Barry Ward (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I agree with Senator Malcolm Byrne's call for an invitation to be given to President Zelenskiy to come here to speak to us. That would be an important move of solidarity and in accordance with everything we have said about the crisis, war and invasion to date.

Today, I wish to raise water sports and the importance of the State granting supports to it. In Dún Laoghaire we are very lucky to have excellent facilities. We also have an elite training unit for Olympic athletes. Sailing is a sport that is very often practised by only a small number of people, despite the fact that it should be readily available to much larger groups within society. It is also a sport where men and women can participate as part of a team. That is appropriate today in particular given that it is International Women's Day. Sailing provides an opportunity to bring people together. It is a sport that is very healthy but is also very environmentally friendly. More importantly, it is a sport that should be practised more in our island community. The fact is that none of us live very far away from the sea, even people in the midlands. Sailing is done on lakes as well as by the coasts throughout the country.

The time has come for the Government to invest in water sports centres around the country. I know of a project that is going on in Dún Laoghaire to repurpose the ferry terminal that was abandoned by Stena almost seven years ago. This is a model that can be recreated throughout the country. It behoves the Government to invest in exactly this kind of healthy sporting opportunity for communities at every level, age, ability and gender. The time has come for the Government to put in place a particular programme to support not just sailing but all water sports through targeted investment in water-adjacent communities, be they near lakes, rivers or coastal areas. I would like us to have a debate on that to see if there is something the Government can do to properly foster a water sports tradition in this country.