I welcome representatives of the Federation of Irish Sports: Mr. Derek Brennan, president; Ms Sarah O'Connor, chief executive; and Mr. Philip Brown, who is chief executive officer of the IRFU and secretary to the Federation of Irish Sports. I understand that Mr. Brennan will make a presentation to the committee.
Role and Functions: Discussion with Federation of Irish Sports.
Mr. Derek Brennan
I thank the Vice Chairman and other members for this opportunity to address the joint committee. We would like to update members of the committee on the current situation and our future plans. With your permission, Vice Chairman, we will take the submission as read and will highlight some areas in it.
Mr. Brennan will give us the salient features of the submission.
Mr. Derek Brennan
Indeed.
Is the committee happy with that arrangement? Agreed.
Mr. Derek Brennan
Obviously, we will answer any questions that members may have. I will provide some background to the federation for members of the committee who may not be aware of it. In November 2001, at the City West all-island sports conference there was a spontaneous mood among the national governing bodies that there should be an independent voice for sport, which needed to be established. The federation was formally constituted in April 2002, so it has been almost six years in existence. We set out to ensure that the officers and executive committee would be truly representative, with no sport dominating and smaller sports having a voice. Initially we operated on a purely voluntary basis. With the encouragement of the then chairman of the Irish Sports Council, Mr. Pat O'Neill, we appointed a part-time executive manager. In January, we appointed Ms Sarah O'Connor as our chief executive officer. We currently have 62 members, including all of the major sports.
We began addressing a number of issues on behalf of the membership and at an early stage identified the importance of devising a system for the resolution of disputes in sport through mediation and arbitration, which would be fair, quick and at minimum cost.
With the assistance of a range of people — many in the legal profession, including the Bar Council — and with the encouragement of the Irish Sports Council, we devised Just Sport Ireland, which was launched by the Attorney General last October. We have held seminars to brief our membership on the scheme and have set up a website www.justsportireland.ie. JSI is chaired by Mr. Ercus Stewart, SC, who has vast experience and qualifications in the area. It also has a significant number of highly-qualified individuals on its mediation and arbitration panels.
At this stage it is vital that all sports, particularly those that are publicly funded, have a provision in their rules which would require disputes to be resolved by such a system. The federation will do everything possible to encourage this but it will need all the support it can get in its endeavours.
The soon to be published code of best practice on the administration of discipline in sport will undoubtedly provide a valuable adjunct to JSI, and hopefully will assist in the avoidance of dispute escalation.
The enormous contribution of sport to the fabric of society is no longer anecdotal thanks to the recent ESRI report on volunteering, the report on obesity and the active citizenship report. The 400,000 plus volunteers, in addition to the even greater number of participants, deserve the fullest possible support of those of us who can help in any way. Like most organisations, we are obviously concerned about public funding given the strains on the Exchequer that seem to be coming down the road. We hope that sport will not be seen as an easy target for any cuts that may be required.
I will now ask my colleague, Sarah O'Connor, to address the joint committee.
Ms Sarah O’Connor
I want to highlight one of the key changes that we hope to come back to the joint committee about later in the year in terms of seeking support. It relates to a proposed change to the current section 874A of the Taxes Consolidation Act, which provides for a tax relief on donations made to sporting bodies. Given the way the scheme is currently set up, it is limited to capital projects. Our initial research indicates that only 11 of the 62 national governing bodies that are members of our federation actually own any land or permanent facilities. As a result of that limitation on approved projects, they have no access to, and cannot benefit from, the scheme. The federation is currently working closely with PWC to come up with a form of wording that we hope will be acceptable to the Government in order to broaden the type of projects that could benefit from this tax relief scheme for donations.
There are a couple of reasons we are keen for this to happen. First, we feel that given the current economic climate it would hugely increase the potential of sports, particularly minority sports, to attract private sector investment. Second, the latest ESRI report in March 2007, produced in conjunction with the Irish Sports Council, highlighted the need for a shift in policy away from capital funding towards a more human or softer development such as sports development projects and programmes targeted at specific people to bring them within the sporting community. We will be seeking this tax relief to benefit projects that fund elite athletes as they strive towards representing Ireland by participating in major championships, as well as sports development projects.
