Frank Feighan (Fine Gael)

I welcome the Minister to the House. I see quite a bit of him on the circuit opening pitches and so on at various events.

I am very interested in sport and local communities. In the late 1980s, my local soccer club, Boyle Celtic, applied for funding through the national lottery. The club was the second on file to apply for funding from the proposed lottery grants. The club received a very generous contribution of €20,000, which certainly helped to enhance its facilities and secure a base for the young people of the area. It was very unusual at the time for clubs to own a soccer pitch. The club had one senior team but now has two senior teams and five under age teams. Over the years, the club has been very proud to supply players to play for Sligo Rovers. One player has played in the English premier division. Without the funding, we certainly would not have done so well. However, lottery money has not always been put to the best use.

We talk of the national self-confidence that resulted from the Celtic tiger, but the Jack Charlton era certainly led to great self-confidence and goodwill among Irish football supporters and people of every country those supporters visited. In 1988 the Irish team went to Germany with approximately 10,000 supporters and we did not believe we would do so well. We had a tremendous result and beat England by one goal to nil. This instilled in us self-confidence in the fact that this country was as good as any other. While travelling around Germany for two weeks, I noted that all the Irish felt that the Germans liked us and that we had something to offer, including a sense of humour and fun. We were innocent regarding many matters, football especially.

During the World Cup in Italy in 1990 and the various qualifying rounds for the World Cup held in the USA in 1994, the Irish team travelled to virtually every country in Europe and all of these countries have grown to like us. This also made us self-confident and made us feel we were as good as any other country. The Jack Charlton era — the FAI era — certainly helped this country to grow up. We have done it through football in the most amusing and incredible way.

Consider the local and provincial teams. The Minister, as a Kerryman, knows the Kerry team exudes much confidence. If one's team is doing well and one is winning All-Ireland finals every second year, it is very easy to walk around with a swagger. When Leitrim won its first Connacht championship for many years in 1994, self-confidence was certainly instilled in the county, which borders Roscommon. Masonite, a major factory, located in Carrick-on-Shannon mainly because its representatives visited the town during the celebrations and saw a community that was united and very pleasant. The Minister rightly stated that sport transcends many barriers. The payback can sometimes be very undervalued.

Croke Park would certainly be a credit to any amateur organisation. Mr. Sean Kelly, president of the GAA, was before an Oireachtas committees last week. It was good to see an enlightened individual such as he, who has a clear vision of the role of the GAA and of sport, express an interest in sport for all. Sport should not be as competitive as it is but should be enjoyed by all. Everybody should have the right to play sport.

I note from the Minister's speech that he agreed to provide €191 million towards the cost of the new stadium at Lansdowne Road, which is estimated to amount to €300 million over five years. I welcome the funding which has certainly given life to the project although it has been made available many years too late.

The failure to assist in providing appropriate stadia for soccer and rugby has been a major downfall of the Government. Its waste of money to date through indecision and incompetence in the pursuit of one possible stadium to the exclusion of many other options has certainly not been a help. Persistent Government meddling in the stadium development plans of the FAI and the IRFU has meant that we do not have a proper stadium for these organisations' games. The Government should take some, if not much, of the blame for this.

Two years ago, we went through the charade of being told we had a great chance of hosting the finals of Euro 2004. The Oireachtas played a game against the Scottish Parliament in Trinity College and we were all enthusiastic. While not wishing to sound negative, this was one of the greatest charades ever. People were brought to a stadium and as good as promised that it could be used as a venue, although I believe the Government knew it would not be open. The people were brought around the country in a so-called white van, thereby increasing the hopes of many people, including ourselves.

The total Exchequer contribution to the redevelopment of Croke Park is €110 million. The cost of the total project amounts to €265 million. I am certainly not saying the Exchequer contribution was not money well spent but some conditions should have been applied to ensure that the Taoiseach did not end up in the embarrassing position in which he seemed to be meddling in the GAA's affairs.

The Minister referred to witnessing Portugal's best performance in a major championship in Euro 2004 and South Korea's World Cup heroics before a home crowd in 2002. Would we not love to see Ireland in such a position? We are now in an embarrassing position in which we may have to go to Old Trafford, Celtic Park or Anfield. We should not be in this position as we have had seven years to plan ahead. Planning permission for the Lansdowne Road project will be sought in 2005 and the grounds may be finished in 2008. We are relying on the goodwill of that great amateur organisation, the GAA, to open its doors to allow a soccer international to be played in its stadium. This is not good enough and is undermining all the good that emerged from the Jack Charlton era.

