Ministers Address Dáil on State of Sport

Minister Shane Ross and Minister of State Brendan Griffin updated the Dáil yesterday on a range of matters relating to sport and the challenge of the COVID-19 pandemic that has seen a hiatus of three months of any organised sporting activity.

They gave assurance that the round of Sports Capital Grants approved at the end of last year would continue and that work was also carrying on of a review of the Large Scale Infrastructure Fund that includes major developments for Connacht Rugby and a host of other sporting projects.

Ross kicked off proceedings with an admission that “I don’t pretend that we have all the answers at this point. Far from it, there are still many questions to be answered. Although considerable uncertainty still prevails for Irish sport, I think we are much better placed now than we were before the launch of the Government’s Roadmap for Reopening Society and Business, which was accelerated last Friday as a result of the progress made during April and May in fighting the pandemic.”

“I understand that the Irish sporting community was pleasantly surprised at the extent of the references to sport in the roadmap and the clarity provided for each of the five phases initially, and now four. I know that it doesn’t answer every question for every sport but it does give a vital planning framework.”

“Just a few days into phase two, we already have nearly 20 outdoor-only sports restarted, in accordance with the various public health requirements. That is about a third of all sports in Ireland and so we are making headway.”

Considerable Challenges

“There are however considerable challenges ahead. Nobody is confidently predicting an early return to the exact situation that prevailed before the pandemic. There will certainly be a new normal for sport.”

“I know that there is disappointment in this House and across the country that the big attendance field sports are not covered in the early phases.”

“There are huge challenges ahead, especially for mass gatherings, but I am convinced that solutions will be found that work for everybody, both for public health and for the viability of sport.”

“I was encouraged to hear over last weekend the planned resumption of inter-county GAA matches later in the year and the resumption of training by four League of Ireland clubs. Further afield, soccer is resuming with limited spectators in some European countries and rugby will shortly follow in New Zealand. I think we can take heart at these developments.”

“As with other sectors, Irish sport has been hit hard by this crisis. The Government has taken a cross sectoral approach where the aim has been to stabilise the situation. The Government’s overarching, cross-sectoral approach to the COVID- 19 pandemic was designed to ensure that economic activity recovers as quickly as possible, consistent with public health advice.”

“The cross-sectoral measures introduced by the Government to date have benefitted national and local sporting organisations and have been widely welcomed. This includes in particular the Temporary Wage Subsidy Scheme, the Pandemic Unemployment Payment and the series of enterprise supports ranging from liquidity funding, loan schemes grants and vouchers, as well as deferred tax payments and deferral of commercial rates.

Further Supports

“Discussions are underway but not yet concluded around the need for further supports. The details will need to be worked on and we will liaise closely with the sector.”

“Not all sports organisations have been affected to the same extent. The most acutely affected are those with summer seasons and with a heavy reliance on gate receipts. A targeted and focused response is clearly appropriate in these circumstances.”

“Despite the current difficult situation, we must continue to work towards hosting such major events as the postponed UEFA football championships.”

“As you are aware, Dublin was due to host four games this year and an economic impact study commissioned by Dublin City Council indicated that up to 96,000 overseas visitors were expected to attend delivering an economic impact of up to €126m.”

“UEFA sought confirmation from the governing authorities of the twelve host cities that they were willing and able to host in June/July 2021. The Government has reconfirmed the guarantees required and I have written to the President of UEFA confirming that Ireland would host next year’s EURO 2020 matches.”

“The Government remains fully committed to working with all of the local organisers and UEFA to mount a very successful UEFA EURO 2020 in Dublin in 2021. Obviously we live in very uncertain and trying times, but the rescheduled tournament will provide a much needed economic, social and sporting boost for the country.”

“As with so many other sectors, the world of sport – domestically and internationally – has been turned upside down as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic,” added Minister of State Brendan Griffin.

“At the start of 2020, who would have thought that the sporting world in Ireland, as elsewhere, would have had to be totally shut down and major events such as the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games postponed. The road back is inevitably going to take many months, but we are making progress.”

“The accelerated roadmap has provided a much needed and welcome confidence boost to the sport sector. As well as the return of outdoor sport, sporting bodies can now make plans for summer camps for children and teenagers. And I was delighted to see our high performance athletes return to training on Monday at the Sport Ireland Campus and other national training centres.”

Sports Capital Projects

“Before the pandemic, we were dealing with record levels of interest in sports capital projects. Although that presents funding challenges, it is nonetheless a welcome reflection of the importance that people in clubs nationwide attach to their sport and the need for improved sports facilities.”

“Over 12,000 projects have benefited from sports capital funding since 1998, at a cost of almost €1 billion. The sporting landscape of Ireland has been transformed with improvements in the quality and quantity of sporting facilities in virtually every village, town and city in the country.”

“The most recent SCP round in 2018 attracted a record 2,337 applications, with allocations being announced in January, May and November of last year. A total of over €56 million was awarded to nearly 1700 different projects.”

“In recent weeks, my Department has received many queries about the SCP, mainly concerning the status of grant approvals. I would like to take today’s opportunity to publicly confirm the continuing validity of prior grant approvals.”

“I also want to emphasise that it is very much business as usual for the Programme. Club volunteers and officials in my Department, working from home, are busy working together to progress the drawdown of these and other outstanding grants.”

“The National Sports Policy, 2018 – 2027 contains a strong commitment to further developing our sports facilities and we remain determined to deliver on that commitment. A review of the 2018 round is being finalised and a decision on the timing of the next round of the programme will be taken when this is complete.”

Large Scale Sport Infrastructure Fund

“Good progress is also being made for larger capital projects, which are being covered under the newly established Large Scale Sport Infrastructure Fund, or the LSSIF.”

“The Government has provided a capital allocation of at least €100m for the period to 2027 for the LSSIF. The new scheme closed for applications in April of last year with applications initially confined to local authorities and National Governing Bodies of sport.”

“On 10th January Minister Ross and I announced provisional allocations amounting to over €77m for 25 projects under the construction Stream. Three days later, on the 13th of January, we announced further provisional allocations of €5m for a further 7 projects under the design stream of the LSSIF.”

“The evaluation procedures and guidelines for the LSSIF provide that once provision allocations are announced, the successful projects will undergo a further process of due diligence. This process includes a further review of projects including economic appraisals and feasibility studies as appropriate to comply with the public spending code. This work is ongoing and I look forward to seeing many of the projects progress to the construction stage in the near future.”

“Sport is thankfully starting to resume. However, much work remains to be done, especially around the impact of social distancing requirements and what that means for those sports that inherently involve a degree of contact.”

“There is also the significant issue of future mass gatherings, on which so many sports depend, especially the field team sports. Considerable work will need to be undertaken in this regard. The importance of working through these issues collaboratively with the sector is fully appreciated and we shall do that.”

It was good to have a marker laid down around the ongoing supports, even at a time when discussions around the formation of a new government are continuing.

This will likely be the last formal contribution of Minister Shane Ross in the area, having lost his Dáil seat before the pandemic took hold in February.

His successor will have a busy inbox but if continuity is sought and Brendan Griffin steps up to the post there is obviously a willingness to continue the positive work that has taken place to date.

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