Barry Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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307. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the number of successful large-scale sports infrastructure fund projects that have now drawn down funds for project completion by local authority in tabular form. [37521/21]

Jack Chambers (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)
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The National Sports Policy as published in 2018 provided for the establishment of a Large Scale Sport Infrastructure Fund (LSSIF) and the National Development Plan provided a capital allocation of at least €100m for the Fund over the period to 2027.

The first allocations under the LSSIF were announced in January 2020 and thus far, approximately €86.4m has been awarded to 33 different proposals. These projects are at various stages of a due diligence process and formal grant agreements have now issued to a number of the successful applicants. To date no grantee has drawn down funds for project completion but given the nature of capital works projects and the issues faced by grantees as a result of the Covid pandemic that is unsurprising. Now that a number of formal grant agreements have issued, the first payments are expected to be made in the coming months.

My Department is also currently undertaking a review of the LSSIF. This review is considering, inter alia, progress on all existing grants and my Department is engaging with all applicants in this regard. As well as the progress on existing grants, the Review is considering whether additional grants should be awarded including grants to previously unsuccessful applications. The timing of any new call for proposals is also being considered. Any new allocations or a new call for proposals, will be dependent on receiving additional funding for the LSSIF following completion of the review of the National Development Plan. It is expected that my Department’s Review of the LSSIF will be complete in the coming months.