I will now hand over to my colleague, Mr. Philip Brown.
Mr. Philip Brown
I would like to raise one item on behalf of the federation, which is the issue of funding. It is an old chestnut and revolves around the way in which the Irish Sports Council is funded on an annual basis. It means that multi-annual projects become difficult to plan for and to fund. We are trying to persuade the joint committee and the Government that multi-annual funding is the way to go. The programme for Government has moved in the same direction concerning funding for the Arts Council.
Sport is no different. Our projects, in terms of the Olympic Games, are on a four-year basis and it is difficult to prepare for the games when one's funding is only guaranteed for a year. Equally, other sports have projects which by their nature go on for longer than a year, particularly in terms of the employment of people. It is difficult to put in place proper coaching and administrative structures when one does not know from year to year what one's funding will be. From a strategic planning, recruitment and, ultimately, value for money point of view, we would urge the committee to look carefully at the concept of multi-annual funding for the Irish Sports Council. This would have a trickle down effect for the NGBs because it would allow the Irish Sports Council to fund them. We are open to questions.
By way of observation, I thought Cork GAA might have used the Federation of Irish Sport's good offices on the first issue raised.
Ms Sarah O’Connor
We made an approach to the GAA on that front, but Mr. Mulvey was already involved at that stage. We will speak to the GAA on that.
I was jesting.
Mr. Brown might take them up after last Saturday.
I welcome the representatives of the Federation of Irish Sport to the committee. It is playing a significant role in the development of sport. We see sport as the solution to all the problems of society at present. Certainly, I would be fully supportive of everything that the federation has done. Its structure reveals so many important figures from the executives of the various sports organisations who form part of it. It is bound to lead to a progressive approach to ensuring the participation of as many people as possible, especially teenagers. In that catchment group, between the ages of 14 and 21, we seem to lose so many people from sporting organisations, to the detriment of themselves in many instances and to society in general as well. I would hope that the federation will lend full support to such an approach.
Mr. Brown raised the matter of strategic planning. I hope that in such planning the Government would not leave some of the smaller associations behind. It is imperative in strategically planning our programme of investment that we do not leave the small ones out. Some small associations may only have a few hundred people involved but they play an important role in aspects of sport and they have as much right as any of the rest of them.
The GAA is my sport, but I want to see the GAA come down off its high stool in stating that no one else can use its facilities. We must tackle the GAA head-on in that regard. It is about a wider spectrum than ensuring that one sport develops more than any other. This is about every sport. I hope that in the context of a multi-annual approach the GAA and any other association that has the same format will think in the long term and look strategically at supporting the smaller organisations and groups to ensure that everyone develops.
Another point relates to the capital costs versus the current running costs. Costs are now a significant barrier to the development of sport. Volunteers are trying to raise money to run their association, while on the other hand we see huge buildings not being used for periods of the day or year, which is contrary to the feeling that sport is all conquering.
There should be a slight change in funding, whether national lottery funding or Government funding, to give support for current costs rather than all the support being for capital costs. The Irish Basketball Association attended the committee a fortnight ago and took that line as well. I would like to see that development and I certainly will support it at every opportunity.
As the federation states, it is vitally important that there should be such a strategic multi-annual approach and that we all work together. It will be a considerable battle. I would hope that organisations would become part of the multi-annual project, that they would ensure that everyone has a chance of promoting their particular sport and that they would not impose barriers within their organisations to prevent other groups using their facilities. We all have our own different sports, and rightly so. It would be foolish to think that one sport should dominate everything. As Mr. Brown stated, we must look at the long-term plans from a multi-annual as well as a strategic perspective.
I apologise to Deputy Olivia Mitchell. I thought she was remaining silent but I should have known better, given that she is chief spokesperson for the Opposition.
That is all right. I thank the federation and welcome its presentation. We all welcome the arbitration facility which it will provide. I was not going as far as Cork to see a case for it. I was thinking of the case of the stadium in Tallaght. I do not know the cost of the legal fees in that case, but it was a disgrace that so much money badly needed by sport was wasted in litigation. Anything we can do in that regard would be welcome.
