Holly Cairns (Cork South West, Social Democrats)
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245. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the steps she is taking to increase the level of girls and women participating in sport and structural inequities regarding the treatment of female sports players; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [42797/20]

Jack Chambers (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)
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The Government has demonstrated its commitment to women's sport over many years, and considerable Exchequer funding has been allocated to programmes aimed at encouraging active and social participation in sport by women and girls.  A fundamental aim of the Government’s National Sports Policy 2018 -2027 is to increase the levels of participation in sport and physical activity across the population over the period of the policy, with a specific focus on less represented groups including women and girls.

Sport Ireland, which is funded by my Department, is the statutory body with responsibility for the development of sport, including the allocation of funding under its various programmes. It also has responsibility for the development of strategies for increasing participation in sport, including participation by women and girls.  In 2019, Sport Ireland launched its Policy on Women in Sport. The policy expresses Sport Ireland’s commitment to women in sport. It builds on the significant work that has already been undertaken in this area within the sport sector to date and, in recognising the opportunity to make a significant impact on the lives of women through their involvement in sport, it provides a blueprint for Sport Ireland’s future work. 

Sport Ireland does not provide funding direct to clubs but channels its funding through the National Governing Bodies of sport (NGBs).  In addition to funding allocated to NGBs under core grants and high performance programme, Sport Ireland also allocates funding to NGBs under the Women in Sport (WIS) programme. The WIS programme was established in 2005 and has provided funding support of over €20 million to a broad range of programmes aimed at increasing participation by women and girls. 

As part of the new Women in Sport Policy, a revised Women in Sport investment programme was launched last year with an investment of €3 million over the two years 2019 and 2020. This doubled the funding for the Women in Sport programme.   The two year funding will enable NGBs to make significant progress in their strategic objectives for women in sport. 

I am arranging for Sport Ireland to provide the Deputy with a comprehensive outline of its strategies and initiatives in place to increase participation by women and girls.  Please contact my private office if you do not receive a response within ten working days. 

In relation to capital supports, the Sports Capital and Equipment Programme (SCEP) is the primary vehicle for Government support for the development of sports and recreation facilities and the purchase of non-personal sports equipment throughout the country. The Programme for Government commits to continuing the SCEP and to prioritise the investment in disadvantaged areas. On 30th November, Minister Catherine Martin and I announced that a new 2020 round of the Programme was opening with applications accepted up until 12th February, 2021. At least €40 million is being made available. One of the key criteria in scoring applications has always been whether the proposed project will increase participation including the likelihood of increasing female participation. I expect that projects likely to increase female participation will again be prioritised when the scoring system for this new round is finalised.

With regard to structural funding inequalities, I believe that these can best be addressed by the development of a common funding approach and framework to guide an equitable distribution of State funding in the future. I have already discussed this matter with Sport Ireland and I am committed to ensuring that it is progressed in the short term. Sport Ireland has also recently commissioned an independent report into its player support funding programmes and I look forward to receiving the outcome of that report from Sport Ireland in the early part of next year.