Jack Wall (Kildare South, Labour)
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Question 39: To ask the Minister for Tourism, Culture and Sport if she will list the capital schemes in the areas of culture and sport; when these schemes were last open to application; when she expects these schemes to be open for application again; the amount of funding provided through each scheme since its inception which was directly provided by national lottery funding; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [27229/10]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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The information requested in respect of capital schemes operated directly by my Department is as set out in tabular form. It is not possible to disaggregate funding according to source such as the National Lottery, as the proceeds of the Lottery only part-fund elements of the Department's Vote, specifically, grants under the Sports Capital Programme and grants-in-aid provided to the Arts Council and the Irish Sports Council.

1 Not part funded by the National Lottery.

2 From 1 January 2002.

Ciarán Lynch (Cork South Central, Labour)
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Question 40: To ask the Minister for Tourism, Culture and Sport her plans to review the future of the sports capital programme to ensure that it does not lead to excess funding being channelled into the constituencies of Ministers as was the case during the previous decade as highlighted by a recent television report (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [27236/10]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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Under the Sports Capital Programme funding is allocated to sporting and to voluntary and community organisations at local, regional and national level throughout the country. All applications received under the Programme are assessed on an individual basis by the Department in accordance with a detailed set of assessment criteria as specified in the guidelines, terms and conditions that accompany the application form for the Programme. These criteria include the likelihood to increase participation and performance in sport, priority of the proposed facility vis a vis existing facilities, disadvantaged status, level of own funding available etc.

Every effort is made to achieve a balanced geographical spread of funds throughout the country, while also affording priority to projects in areas of social and economic disadvantage, and facilitating investment in facilities of regional and national strategic importance. In this regard, the assessment process also takes into account factors such as the number and quality of the applications received, the amount of funding being sought by each applicant as well as the most recent Census of Population figures.

The level of funding for any county is based on the quality, number and size of the applications, the Deputy will be aware that under the Sports Capital Programme the landscape of sporting facilities throughout the country has changed significantly with a range of modern well equipped and well managed facilities now in place. Since 1998 an amount of €73m has been allocated under the Programme to 7,400 projects. Work on the National Sports Facilities Strategy 2010-2015, which will provide an improved policy platform for any future rounds of the Programme, is at an advanced stage of preparation in my Department. I expect to receive the draft Strategy shortly. Any future rounds will also be informed by the national audit of local sports facilities that is currently underway.