Everybody makes the case for more funding. I suppose that in good times they are successful and in bad times they may be less so. There is a compelling case for multi-annual funding in that even if the amount of money each year is the same, one still gets more bang for each euro spent. The representatives of the Irish Basketball Association, who attended the committee a fortnight ago, made the case that they can continue as they are with annual funding but if they are to make any real leap forward in terms of increasing participation, which is what they want to do and which also would be the national objective, they really need to be able to plan in a strategic way. That applies to every business. Every organisation needs to know with some certainty what its flow of income will be. If this is so important to sport, as I believe it is, then there must be a campaign to make the case. We have made the case in the Dáil but I certainly have heard no case made by the Irish Sports Council. Deputy Upton would agree that we have heard no case from anybody other than the federation. One knows instinctively that it is absolutely necessary and the individual sports organisations would obviously make the case.
The Department of Finance, not the Minister, makes this decision. The Minister will be the lobbyist on the federation's behalf if the case is made to him, but the Department of Finance gets very edgy when it loses control and feels a five-year span is just too much for it to accept. The Department of Finance accepted it in the compelling case of transport projects where there is clearly a long-term spend. If one is building a metro, for example, there is no use in getting an annual budget. The NRA has a multi-annual budget. Transport has multi-annual budgeting, but I do not think any other organisation has a multi-annual budget.
The case must be made in a compelling way. Even though there is a great deal of control in the form of the Department of Finance, the reality is that it would not be committing necessarily to a greater spend over the five years, but at least to a certainty of spend which would allow organisations such as the federation to make strategic plans for the Olympic Games or for any sports development over a five-year period.
It will take more than coming in and speaking quietly to the few of us here, irrespective of how effective we may be or like to think we are, to get multi-annual funding. That is really what I am saying to the federation in response to its case, which I and, I think, everybody here would fully support.
I thank the deputation for coming in and presenting us with this good document. I certainly welcome the federation's involvement in mediation. It somehow goes against the thrust of what sport should be about that people should end up fighting about it in the High Court. With the support of people such as Ercus Stewart and Paul Gallagher, our guests are certainly on the right track.
I support the request for multi-annual funding. As Deputy Mitchell stated and as is evident from replies to parliamentary questions, the Arts Council has engaged in significant lobbying. Members can continue to exert pressure on our guests' behalf. However, they must continue to lobby us, to make their case and to remind us of the issues involved. It is difficult to plan on an annual basis. The uncertainty of trying to make plans on that basis discourages people and they cannot make commitments. If money is provided over a two or three-year period, people are obliged to operate on a wing and a prayer in the context of ensuring that the finance is available for the final year.
How do our guests intend to promote the benefits of sport? In the past I was my party's spokesperson on agriculture and food. I previously expressed my concerns in respect of obesity and I would like our guests to comment in that regard.
There is a need for a cross-departmental approach to sport. In that context, the Departments of Health and Children and Education and Science have a role to play. Will our guests comment on physical education in schools? This matter has been neglected and there has been a great deal of discussion in that regard. Will our guests indicate how they would like to see PE in schools promoted and encouraged? Will they also indicate whether they are of the view that it should be a full school subject? Should it be available to take as a subject for leaving certificate and, if so, should points be awarded in respect of it? This aspect may not have been considered in the context of encouraging young people who wish to pursue careers in sport.
Sport is a very positive way of engaging with young people. Some difficulties arose recently in my constituency in respect of certain events. Will our guests indicate how they see sport being an important social factor in the context of keeping young people out of trouble and encouraging them to engage in positive behaviour?
Our guests may not like my final comment but I will make it nonetheless because it relates to my previous point. I refer to the level of aggression that can arise on occasion in sport. "Violence" is too strong a word but there is a level of aggression involved. Watching two, three or ten guys thumping each other around a sports field does not make for good viewing, neither does it encourage parents to allow their children to participate in sport. In addition, it sends out the wrong message. Will our guests comment on how aggression in sport can be combated and contained?
I welcome the delegation and thank its members for their presentation. The case for multi-annual funding makes absolute sense. When one examines the position vis-à-vis sporting organisations, it is evident that strategic plans are vital. The State is failing badly by not having in place a co-ordinated strategic plan in respect of sport. I am concerned with regard to what will happen at the forthcoming Olympic Games, particularly in the context of the results achieved to date by Irish sportspeople. However, as Deputy Mitchell stated, it is important that we and our guests should continue to lobby in respect of multi-annual funding.
