I propose to take Questions Nos. 815, 816 and 818 together.
The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) agreed between the organisation to whom the Deputy refers and the Government, signed in January 2020, was required by the Government in order to allow a financial support package to be put in place for the organisation. The MOU was signed in the presence of the organisation's European governing body and the organisation's main lender, both of whom welcomed the MOU.
The conditions for the receipt of the funding, set out in the MOU, were accepted by the organisation, and welcomed by the other stakeholders who also provided financial support.
The MOU provides that six of twelve Board members of the organisation, including the Chairperson will be independent directors. It is important to have this balance on the Board to ensure strong governance and oversight of the association. The organisation's previous governance arrangements were shockingly inadequate and led to serious financial mismanagement.
The new governance arrangements set out in the MOU also require reform of the organisation's Council, where council members with more than 10 years' service will retire by July. This changeover on the Council will address issues around the representative imbalance on the Council, particularly to ensure that women’s football is properly represented.
I acknowledge the good work done by many people on the Council. However, it is now time to move forward with these final governance reforms. I can confirm that I sought the advice of Sport Ireland in relation to the conditions outlined in the MOU.
