Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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4. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the new measures and investment she is proposing to expand and improve the provision of grassroots sports facilities, in particular to address the significant deficit in the provision of sports and playing pitches, as we approach the budget, and in the aftermath of Ireland's success in the Olympics and Paralympics, and the growing participation of young people, particularly women, in sports; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [37222/24]

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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It is a welcome move by the Government to add a new leaving certificate subject - drama, film and theatre studies. A problem is that many people who might take up that subject and go on to study in college will face poverty and precarity when they-----

Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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The question is about sport.

Claire Kerrane (Roscommon-Galway, Sinn Fein)
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It is Question No. 4.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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Sorry, I thought it was with one of the later questions.

There is a chronic deficit of pitches and playing facilities across the country. There has been a welcome expansion in participation in sport, particularly in women's sport, but everywhere - certainly in my area - there is a dire deficit of all-weather pitches, pitches generally, decent facilities, facilities with showers and facilities suitable for women. We need to dramatically increase investment in grassroots sports and clubs to provide them with pitches, facilities, clubhouses and resources they need for sport to flourish. Particularly after the success in the Olympics, we want more than politicians jumping in for photographs with successful athletes. We want the investment to be put in at a grassroots level.

Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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I can tell the Deputy that with every athlete I met and spoke to, the issue of investment came up, whether investment in facilities or in themselves and their organisations. I was happy to tell the Government's story on that.

The achievements and performances of Team Ireland at the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris inspired pride and joy. We want a new generation of participants and high performers and world-class athletes. I agree with the Deputy that investing in grassroots facilities is a critical starting point. The sports capital and equipment programme, which we will rename the community and sports facilities fund, is the primary vehicle for Government support for the development of sports and recreational facilities and the purchase of non-personal sports equipment.

In May 2024, the Minister, Deputy Martin, and I announced over €26 million in equipment grants under the community sports facilities fund. The grants have been provisionally allocated to organisations across the country representing more than 50 sports and activities. In particular, we made a special effort with the Football Association of Ireland and the Irish Amateur Boxing Association to ensure their members and clubs would apply in large numbers.

In May, my colleague the Minister, Deputy Martin, and I confirmed that at least a quarter of a billion euro will be made available for capital projects under this round of the community sports facilities fund. This represents the largest ever investment in grassroots sports facilities nationwide.

This is a record allocation. It is breaking new ground and is on the foot of positive engagement with the Department of public expenditure and the Minister, Deputy Donohoe. The funding represents a 50% increase on the funding allocated in 2022 under the previous round and it should mean a positive allocation decisions for every single valid application under the programme. The assessment of the funding applications is now at an advanced stage and I expect, with the Minister, Deputy Martin, to make allocations soon.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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We were very proud in our area that Monkstown Boxing Club had one of its boxers, Jack Marley, participate in the heavyweight division of the Olympic Games. The area was very proud and it is a fantastic community club. Does the Minister of State know how long it has been fighting for a permanent facility? It has been for about three decades. It is one of the most inclusive, community-based clubs one could imagine. We finally got it but it was a long fight for Monkstown Boxing Club to get its own permanent facility.

That story is replicated by multiple clubs in our area, such as St. Joseph's AFC, which has been looking for an AstroTurf pitch but there are all sorts of reasons it cannot be given. While Sallynoggin Pearse is looking to primarily finance most of it itself as well as getting some support, it has had obstacles put in its way by the council because it wants a decent facility it will share with another club in the area, namely, Granada Football Club.

Dalkey United is also looking for facilities ,as are many of the GAA clubs. All are lacking in all-weather facilities and pitch space and there does not seem to a proactive approach to going out, saying "Yes" and giving a positive response. Rather, there are always excuses why we cannot do this or do not really need that. In fact, the Government has committed to building a lot more housing - we will see about that - but if the Government is going to build houses, we also need the sports facilities and pitches to go with them. There is not a proactive approach at the moment to the requests and demands of local clubs for pitches, clubhouses and other facilities.

Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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Something must be going right because I agree with almost everything the Deputy said. I met Jack Marley on half a dozen occasions during the Olympic Games. What a great exemplar of a sport he is in not only qualifying for the Olympic Games - he had to be one of the best in the world to do that - and in the manner in which he took his defeat in the Olympic Games. He is such an honourable gentleman and someone for all of our young people to look up to. I really wanted to say that.

I completely agree with the Deputy that we need to fund more sports facilities. I completely agree that when houses are put in we need more sports facilities and that is why the funding for the community sports facilities fund is now at record levels. It is multiples, approximately five times, what was allocated in 2019. What we have done in terms of having a more broad-based national policy to see where the deficits are, there is now a website, getirelandactive.ie, which lists all the sports facilities. It is a great tool for local people to see what is in their area and what is not, if a person looks up the front page. The back end of the website is a tool for local authorities and for Sport Ireland to get a better picture of what is there and what is not there around the country. For future sports funding programmes it will be a really good tool to look at the deficits. That was put together under the Department this year.

In addition, a number of local authorities are now carrying out sports plans. That is at pilot stage and some of them will be enacted this year. I want all local authorities to pass these plans because, as the Deputy hinted at, the local authorities need to take responsibility to make sure they are providing the facilities and looking to the Department for funding, which we certainly want to be able to provide.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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I am glad to hear the positive response. The whole borough of Dún Laoghaire, and indeed the whole country, was very proud of Jack Marley but also of many others of our Olympians and Paralympians. We need to really support and resource them. There is not a proactive approach towards this issue in a lot of the local authorities.

I will take Sallynoggin Pearse for example. Again, it is a community-type club. There are different types of clubs. There are people who are going for the elite areas, there are community-types clubs and clubs that combine those things. They all have their different approaches and styles. There is often a sort of second-guessing of what they need rather than listening to the club and proactively trying to support people who overwhelmingly are working on a voluntary basis and want to do good things for their communities, young people and sport. There is a sort of computer says "No" approach when clubs are trying to get things done. Sallynoggin Pearse is a big example in my area. I mentioned St. Joseph's but I could go through a very long list. Granada Football Club is seeking a fantastic expansion, particular of women's soccer. Similarly, there are GAA clubs looking for resources so the Government has to say to local authorities that there must be a proactive and positive response approach coming from the local authorities and assisting people, rather than giving people hoops to jump over or excuses as to why the local authorities cannot do things.

Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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I agree with the Deputy and that is what these sports plans are for. I hope that some of the pilot ones will be passed by local authorities will be passed in the coming weeks. As that is rolled out, it will put sport at the centre of local authority decision-making and it has to be.

The Deputy accused local authorities of having a computer says "No" approach but I can tell him from my Department's point of view, in terms of the community sports facilities fund, it will be a computer says "Yes" approach, because every valid application will receive an allocation. I do not know offhand if any of the clubs mentioned by the Deputy are on the list of who has applied. The list is publicly available and if they have valid applications, they will be successful.

What we have done on this particular round is to try to prioritise the deprivation index so where the need is greatest, applicants from those areas will get the most funding. That has been done on a completely independent and transparent basis in my Department. It is important to ensure the clubs that need it get it. It is about grassroots clubs. One of the reasons the Minister, Deputy Martin, and I have renamed the fund the "community sports facilities fund" was to recognise these are communities coming together, sometimes fundraising significantly themselves, and we are here to help that and add to it and I agree with the Deputy. I will not say "pressure" but we will encourage local authorities more to be in this space, which they need to be.

I have has d a lot of engagements with Dick Shakespeare, the new city manager for Dublin, and will engage with others as well, and of course my own local authorities. I can see a proactive approach being taken there when looking at the applications that have been put in such as for Dalymount Park and other projects, and the attitude Dublin City Council has towards the Dublin City Marathon. We are seeing a changing focus on sport in local authorities and we want to see that around the country.