I am chairman of a sports club and I welcome the developments in respect of mediation. When there are different factions at play it leads to litigation, legal costs, etc. It makes no sense for those involved in sport to be obliged to go to the High Court.
I read the proposal regarding the amendment in respect of donations. I am somewhat confused. Is it the case that our guests are proposing that donations can be given to sporting clubs, to the national governing bodies or to local sports partnerships? If the former is the case, it would be a very good way to increase community participation in sport and allow people to become involved with their local clubs.
It is important that, regardless of the code of sport, we should train people to be administrators. Volunteerism is declining in many sporting organisation. The sporting organisation of which I am a member, namely, the GAA, has a very good comhairle programme but I do not know the extent to which it reaches out into the community. Will our guests comment further on the need for training?
On the launch of Just Sport Ireland, will our guests comment on the anti-doping issue? I am somewhat concerned that we do not take seriously the issue of performance-enhancing drugs. A number of baseball officials were obliged to appear before Congress in the US earlier this year and some notable baseball players are in trouble. In what way is the federation communicating with people in respect of the use of growth hormones or performance-enhancing drugs? Is there a danger that we are not taking this issue seriously enough and that — I hope this does not prove to be the case — a plethora of sportspeople might become embroiled in controversy?
I thank the members of the delegation for their attendance and for the way in which they outlined their case. It is important that the committee should understand their requirements.
Like Deputy Wall, I am of a GAA persuasion. I would like to think that the association might share its facilities with other sports. However, that does not seem to be the case. I suggest, therefore, that a more holistic approach to sport be taken through county councils. When the latter build community centres and other facilities, provision should be made for sporting activities that are less well known. When I was a member of Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council it made an effort to encourage the facilitation of all sporting activities in new community developments. Perhaps that approach could be adopted at a higher level. The committee could suggest that sports funding be directed more towards community-based sporting activities.
The GAA is lucky that it can obtain funding from its own sources. To a large extent, the funding it obtains from the Government represents something of a top-up payment. However, the federation requires funding on a regular basis and that is what those present are requesting. I presume its funding comes directly from the Government and that it does not have many other sources from which to procure money. That is a major problem. Perhaps the county council model to which I refer is the best way to provide assistance to the federation.
I apologise to the delegation but we must suspend the sitting in order that members can be present in the Dáil for a vote. We will reconvene immediately after the vote.
Sitting suspended at 5.20 p.m. and resumed at 5.41 p.m.
I hope I can bring my thoughts together after the votes. I am delighted to see the delegation here. I am very impressed with the broad spread of sports which the federation recognises, such as cricket, basketball, golf, sailing, handball, gymnastics and canoeing. It is marvellous to see such a great spread.
I will be brief because I do not wish to repeat what others have said. The Just Sport Ireland initiative is very welcome because litigation features so prominently now in civil, political and sporting life. It is very important to have that mechanism available so that people need not resort to the courts as a first option and this is very beneficial.
I agree with Deputy Wall that facilities should be opened up. I have lived in Spain and Switzerland where they have multipurpose facilities such as stadia, running tracks, roller-blading domes or skateboard parks. We need to cater for people who do not have great hand to eye co-ordination but may be very good at other sports, such as balance sports like trampolining, skating or skiing. We should try to maximise the number of people who can take part in sport. The ESRI statistics show that 20% of people play a sport on a regular basis which is fantastic.
I note the statistic that 400,000 adults are involved in sport at some level. In light of what Deputy Upton said about fitness levels in this country, particularly when it has been noted that one in four children is not just overweight but obese, it is important that our children and young adults do not become armchair experts in sport but rather go out and participate. I had occasion to watch a big football match on television the other night. Children were commenting on a player saying he was hopeless. These are the very children who will not go out and play. It would be nice if we could encourage them not just to be critically aware of sport on television but also to physically participate. Schools have a significant part to play in this regard.
I do not see how one could prepare athletes for the Olympic Games or for international competition when we have such an ad hoc basis of giving grants here or there. If athletes have the security of knowing they will receive funding, this will improve their capacity to get stuck in and devote themselves to attaining the highest levels they can, whether that be at Olympic Games, international honours, intercounty or provincial level. People who play a sport will attest to the fact that friendships made through sport are critically important in later life when they may not be as active and when they may have given up participating in sport.
