Averil Power (Fianna Fail)
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I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Ring. The reason I tabled the motion is to discuss Limerick's bid to host the 2018 Gay Games and to specifically ask the Government to proactively endorse the bid and to do everything it can to ensure the bid is successful. The Gay Games is one of the largest participative sporting events in the world. It is the largest event that is open to everyone, regardless of age, ability or physical capacity. The games enable athletes to compete in more than 30 different sports at all levels. In the games, people represent their cities rather than their countries.

Winning the bid to host the Gay Games in Ireland would be of enormous benefit not just to Limerick but to the country as a whole. It would be a fantastic opportunity to promote this country as a welcoming country for everybody, regardless of sexual orientation. It would be a great way to highlight the progress that has been made in recent years in equality and equal rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people and to showcase the work that has been done. I hope the work will be built on when we introduce full marriage rights as well. It would be a great way to showcase this country’s journey both in terms of how far we have come and where we hope to be in the future.

The games also have the potential to generate significant revenue – up to €80 million for Limerick, Munster and the country as a whole. Up to 200,000 people are expected to attend the 2018 Gay Games, including 14,000 athletes. As one might imagine, there has been a lot of competition to win an event of this scale and importance. Cities that pitched for the 2018 games include Sao Paolo, Rio de Janeiro, Orlando, Amsterdam, London, Paris and Limerick. The Limerick bid book was put together by a team of volunteers, including Emma Murphy who is in the Gallery. I welcome Emma and Jeffrey Rockett who are present to hear the debate. John Hickey, one of the main organisers, could not attend tonight but he has put a considerable effort into putting together a detailed bid. He has been selling Ireland and Limerick at every possible level, highlighting the excellent sporting and cultural facilities we have and the infrastructure, accommodation and other excellent points in favour of Limerick as a city with the potential to host such an amazing event.

It is testament to the considerable work that has been put into the bid already that Limerick managed to be short-listed from such a list of illustrious cities to the final three with London and Paris. A delegation from the Federation of Gay Games will visit Ireland next week between 3 and 8 July. The organisers believe it is crucial at this stage to get the strongest possible political endorsement in order to push the bid over the line. I am aware the Minister of State provided a letter of support, as I did, at the initial bid stage. That is fantastic and the organisers are grateful for his support. They also asked me to acknowledge the support they have had to date from Fáilte Ireland. David Cameron has given a strong personal endorsement to the London bid and has made it clear that the British Government as a whole at the highest possible level would love to see the Gay Games in London. That is why the organisers feel that it would be crucial to have the personal endorsement of the Taoiseach to send the message that this is a political priority for this country, that we see the significance and opportunity involved if the organisers picked Ireland against such tough competition.

I accept the Minister of State has provided an initial letter of support but I urge him to up the ante as the final visit will take place next week and to ask the Taoiseach for his personal endorsement and for the Government to stress the importance of the bid in the coming week as openly and publicly as possible. I urge him also to ensure that a Minister would meet the selection committee during its visit.

It is crucial a Minister meets them at the airport or at some point during the four days and says, "Welcome to Ireland. We appreciate that we have reached the final three and the Government would love it if Ireland was picked and would support the bid with the necessary resources". We could then showcase Limerick during the games, making the most of these games.

Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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I am pleased to have an opportunity to address the Seanad in regard to the bid to host the 2018 Gay Games in Limerick, and I thank Senator Power for raising the matter.

The Gay Games is a major event, with over 10,000 participants and their families expected to travel to the host city. Limerick is very well placed to provide a superb backdrop to what would be the tenth Gay Games in 2018. The city can boast some of the finest sporting facilities in Ireland and a rich heritage and history for all visitors to enjoy. It is clear that others agree, as Limerick has been short-listed as one of three remaining cities to host the games.

