Jerry Buttimer (Fine Gael)
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An chéad cainteoir ná an Seanadóir Robbie Gallagher who is sharing time with Senator Blaney.

Robbie Gallagher (Fianna Fail)
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Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit, ag an Roinn Turasóireachta, Cultúir, Ealaíon, Gaeltachta, Spóirt agus Meán, Teachta Byrne, ar ais chuig an Teach ar maidin. This morning, myself and my colleague, Senator Blaney, would like to raise the issue of the sports capital programme with him. As he will be well aware, this is a programme that is eagerly anticipated and awaited by every sporting enthusiast and club the length and breadth of the country. I am sure there is not a sports club in the country that has failed to receive funding through this particular fund at some point. It is eagerly awaited and has been hugely successful. Post pandemic, there is more awareness than ever about the importance of sports and what sport can do. This is not just on the sporting field but also for people's mental health and it is great to see so many people availing of the facilities. Indeed, sports clubs have to be commended on extending their facilities, not only, if it is a GAA club, for hurling or football, but they have also added on walking facilities around their pitches to facilitate the entire community. This is very much welcome and I commend them on it. It is also important to acknowledge the great volunteers who are out there. They do unselfish work in their communities day in, day out, and are the true sporting heroes in my mind. They are located in every club the length and breadth of the country. The then Minister of State at the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, Deputy Chambers, visited counties Monaghan and Cavan last year and was very helpful in directing those clubs as to how their applications should be completed. That was hugely successful. As a result, Cavan and Monaghan received record funding of almost €5 million. It is a huge amount, which I assure the House was well spent. I issue that same invitation to the Minister of State, Deputy Byrne, whenever he gets time in his busy schedule to come down. All we are waiting on now is the green light as to when this fund will be open again.

Niall Blaney (Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister of State for coming to the House this morning. To reiterate what my colleague, Senator Robbie Gallagher, has just said about this fund, this is probably one of the funds from that we get great value for money. This is not just from the point of view of sport, but also for the well-being of the people of our nation across the board. It is not just sporting people; families in general get a kick from taking part in, and seeing their kids and the young ones taking part in sport. The real good I see from this programme is how our different facilities across the country are now starting to get to a better standard. However, we have a fair way to go. With that in mind, we have been waiting since November last year for this next round to be announced. It is long beyond time it was announced. It is starting to become a biannual instead of an annual programme. It used to be an annual programme and it is time we get on with this funding. It is time that the Minister of State, as a new Minister, got on with this programme, and we would like to see that happen sooner. While his reply states it will happen this year, we want it announced yesterday. It needs to be announced as soon as possible because we are aware of the number of months it takes for applications to come in, be processed, and before announcements are made. We hope he can look on this request positively.

Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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Ba mhaith liom mo bhuíochas a ghabháil leis na Seanadóirí. I thank the Senators for raising this matter. As they have outlined, the sports capital and equipment programme, SCEP, is the primary vehicle for Government support for the development of sports and recreational facilities and the also very important purchase of non-personal sports equipment throughout the country. More than 13,000 projects have benefited from sports capital funding since 1998, bringing the total allocations in that time to in excess of €1.15 billion. I think we will all agree that the SCEP has transformed the sporting landscape with improved sports facilities in every town and village in the country funded by the scheme. The programme for Government commits to continuing the SCEP and to targeting the investment in disadvantaged areas. I am determined to see the improved investment levels continuing in the years ahead. We are also looking at areas which have a lack of facilities. That is very important as well.

A total subhead allocation of in excess of €34.5 million has been provided this year. This funding is used to advance many of the grants awarded funding under the latest round of the programme.Although it was announced last year, the previous round started in 2020, which means it is slightly longer than biannual at this stage. Only a small proportion of that money has been spent because of issues to do with the Covid pandemic and because it generally takes time for projects to get off the ground. However, we are now starting to see a lot of that money being spent.

The final grants under that round were announced in May last year and the total allocation, as the Senators alluded to, was a record €166.6 million, which is the highest ever made. The priority in the short term is to advance successful applications to formal approval and grant drawdown and then to see those facilities put in place. The Department is constantly supporting and guiding grantees to that end. To be fair to the Department, it has a very good telephone contact system that allows anybody to make a call to inquire about clubs. Senators are welcome to use it to ask about particular facilities and help the process along.

The Senators asked about the timing of the next round of sports capital funding. Following each round, a full review is undertaken to identify any aspects of the application and allocation process that might need to be improved. The Department conducted this full review of all aspects of the 2020 round. The officials have provided a draft of that review to me and I have redrafted it. I hope to be in a position to finalise and publish it shortly. Among the various recommendations, the bottom line is the provision of more facilities. We have eased up the process substantially for applicants. In particular, we are looking towards ensuring equality in sports and equality of access to facilities. We are also looking at areas in which there is a deficit of facilities, alongside the traditional and important focus on disadvantaged areas.

Meanwhile, my officials and I are also engaging with the Department of Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform on the funding required to launch the next cycle of the sports capital programme. A formal request to open the next round has been sent to my colleague, the Minister, Deputy Donohoe. There is good ongoing engagement with his Department and once that engagement is concluded, I will announce the exact dates from which new applications will be accepted. I am hopeful of having matters concluded shortly. I will continue to make the case for maximising the total funding envelope available for the programme in the years ahead. The level of demand will be a key determinant. Every effort will be made to fund as many worthwhile projects as possible, while providing a sufficient level of funding to ensure individual projects seeking support are viable.

Robbie Gallagher (Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister of State for his response. Deputy Donohoe is a very prudent Minister. One thing we can assure him of, as I am sure the Minister of State does every day, is that every penny spent in this area of sports funding is money well spent. I look forward to the announcement shortly of the details of the new round. I know the Minister of State would like to get on with it. I hope he gets the green light soon.

Niall Blaney (Fianna Fail)
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I recognise the work the Minister of State and the Minister, Deputy Donohoe, have had to do on the sports capital programme. I hope there is an urgency in that work and that the Minister will act with urgency in getting the funds through and giving the Minister of State the go-ahead. I hope there are no more holdups on either side.

Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Senators. The Taoiseach said in the Dáil last week that this is among the best money the Government can spend through all its range of functions. I agree with him on that and I am certain the Minister, Deputy Donohoe, is also in agreement. I am confident that when our engagement with the Department of Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform is completed, we will be ready, in accordance with the programme for Government, to open up the next round of sports capital funding. It is our intention, once the Department gives us the go-ahead, to open it up as quickly as possible. I am hopeful that will happen in a matter of weeks, with some further weeks required for the application process.

If it all goes in accordance with what my Department is seeking, which is in line with the wishes of people across the political system and in all parties, clubs will have a few short months to apply. I encourage them to think about what they want to do and how they should proceed with their applications. The forms and so on will be similar to those used during the previous round. However, one big change is that there will be a huge emphasis this time on equality and women in sport. We cannot fund projects under which women do not have the same access as men to facilities. That will pose a challenge for some organisations but I have decided this is how it will be done and I have told my officials to action it. There will be challenges in some cases but I do see how I can do otherwise.