I commend the federation and support its work. It certainly needs funding and not just on an ad hoc basis. The number of sports represented by the federation is indicative of the way sport in Ireland is going. We have our national games but other sports must not be left out. I would like to see sports facilities opened up, wherever they are, so that communities can take part and people can enjoy them. We would be better off as a nation as a result.
Deputy M.J. Nolan took the Chair .
I welcome the delegation and apologise for being unable to attend earlier.
I thank the delegation for the presentation. Many of my questions have been asked but I will ask a few more.
The mediation service offered by the federation was commented on earlier in a jocose manner. The recent dispute in Cork sent out a bad signal in that it was necessary to call in the top industrial relations expert as mediator. Will the federation explain that situation? The delegation stated that its services were offered, but were they refused? The fact that a person outside the sporting family was involved in the mediation did not do sport any good.
The federation presentation referred to tax relief on donations. What changes would the delegation like to see? A big issue coming down the tracks is the issue of sponsorship. We have referred to the issues of participation, obesity and the notion of sport as a cure for many of the ills of society. Has the delegation a view on the contradiction involved in the sponsorship moneys offered to sporting bodies and how does it see sponsorship evolving? How will sponsorship money be replaced without participation in sport suffering?
Go raibh maith agat, a Chathaoirligh. I welcome the delegation. With regard to the sharing of facilities, Senator Butler alluded to the role of county councils. In my area, Fingal County Council has been promoting joint facilities between schools and sporting bodies and that is the way forward in terms of providing facilities for all sports and using funding to the best advantage. It is ridiculous that small towns would have three or four different gymnasia or physical education halls being run at a loss or having difficulty in breaking even, when one or two facilities which could facilitate all bodies could share the cost of lighting, heating and power. Working in conjunction with the schools is the way forward. Many areas have seen a huge growth in new communities. The idea of building a school and then closing it at 3.30 p.m. is ridiculous. We must ensure that schools stay open at night and are available to the broader community. I support the delegation in that regard.
I ask the delegation to expand on the issue of tax relief. This is a way for corporate Ireland to support sport more. If tax relief were available, sports organisations would get much-needed funds.
Reference was made to supporting professional sports people, with which I agree in general. However, when any sports person becomes successful it should stop. Sonia O'Sullivan was a fantastic ambassador for sport in Ireland and across the globe. At the height of her career when she won the gold bar for having won a number of European events she was getting Irish Sports Council support, which was unnecessary given that she was so successful and earning considerable money from winning events and endorsements of sporting gear, etc. There is a limit beyond which we should not go. We certainly want our international sportspeople given every help to compete. However, when they become successful and particularly if they are getting significant endorsements for gear they wear etc. we should consider not funding those individual athletes and giving it to others. There are many sportspeople who deserve our support from the limited resources available. I cannot recall any other examples at present.
I would like to hear the witnesses' comments on the drugs issue. Given the level of drug problems across the globe I am amazed that we have not had a major problem with our top sportspeople. We have had minor incidents, including schools rugby teams using illegal substances. I am a GAA man through and through. It would not sit easy with me to think that successful GAA teams would need to resort to drugs. However, given the level of professionalism in all sports, including GAA, soccer, rugby etc., I would like to ask the witnesses how they are trying to keep control of it. What testing takes place?
Again I thank the witnesses for giving me a preview of their presentation, which makes very interesting reading. As an umbrella organisation, does the Federation of Irish Sports have a part to play in ensuring the State gets better use of the grant aid provided to many sporting organisations and to rural clubs in particular, where I and no doubt other members have seen that, while there has been significant investment, we do not seem to be maximising the use of those facilities? Where the grant aid is provided to one club with the provision that other clubs can also use it, that does not seem to be the case on the ground.
I note that the federation mentioned an amendment to the Finance Act, which it hopes will be included in this year's budget. When does it hope to have that proposal and when can we get sight of it?
