Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick County, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

When the Taoiseach appointed me as Minister of State at the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport, he asked me to fulfil the same role as my predecessor, Deputy Michael Ring, and I am working on the basis of that continuity. The responsibilities that were devolved to Deputy Ring as Minister of State at the time are now my responsibilities. The sports capital programme is one of the areas of responsibility that the Cabinet has delegated to me and that has been agreed within the Department itself.

Very little legislation covers our Department relating to tourism and sport and so people often wonder about the statutory basis for our actions. If there are very few statutes pertaining to a Department, it can look as if a Minister or Minister of State's statutory responsibilities are narrow. Ministers of State are appointed by the Cabinet as opposed to the Taoiseach and their responsibilities, which are agreed internally within the relevant Department, are actually quite wide ranging, covering tourism promotion right through to sport.

In terms of the issue before the House today, I would point out that I have had a number of meetings with departmental officials over the last few months to discuss the sports capital programme, which is of huge significance to me. I insisted that it be included in the budget speech by the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform. The sports capital programme for 2017 is now with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform for final sign off. I hope it will be signed off in the next couple of weeks and then we will be in a position to open the applications process.

I am sure Senator O'Mahony would agree that it is important to empower as many people as possible to get the maximum number of valid applications. I have no interest in invalid applications. The more valid applications the Department receives, the more money it can request from the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform going forward. Another crucially important part of the next sports capital programme is the fact that it is annualised, as per the commitment in the programme for Government. As the Minister of State with responsibility for delivering that element of the programme for Government, I am absolutely committed to ensuring that the programme will not be rolled out on a haphazard basis any more. The question of whether the Government will or will not fund another programme will not arise. There is a firm commitment from the Government in that regard. It is part of the programme for Government and it is my job to make sure that the commitment is fulfilled.

Finally, I draw the attention of the House to today's launch of Ireland's bid to host the Rugby World Cup in 2023. This is a fantastic opportunity for the island of Ireland. As Minister of State with responsibility for sport, I really value the work of the IRFU on the bid and crucially, the co-operation of the GAA in facilitating it. I would urge the House to use the opportunity on the Order of Business, when it is discussing matters of importance, to raise that crucial issue. It is wonderful to see the IRFU and the GAA working together in a collaborative way alongside the Northern Ireland Executive and the Irish Government to deliver what will be a phenomenal sporting occasion for the island of Ireland.