Paul Gavan (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I will begin by echoing that call by Senator Buttimer for an urgent debate on human rights. It would be very important to have it during the World Cup, if possible.

I also wish to raise issue of football. It is fair to say that the FAI has had a turbulent recent history. A criminal inquiry into FAI matters brought by the Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement is ongoing. One would have thought that having gone through all of these horrendous recent scandals, the FAI would now understand the absolute importance of transparency, good governance and the value of an audit. I regret to have to inform the House that this is not the case.

An ongoing row involving the Limerick district soccer league has caused huge frustration among the vast majority of honourable people who make up the bulk of soccer players, coaches, parents and supporters. Key concerns are the failure to conduct an audit of accounts for 2020 alongside a failure to adopt a series of governance reforms such as introducing term limits and, Lord protect us, actually appointing at least one woman to one of the 12 board positions. At the heart of this story is an all-male board of management of the Limerick district league. A number of the officers have held key positions for so long that they would make the leadership of the Workers' Party of North Korea blush. Some of these men can boast of being in situfor between 30 and 35 years. The concerned club members want a time limit placed on the term in office of committee members, limiting it to a few years rather than having a situation where people could potentially hold office for life.

The new broom that was promised by the FAI certainly has not reached Limerick. Unfortunately, I am also informed that those clubs or individuals who have spoken up in favour of reform and good governance have found themselves and their clubs disadvantaged as a result. A number of these people told me they are operating under an atmosphere of fear and loathing because of the actions of the board. This is what happens when board management degenerates into a personal fiefdom.

The need for an audit of accounts for 2020 is an issue that was described by the FAI itself as being of significant concern. Some of these concerns related to so-called honorarium payments made by officers to themselves, and others to issues of governance and transparency. Yet, over a year later, there has still been no audit carried out. The FAI issued 11 recommendations in all, including the need for term limits for committee members, the need to appoint at least one female committee member out of 12 and an updated rule book. To date, I am informed that the FAI has failed to ensure that any of these recommendations have actually been implemented. After all the FAI has been through in recent years, it beggars belief that having identified a series of recommendations to improve governance, it failed to ensure implementation of any of them. The senior management of the FAI has been made aware of all the issues but has to date failed to take any action. The FAI needs to act now. Otherwise, it should be called to account for its inaction on these matters before an Oireachtas committee.

I will finish with quote from a press release that came from concerned supporters groups today. They said, “All we want is to see soccer in Limerick grow and for people and kids to get involved and to play, but without a change in governance we can’t go forward.” I ask the Leader to organise a debate with the Minister with responsibility for sport on the topic of FAI governance and accountability. As far as the Limerick district league is concerned, there is in my opinion a significant deficit of both.