The Government has – to use the well-known phrase – put its money where its mouth is in support of sport. Our commitment to the development of sport and, in particular, the provision of sports and recreational facilities has been demonstrated in practical terms in all parts of the country. Significant increases have been provided in the funding for capital expenditure for this purpose. These increased provisions include an increase of over 800% in the overall budget for sport from €17.4 million in 1997 to €161.4 million in 2002; a fourfold increase in the annual provision for the swimming pool programme from €3.8 million in 1999 to a total of €57 million for the years 2000, 2001 and 2002; allocations under the national lottery funded sports capital programme increased from €7.6 million in 1998 to €78.6 million in 2002, an increase of over 900%; and an allocation of €7.55 million towards the cost of the development of Ireland's first ever 50 metre swimming pool in Limerick.