Paschal Mooney (Fianna Fail)

I endorse all that Senator Dardis said about the discussions at the Forum for Europe yesterday. I am sure his words were reassuring for the Leader of the Opposition. We all recall the story of the emperor with no clothes. Following the robust response of the Minister for Foreign Affairs to the intervention from the Sinn Féin representative, the newly elected MEP, in political terms she was left without political clothes. I am talking analogies here, and if anyone thinks otherwise I cannot account for that. The performance by the Minister for Foreign Affairs was outstanding.

Some weeks ago I raised the question of the efficiency of financial allocations to sport. Members will be aware that representatives of the Football Association of Ireland are currently appearing before the Committee of Public Accounts. They have been asked to account for the many millions of euro their sport has been allocated.

There was a report in the national newspapers yesterday that several of the sporting bodies, including the FAI, the GAA and the IRFU have made submissions to the Department of Arts, Sports and Tourism regarding the €500 million development at Abbotstown. The media reports have presented a very exciting scenario whereby all the sporting organisations are contributing to this important debate about providing more sports facilities in Abbotstown and intending to relocate their headquarters there. There were also suggestions about developing medical sports science facilities, laboratories and training facilities. In light of those submissions, and because the Department, through the company set up to process those submissions, will report in the autumn, the Leader might consider it useful for this House to have a debate on sport allocations generally, since in the main it is public money which is allocated. Such a debate would give Members on all sides of the House an opportunity to suggest ways and means of improving the efficient use of the money spent.