Jerry Buttimer (Fine Gael)

Either we are serious about sport or we are not. Either we are serious about the creation and development of sustainable communities and the participation of people therein or we are not. Why is it not possible to allocate the surplus funding provided for the Exchequer by the national lottery in 2009 to the sports capital programme? There are sports clubs which are actively involved in fund-raising and bringing forward development plans. Bishopstown GAA Club held an extraordinary general meeting at which we were forced to try to rezone land in order that we might, in the absence of the sports capital programme, obtain funding. The Government stating it will collect money but not then disburse it is the wrong message to give to young people and sports clubs. However, today in the other House the Minister for Finance announced the provision of billions for a flawed Anglo Irish Bank. Friends of Fianna Fáil are bailed out while ordinary men and women in sports clubs and community groups cannot get a few bob from the Government. It is extraordinary and ironic that the friends of the Government can get billions, while sports clubs receive nothing. I look forward to the Minister of State's reply.