I listened carefully to the contributions of Members, and not only since the session commenced this afternoon. While my colleague, the Minister, Deputy McDaid, took Report Stage this morning, I listened to it in my office so I am up to speed with what Members said and value their informed contributions. The Minister regrets that due to a prior engagement he cannot be here to complete the Bill.
I assure the House that in framing the Bill the issue of equality in terms of sporting opportunity for everyone regardless of age, ability or gender was not overlooked. Section 9 requires the council to have regard to Government policy in carrying out its functions and to comply with policy directives issued from time to time by the Minister.
One of the cornerstones of the policy is that the Government has committed itself to establishing an inclusive society where every citizen has the opportunity and incentive to participate fully in the social and economic life of the country. I draw Members' attention to the equal status Bill which has been redrafted by the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform. It is indicative of the Government's commitment on this specific and very important issue.
The sports council will not provide sporting opportunities at the level of the individual and, therefore, it would be inappropriate to impose a statutory obligation on it to provide equality of opportunity not consistent with the role envisaged for it. The council will work with a range of bodies in the business of providing opportunities to participate in sport and will work through and in support of such bodies. For example, under the current grant application scheme, non-governmental bodies – if they wish to maximise the funding they receive – must seek to increase the participation of young people, women and people with disabilities as part of the development of their organisations.
If Members examine the contents of my Department's strategy statement, they will note, for example, the priority given to the participation in sport and recreation in disadvantage communities. I draw the House's attention to initiatives, such as the pilot programme for disadvantaged areas, the drugs initiative, over which I have some control, the young people's facilities and services fund and the new sports capital programme. These initiatives serve to underline the Government's commitment in the area of policy to the disadvantaged.
Members referred to priority and the question of flagship projects. It is fair and reasonable that people might raise the issue of flagship projects and the resources required to promote and sustain them. I ask Members to bear in mind that this country is coming from a long distance behind in relation to major projects of the type mentioned by them this morning, and we must catch up. Many people who do well in sporting activities find it necessary to draw to the attention of the Government and other agencies that facilities are not available to them and they are compelled to go abroad to find facilities to enable them to enhance their prowess in their chosen sport. That is not to say this Government or its immediate predecessors have neglected to invest in basic sport and recreation facilities. Moneys from the national lottery were paid through the Department of Education, as it was, to help local organisations to provide facilities. Those grassroots bodies may have generated local funds and drew on grant allocations from various Departments to operate their schemes. It is not fair to say they have been seriously neglected in comparison to some projects mentioned by Members.
The question of elitism is raised from time to time. It is asked whether we give an unnecessarily large amount of resources to those who excel in various sports. All of us take pride when Irish people do well on the international stage; it gives the country a great lift. When raising the question of elitism, we should be conscious that success on the international stage draws young people to pursue various sports or recreational activities. When Irish athletes achieve great success, young people are drawn to that activity. The same applies to our native games. When a county or province wins a national honour, more young people become involved in that pursuit.
This interests me because of my role on the national drugs strategy team. We want more disadvantaged young people to become involved in sporting activities because if they do, they tend not to be involved in what are loosely termed anti-social activities.
I will not enter the debate about the GAA, because that has been frequently discussed inside and outside this House. However, coming from that background, the hundreds of thousands of young people who pursue GAA activities all look forward to a day when they might play for their school, college or county on the hallowed turf of Croke Park.
Many contributors mentioned the voluntary effort put into sport and recreation by hundreds of thousands of people through the years, which has made a tremendous contribution. Those working at that level are entitled to support. Equality and access are not being ignored in this Bill. It will be incumbent on the sports council to implement Government policy in this area.