Consider what has been happening in the FAI in recent days. Politics are possibly being played in the organisation but I do not know. I do not want to stand on one side or the other. I am not getting involved in its internal affairs by saying that in order to generate confidence among the sporting public, the Government should report on the implementation of the recommendations of the Genesis report as a matter of urgency. We cannot be putting money into sport once again without any reassurances that the report will be implemented. The Genesis report, which was accepted on all sides, was a reasonable, measured and progressive report on the future of association football in Ireland and its recommendations should be implemented.

In the early 1980s, cycling's Nissan Classic came to my area. Considerable expenditure was put into the area but sometimes we over-emphasise the value of these tournaments. The Minister has fallen into this trap and in 2006 the biggest golf tournament of all, the Ryder Cup, will be held at the K Club. It will be televised to more than 700 million homes in no fewer than 42 countries, with 47 stations broadcasting the event, which will provide potential for new tourism markets in eastern Europe and China. We have witnessed a great deal of hype about many of these events. They have been of benefit but I am sure millions of Chinese will not be coming here because they saw the Ryder Cup. These events are helpful but they should not be sold like products at a bazaar; they will not change the tourism potential of the country. Exposure from the Ryder Cup will further enhance Ireland's standing as a top quality golfing destination, but we should not oversell it.

Reference was made to funding of €331 million for more than 4,200 projects. Many of the projects have helped young people and kept them away from crime, and sport raises our health and fitness levels. Three weeks ago I was fortunate to play on a new astro-turf facility, which the Government generously supported. However, we should examine the manner in which these grants are provided because it is more than about providing facilities from a Government slush fund. If Fine Gael were in power, perhaps it would be a slush fund for that party. The same might apply to the Labour Party or the Green Party. Checks should be carried out on projects that receive funding. We can all be parochial, but the provision of grants appears to favour current Ministers' local areas. While one can never overspend on sports facilities, perhaps we should redress the perceived imbalance which exists. It might be better to take away responsibility for such funding from the ministerial portfolio.

One issue with which I have great difficulty is the sports capital programme, which provides funding to regional sports centres throughout Ireland. I am aware that state-of-the-art facilities have been provided in Bray, Navan, Athlone and Waterford. I am proud of the swimming pool which has been provided in my area in Roscommon. However, Deputies and Senators from other towns still await facilities. Funding of up to €3.8 million is available. Some 55 swimming pools have been dealt with under the programme and 14 swimming pool projects have been completed. If one lives outside the loop of a county town, it will be nine, ten or 12 years before state-of-the-art facilities are provided.

The Minister said that ordinary people throughout the country should have an opportunity to engage in the sport of their choice. My sport of choice is swimming but if I must drive 27 miles or 30 miles on dark and cold winter nights, it will not be my sport of my choice. I will put on a track suit and walk the roads of Ireland like everyone else. It is everyone's right to have facilities of an equal standard. Some €3.5 million would be money well spent on a sports centre in towns in north Roscommon such as Castlerea, Boyle, Strokestown, Ballaghderreen and Carrick-on-Shannon where there are no proper sports facilities. Various Departments could be involved. Money is being misspent and we are not getting value for money. A school in my area is receiving €700,000 or €800,000 to refurbish the gymnasium. The former Minister for Education and Science, Deputy Noel Dempsey, said that we should get value for money. I suggested involving the health board, the Department of Education and Science, the Department of Arts, Sport and Tourism and the county council, each of which could provide funding for a decent facility, not a soccer pitch, GAA pitch or tennis club here and there. There could be €3 million or €4 million state-of-the-art facilities and centres of excellence in each town with a catchment area. The current catchment areas are too big. This would be money well spent and it would save the Exchequer money.

Ireland has the highest rate of heart disease in the EU, with the disease claiming almost 14,000 victims each year. Some heart disease is preventable. It often begins in childhood and accelerates because of bad lifestyle and diet. The Government should provide funding for health and leisure centres, not just in major growth centres but in towns with a population of 2,500 or 3,000 people which need the facilities. I am not prepared to spend an hour driving 27 miles for a 40 minute swim because it would take too much time. As has been said, a lot has been done but a lot more must be done.