Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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494. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment if he is aware of proposals to use lands, previously identified for a centre of excellence for soccer, as a multi-purpose athletics facility in Glanmire, County Cork; if he will support such a proposal; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37922/25]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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My Department is not aware of proposals regarding alternative use for lands referred to by the Deputy and such proposals to repurpose the site is ultimately a matter for Cork County Council as the landowner.

In relation to the Football Association of Ireland's (FAI) previously proposed Munster Centre of Excellence in Glanmire, €2,025,699 was provisionally allocated in grant funding under the LSSIF. However, the FAI wrote to the Department on 10 May 2023 to advise that it no longer intended to proceed with the LSSIF-funded Centre of Excellence in Glanmire.

The FAI further advised the Department in February 2025 that it is looking at an alternative site to deliver a Centre of Excellence for soccer in Cork. Any proposed reallocation of the grant will require an assessment by my Department to ensure the new proposed project meets the overall objectives of the scheme and is in accordance with the established LSSIF guidelines.