Mr. Derek Brennan
I thank members for all the supportive comments, which are really appreciated. They obviously take a real interest in sport in general, including the finer points as well as the major issues. Deputy Mitchell gave some good advice about multi-annual funding regarding the lobbying and representations we will need to make, which we will take on board. I ask Mr. Brown to respond regarding communicating the benefits of sport.
Mr. Philip Brown
I will take up two issues, the first of which is the promotion of the benefits of sport. I appeared before this committee a number of years ago making the same point. One of the problems we have may be a lack of joined-up thinking between the Departments that can influence sport, which are the Departments of Arts, Sport and Tourism, Education and Science, and Health and Children. In reality as an umbrella body with a very limited budget, our ability to promote the benefits of sport is limited. The budget for promoting the benefits of sport probably lies either with the Irish Sports Council or with the Government itself. We can certainly be a vehicle. We have access to a vast network through our NGBs that are members of our organisation. We can deliver the message, but we do not have the resources to do so. We would like to be part and parcel of promoting the benefits of sport because we would not be here unless we believed it. We would like to be part and parcel of that entire exercise, but it needs some joined-up thinking and a budget. Our NGBs are obviously doing that themselves in so far as they can. Obviously they are also working under limited budgets. We certainly have a role to play and are more than willing and able to participate in whatever promotional campaigns the State would like to put in place to help promote sport for all the good reasons that people around the room know, including the health and social benefits, and the benefits for individuals themselves in terms of their personal development, etc.
A number of members asked about anti-doping measures. They asked whether it is being taken seriously and about the role of the federation in that regard. The issue of anti-doping measures is being taken seriously by the Irish Sports Council, which might be reflected in the fact that we in this country have been remarkably free of serious anti-doping cases. We have had a number and I am certain we will have more. It is human nature that people will look for easy options. The Irish Sports Council is doing a good job. It is doing a reasonable job in promoting it and in educating the NGBs in that regard.
We have a good anti-doping structure. We have a good set of disciplinary procedures in the anti-doping tribunals that have been established and are run centrally by the Irish Sports Council. We are in reasonable shape, but we cannot be complacent about it. With a different hat on, as a representative of an NGB, I know we must educate all our players coming up through our development pathways. From grassroots right up to our international players, participants are continually educated. WADA changes its anti-doping rules on a regular basis. It also changes the list of banned substances on a regular basis. All that information must be conveyed to our membership and that happens on a regular basis. NGBs have a role. The Irish Sports Council has a role. We have a role in encouraging the NGBs to be vigilant and follow the rules laid down by the Irish Sports Council. This is the Irish Sports Council's baby at the end of the day. I believe it is doing a reasonable job. I believe those were the main issues.
Ms Sarah O’Connor
Deputy Upton referred to the need for and benefit of PE in schools. While that may not be in the direct remit of the federation, we would broadly support it. The report on obesity, published in 2005, highlighted the need for children to engage in between 30 and 60 minutes of physical activity a day and adults to engage in between 45 and 60 minutes of physical activity a day. As sporting habits start young, it is important that we offer physical education to our children as part of the primary and secondary school curriculum. As Deputy Wall said, many stop engaging in such activity between the ages of 14 and 18 years. One of the main findings of the obesity report was the need for joined-up thinking and action on the part of the Departments of Arts, Sport and Tourism, Health and Children and Education and Science. The federation would like the Department of Arts, Sport and Tourism to pursue the recommendation in the document that it should consult the various governing bodies to see what can be done.
Some members have spoken about the need for additional sports facilities in schools. It does not make sense to pump money into school facilities while building separate facilities, to a similar standard, for the clubs down the road. It would be much better to centralise funds and build a single, high quality facility. In the report we have presented to the committee we refer to the facilities audit and strategy being conducted by the Department. The completion of that project should be prioritised, particularly as a large percentage of the Department of Arts, Sport and Tourism's expenditure relates to facilities. Some €54 million of its overall budget of €270 million was allocated to the Irish Sports Council which is responsible for encouraging participation in sport. Some €77 million was spent on horse and greyhound racing. The rest of the funds were spent on the development of facilities.
