Donie Cassidy (Fianna Fail)

I am grateful to Senator O'Toole for his information on the up-to-date position regarding the dispute between the GAA and the GPA and I am heartened by his comments. We all know where the heart of the Taoiseach lies on sport. He has been outstanding in what he has done for sport. The dream of every young person, no matter how underprivileged, is to have success and it is fantastic if a team event is involved. Sport taught me how to be a good loser because, at the end of the day, as Jesse Owens said, it is not the winning that matters, it is the participation, although he said that when he had four gold medals in his pocket. We cannot encourage young people enough to participate in sports and we cannot do enough for sport generally.

Like Senators MacSharry, Walsh, Kelly and Keaveney, I welcome the World Rally Championship to the north west. It is a godsend to the people engaged in the tourism industry in the area to have this revenue coming in November. We cannot invest enough in tourism because we have so much to offer. Perhaps 50% of the budget might be wasted but which 50% was wasted by the industry for so long? At the end of the day, we have a beautiful country and lovely people. Challenges lie ahead but we should accentuate the positives and correct the minuses. I fully support everything said in this regard.

Senators O'Toole and Coghlan referred to the issue of the naming of Dingle or Daingean Uí Chúis. I will pass on their views to the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government.

Senator Keaveney called for a debate on the impact of the success of our economy over the past ten years. This is a worthy request. I will invite the Taoiseach to be present in the House for that debate given that he has presided over our success over the past ten years. He is possibly the most successful Taoiseach the country has ever had.