James O'Connor (Cork East, Fianna Fail)
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117. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht if she will provide an update on supports to assist organisations in the sports sector to recover and develop post-pandemic; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [2498/22]

Jack Chambers (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)
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On 13 December, Minister Martin and I announced the allocation of almost €80m for the sport sector under two separate support programmes.

This includes €73.6m in Covid-19 funding under five separate streams to help sports organisations to recover and grow post-pandemic, support our grassroots networks of clubs and local sports partnerships, and ensure that people of all ages and abilities return to sport and physical activity.  The timing of the schemes provides stability and certainty to the sports sector for 2022 as it emerges from Covid-19 restrictions.

A further €5.3m has been allocated to National Governing Bodies of Sport (NGBs) and Local Sports Partnerships (LSPs) for the provision of sports equipment including the roll out of defibrillators for clubs, sport kits for school children and state of the art equipment for our high performance athletes.

This is a very significant investment and builds on the extensive support package of €88.5m provided in 2020 to address the Covid-19 challenges to the sport sector. 

These financial supports will assist the sector as it continues to play an important role in supporting all members of society in getting and staying active.

A full breakdown of the funding is available on my Department’s website at the following link: www.gov.ie/en/press-release/5c21c-major-80m-funding-boost-for-sports-to-recover-grow-and-attract-people-nationwide/

In Budget 2022, the Government announced over €181 million in funding for sport this year, an increase of almost €11 million compared to the 2021 Revised Estimate. The current expenditure budget for Sport Ireland this year is €96m, an increase of over €4m from 2021. This funding will enable Sport Ireland to continue to support the sport sector as it recovers from the challenges of Covid and will allow continued grant funding support for sporting bodies through Sport Ireland's range of funding programmes. 

Sport Ireland engages with sporting organisations on an ongoing basis and will continue to support the sector in its recovery and development post-pandemic.