Fáilte Ireland's events tourism programme is a key driver of high yield, high value international visitors to the country, a fact recognised in the programme for Government. It is a central component in increasing visitor numbers, as well as promoting the country as a world-class tourism destination, through the international publicity and exposure for Ireland. The programme is made up of three components: corporate events, cultural events, and sports events. To date this year, Fáilte Ireland is supporting 147 conference applications for bids and marketing support for committed conferences. These conferences represent 80,000 international delegates and have a potential estimated business value of €107 million.

Festivals and events are also an important part of the event-based tourism portfolio. They are an integral part of what Ireland offers as a destination while, at the same time, affording an opportunity for increased overseas visitors and revenue. This year Fáilte Ireland will fund over 198 festivals across the country through the festivals and participative events initiative.

The third aspect of event-based tourism, sports, gives us an opportunity to show that a small country can host major sporting events, whether it is the Tall Ships Race in Waterford and Dublin, the Ryder Cup or Solheim Cup in golf, or the co-hosting with Northern Ireland of the Giro D'ltalia bicycle race in 2014. Ireland has shown that it can host these events in an efficient and capable manner and provide a great experience for spectators and participants alike.

In addition to generating direct overseas visitors, hosting significant events allows us to provide a great showcase for Ireland as a country. Many thousands around the world watch major sports events on television and this presents a great opportunity to show a positive image of Ireland. We want people to choose Ireland as a holiday destination and the exposure that key sports events give us helps us to put Ireland on many thousands of travel itineraries for this year and beyond.

Looking beyond this year, the Giro D'ltalia bicycle race in 2014 is the next major international sporting event that we will host on the island of Ireland, with the event being jointly supported by the Northern Ireland Executive and the Irish Government. The visit of the Giro D'ltalia will commence with two stages in Northern Ireland, with the final day starting in Armagh and finishing in Dublin. I wish to pay tribute to the efforts of the Northern Ireland Executive, in particular the Minister for the Enterprise, Trade and Investment, for their determination to secure the Giro D'ltalia 2014, and for the support being provided to the event. I am hopeful that this momentum in securing major events can be sustained in the coming years.

With regard to the bid to host the 2018 Gay Games in Limerick, I was delighted to provide a letter of support endorsing the bid and assuring the organisers of my full support through Fáilte Ireland. Fáilte Ireland, through the Shannon Region Conference and Sports Bureau, has been assisting the bid organiser, Limerick Pride, in its preparation of the bid. This support has included direct financial assistance, as well as working with the local business community in Limerick to raise finance towards submitting the bid.

Limerick has been short-listed along with London and Paris, seeing off competition from Florida and Amsterdam. Tremendous credit for this achievement is due to Limerick Pride and the Limerick 2018 committee. Local business, tourism and sporting interests along with state agencies have been supportive of the bid and this represents a great example of a community coming together to achieve a common purpose.

While London and Paris represent significant competition for Limerick, I wish the organisers the very best of luck and I can assure them of continuing assistance from the State tourism agencies and the Department as the bid process enters the final stages. I will give the Gay Games bid whatever support I can and I am glad to hear the issue will be raised with the Taoiseach next week. If the British Government supports it, we also support it. We love to see major events coming into Ireland because not only does it bring revenue, it shows we can host events. That is why we are helping the IRFU to bring the rugby world cup to Ireland in 2024. It is important we secure those events because we can deliver in terms of spectators and organisation. I hope we can secure this major event for 2018.

Averil Power (Fianna Fail)
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I appreciate the Minister of State's support and I recognise that the Department and Fáilte Ireland have been assisting. I would like to impress on the Minister of State the need to ensure personal endorsement at Government level while the selectors are here. I would ask the Minister of State or the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport to meet them during that period and to use their charms to impress on them the fact this is important to the entire Government, it is not just the Department or agencies. In the same way David Cameron is throwing his weight behind it, we must do the same with the Taoiseach and Ministers. It is crucial in making the difference between being in the top three and being selected.

Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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I gave an endorsement and the Minister has received an invitation. If that invitation comes to me I will consider it. If they let me know, I will make every effort to attend and support them. I am the Minister of State with responsibility for sport.