Terry Brennan (Fine Gael)

Tá athas orm fáilte a chur roimh an Aire Stáit arís go dtí an Teach seo.

As the Minister of State indicated, this is the first round of sports capital funding for four years. All Members should welcome that because it demonstrates the Government's commitment to encouraging more people to take an active part in sport. There is a need to encourage all sporting organisations to share their facilities with others within their local communities. The sports capital programme is aimed at ensuring that sporting facilities are not left idle at weekends, on weekdays or during the summer months, particularly if they can be used for the benefit of other sporting organisations or enthusiasts.

The sports capital programme is the main channel of Government support for developing sports facilities and for purchasing equipment for sporting organisations ar fud na tíre. It will be open to many more clubs and groups than previously was the case. This is because the strict requirement relating to land ownership has been relaxed. This reduction in the level of bureaucracy is to be welcomed. In the past, all applicants were obliged to either own their land or to have it on a long lease. Clubs are now able to apply for grants of up to €25,000 in order to upgrade their facilities. I am of the view that this will encourage greater participation on the part of the young and old in the sports which these clubs promote. I understand that applications - approximately 500 in all - have been received from each of the 26 counties. In addition, in excess of 2,000 further applications have been registered online. I am sure that many more applications will be submitted before the deadline of 5 p.m. on Friday, 1 June. No further applications will be accepted after that date.

As a result of the grants to which I refer, people will have more opportunity than ever to get and remain active in a wide range of sports. This will have a positive impact on job creation in construction, which is extremely important for everyone involved in that industry. The total allocation of €30 million will benefit sports clubs, community groups, local authorities, schools and the national governing bodies of sport. Some €26 million will be allocated to smaller projects and €4 million will go to national and regional projects, with a maximum individual allocation of €300,000. I commend the decision to the effect that applications in respect of these funds can be made through the medium of Irish. This was not the case in the past. I welcome the change in this regard. I also understand that community-based and shared facilities will be prioritised for funding. In other words, one of the criteria involved will be that facilities that are being shared will be given priority. That is a good development.

All applications received by the closing date will be assessed on the basis of a number of criteria, such as the effect a proposed project will have in the context of active participation in sport and the level of socioeconomic disadvantage in the relevant area. Evaluation of applications will commence in the very near future. In light of the volume of applications and the detailed information contained in each, I am sure the process in this regard will take some time to complete. Perhaps the Minister of State might provide an indication with regard to when an announcement will be made in respect of those applications which have been successful. The Department is to closely monitor spending by clubs and organisations in order to ensure that the funding allocated will be fully expended for the purpose for which it is intended.

What is proposed here is good news for many communities and organisations. It is particularly good news for smaller clubs that were previously muscled out of the picture by larger organisations.