Part of the reason we are calling for the promotion of sport at all levels is that it is of great value to the community, a point made by Deputy Upton. The federation strongly believes sport is an under-utilised tool that could help to address many of the social problems we face such as early school leaving, the disaffection of youth and obesity. It is a brilliant tool for integrating people with disabilities into mainstream society, for example. We do not think its value to society can be underestimated. Resources should be used to maximise the delivery of sport. That brings us back to the question of funding once more. The delivery of sport requires human capital — it is a human cost — as well as facilities. It may appear that I am going around in circles, but that is the nature of the point I am making. We need to spend money on facilities in the right way. Existing facilities should be shared. We need to invest sufficiently in human capital to allow sport to be delivered at school and community levels.
Mr. Derek Brennan
Deputy Upton spoke about the level of aggression in sport, an issue that is dear to my heart. As someone from a cricket background, I remember a time when umpires' decisions were absolutely sacrosanct and nobody dared to question them. However, those who play cricket are beginning to dispute decisions, which is hard to take. It is probably symptomatic of a wider social problem, which is that people are more aggressive nowadays. The advent of increased professionalism in sport means that one's living is at stake. National governing bodies have obligations in this regard. The acceptance of the decisions made by those officiating at sports events is a central aspect of participation in sport. Rugby in which aggression plays a key role is a good example of a sport in which refereeing decisions are accepted without question. It gives a very good example to all other sports. There is a job to be done at every level to try to eradicate player misbehaviour. Those of us who watch and are involved in sport do not think such behaviour is a pleasant sight.
Senator Buttimer and others asked about the possibility of offering tax breaks to clubs. The federation has to walk on eggshells to a certain extent in this regard. We want to be pragmatic in any submission we make. We are conscious of the understandable reaction of the Department of Finance to this proposal. We would like any suggestion we make to be pragmatic in order that it has a chance of being accepted. We do not want to scare the Department off. The revenue implications of opening the tax relief system to every sports club and organisation might be too scary. Perhaps we might consider initially confining it to certain national governing bodies such as those involved in Olympic sports. As Ms O'Connor said, we are discussing the issue with PricewaterhouseCoopers. We hope to come up with a proposal within a few months, certainly in time for the budget. We hope to have finalised our submission by September.
Ms O'Connor has answered Senator Butler's question about the involvement of local authorities. Deputy White spoke about obesity, an issue which is covered in our submission. Sport has an enormous role to play in combating it. It is disappointing that the report of the task force on obesity does not seem to have seen the light of day. We have certainly not seen very much of it, despite the drum-banging that went on when it was commissioned and launched. I hope there will be movement in that regard. The national governing bodies are more than happy to be playing a part in this area.
Deputy O'Mahony asked about the role of Just Sport Ireland in the Cork dispute. Unfortunately, I was out of the country at the time. I listened by satellite, with great frustration, to the various interviews and discussions on "Morning Ireland" about the difficulties in Cork. Perhaps Ms O'Connor might comment further on the matter.
Ms Sarah O’Connor
Mr. Mulvey was involved by the time we approached the GAA. It would have made little sense to have changed the procedure at that point. Just Sport Ireland was established by the federation to give the sports community a forum of its own for resolving disputes away from the public glare. Under the Just Sport Ireland structure, decisions will be made by people with an interest in sport.
If the governing bodies were to use such a facility, rather than involving outside bodies, it would help to raise the profile of Just Sport Ireland and the federation.
Ms Sarah O’Connor
Absolutely.
I was surprised, given the expertise made available by the federation through Just Sport Ireland, that the GAA felt the need to bring in an industrial labour relations consultant to deal with a sports issue. Perhaps there was a breakdown in communication within the GAA which could happen in any organisation. The federation needs to transmit the message that it is prepared to make expertise available. The problems in Cork could have been resolved much earlier than they were and with fewer complications.
There are enough industrial relations disputes to keep Mr. Mulvey busy. I do not suggest he did not do a good job in this instance. I am reflecting on the matter from a sports point of view. We need to keep these matters within the sports family.
A facility of this nature has also been established by the federation's sister organisation in Canada.
Ms Sarah O’Connor
Yes. It is mandatory in Canada for organisations funded by Sport Canada, the Canadian equivalent of the Irish Sports Council, to provide in their rules for arbitration. One of the arguments we have made in our paper is that it should be compulsory for sports organisations in Ireland which receive State funding to make provision for arbitration within their rules. We are not proposing that they should have to engage in arbitration through Just Sport Ireland only. We suggest State funding should be conditional on engagement, where necessary, in recognised forms of alternative dispute resolution such as mediation or arbitration. That is necessary if we are guarantee that precious grant moneys are not spent on discharging litigation costs.
