited, the Irish Sports Council, Horseracing Ireland and Bord na gCon. Spending on horse-racing and greyhound racing accounted for 37% of total spend on sport...
- Written Answers — Tourism Industry: Tourism Industry (1 Mar 2006)
John O'Donoghue: The report of the tourism policy review group was published in September 2003. To give best effect to the implementation of the recommendations of the review group, I established a tourism action plan implementation group chaired by Mr. John Travers, who had chaired the tourism policy review group. The implementation group has already presented two formal reports to me, in August 2004 and...
- Written Answers — Arts in Education: Arts in Education (1 Mar 2006)
John O'Donoghue: Giving the arts a higher, more consistent profile at both primary and second level can not only benefit the arts but also bring significant benefits to the students concerned, which will stay with them all of their lives. It is important also to stress that this applies to all students, and not just to those who are recognised as being particularly gifted artistically. Every parent in the...
- Written Answers — Appointments to State Boards: Appointments to State Boards (1 Mar 2006)
John O'Donoghue: The current legislative position relating to the appointment of the chairman of Bord na gCon is set out at section 8 of the Greyhound Industry Act 1958. That section states that the chairman shall hold office at the pleasure of the Minister. There is no other State board or body under the remit of my Department in respect of which the chairman is appointed for an indefinite period. On 31...
- Written Answers — Film Industry Development: Film Industry Development (1 Mar 2006)
John O'Donoghue: The promotion of Ireland as a location for international film-making is a matter for the Irish Film Board, which is independent of Government on a day to day basis. During my recent visit to India I attended a number of events to showcase the numerous benefits that Ireland can offer as a location for film-makers, and I met a number of Indian film-makers on whom I strongly impressed the...
- Written Answers — National Theatre: National Theatre (1 Mar 2006)
John O'Donoghue: I propose to take Questions Nos. 49 and 56 together. In December of last year the Government approved the redevelopment of the Abbey Theatre at George's Dock and agreed that my Department, in conjunction with the Minister for Finance, the Office of Public Works and the National Development Finance Agency, would examine possible PPP procurement models. An examination of the possible PPP...