Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The designation of the ladies football and camogie finals as major events is welcome. The attendance at this year's All-Ireland Ladies Football Final was fantastic.

While it is not the Minister's direct responsibility, I would like to raise the issue of access to the broadcasts of games involving our international soccer team in the North of Ireland. If Sky Sports has the rights to the games, it denies access to them to free-to-air viewers. There is a sense of grievance about this. The man of the match and goalscorer in the Republic's most recent game was James McClean from Derry while the manager is Martin O'Neill, another Derryman. There is a strong contingent from the North of Ireland.

Unfortunately, the nationalist community in the North of Ireland follows the Irish football team. They do not connect to the football team in the North of Ireland for reasons that are well documented historically. There is a grievance and this issue needs to be addressed.

Parity of esteem is provided for under the Good Friday Agreement. There is a wider issue. Ryan Tubridy recently visited Belfast and Enniskillen. He said that by design in the North people are pushed towards BBC and UTV and, therefore, they are connecting to news that keeps them disconnected from the rest of the island of Ireland. Nationalists, in particular, have no desire to be disconnected. They want to be more connected to the rest of the island culturally and in every other way. Is there a way to resolve this issue to make sure Irish citizens in the North of Ireland who want to watch their football team the same as everybody else free-to-air can do so and not have to pay through Sky Sports? It is an important issue and I appreciate it is not the Minister's direct responsibility. It is part of the collective challenge we face and it would be very much appreciated. The issue has been brought to our attention repeatedly. My colleague, Senator Ó Donnghaile, has championed this. He is a native of Belfast and a former mayor of the city. He is a passionate supporter of our football team.

This order is positive news on a positive day.