Mr. Derek Brennan
It is ironic that Just Sport Ireland was launched in Croke Park. The issue of training administrators is dear to Ms O'Connor's heart.
Ms Sarah O’Connor
The federation has a tradition of running seminars on key administrative challenges facing sports organisations and we would like to develop this. The standard of administration imposed on governing bodies, particularly the smaller organisations, is increasing. A balance must be struck between recognising that many of these organisations are still run by volunteers and meeting the requirement to increase standards of administration. Sports administration is producing a growing profession, as more people are employed as sports administrators in governing bodies and at county council level in local sports partnerships. One of the key aims of the federation is to introduce some form of continuing professional development for sports administrators.
What links have been established between the Federation of Irish Sports and Volunteering Ireland, an organisation engaged in promoting volunteering and directing volunteers towards organisations? Does the federation co-operate with Volunteering Ireland in securing volunteers for the various sports organisations?
Ms Sarah O’Connor
The federation has an informal relationship with Volunteering Ireland which sometimes contacts us for publicity purposes, for example, to publicise training programmes it is running. Some of our member bodies, notably the Irish Hockey Association, have a close relationship with Volunteering Ireland through website links and so on. While the federation's relationship with the organisation remains informal, we would like to develop it.
Mr. Derek Brennan
Deputy O'Mahony raised the issue of alcohol sponsorship. I will throw that curved ball to Mr. Brown who has some experience in the area.
Mr. Philip Brown
We may not like it but sponsorship is the lifeblood for most sports. This brings us back to the point raised by Deputy Wall, namely, the current cost of running sport, to which Ms O'Connor also alluded. In terms of human capital, the delivery of sport is highly intensive. Unfortunately, in our changing society everyone is busy and it is difficult to attract volunteers and sustain the volunteer effort in delivery. The entire voluntary sector, not only sport, is under pressure and the delivery of sport costs money.
Sponsorship is vital to most sports organisations because they have to pay administrators to administer the sport to the standards deemed appropriate by the Irish Sports Council and the State and the federation acknowledges the need to administer sport properly. Equally, if we want to deliver on the ground, we need people to organise our volunteers. Volunteering Ireland plays a significant role in organising volunteers. The Special Olympics led the way in showing how well-organised volunteer cadres could deliver significant projects.
To cut to the chase, sponsorship is vital and its nature is the subject of an ongoing debate. With regard to alcohol sponsorship, the ban on tobacco sponsorship has been accepted by everyone. In France one has the Loi Evin which effectively means one cannot use sports sponsorship to advertise alcohol. From a sponsor’s point of view, the value of sponsorship will, therefore, be significantly less and the revenues coming from such sponsorship in France are significantly lower than in this country. However, if sponsorship rules change, revenue must be derived from another source. This is a key issue. One cannot simply turn off the tap because to do so would create another problem. The issue needs to be thought through very carefully. While there are many good, self-evident reasons to review the rules on sponsorship, we must be careful in the approach we take.
Have the various sports organisations developed shared services in areas such as administration? If so, has this approach proved fruitful for smaller sports bodies?
Ms Sarah O’Connor
As I have been with the federation for slightly more than 12 months, I have only started to focus on this area. We are on the verge of launching a scheme, with insurance one of the first initiatives. One or two sports have benefited already. Badminton Ireland informed me that it had secured a saving of €10,000 on its premium this year. At this stage, the project is taking baby steps but we hope to develop it.
Mr. Derek Brennan
I hope we have addressed all questions.
Members were given comprehensive responses to all questions. I was interested in Mr. Brennan's comments on aggression in sport and his reference to rugby in that regard. I often muse that most sports organisations have rules for the running of their games, whereas rugby has laws. I do not know under what statute they are laid down. Perhaps we should examine that issue.
Mr. Derek Brennan
Perhaps that is the solution.
On behalf of the joint committee, I thank the delegation from the Federation of Irish Sports for its excellent presentation.