Dara Calleary
Question:89. Deputy Dara Calleary asked the Minister for Defence if he plans to seek funding to resume the Asgard sail training programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47093/21]
View answerThursday, 30 September 2021
Questions (89)
Oral answers (6 contributions)
The Minister will be more than familiar with the former Asgard sail training programme. It gave incredible opportunities to young people to participate on the vessel formerly known as Asgard II. I would like to see it refloated, not the vessel but the programme. I understand proposals have been made to the Minister on youth education and opportunity. I would like to discuss those with him.
I thank the Deputy. I will happily meet him offline on this issue to give a fuller and more detailed briefing than I am able to give on the floor today, as things progress. As the he will be aware, the Asgard II sank in 2008 and the national sail training programme run by Coiste an Asgard was subsequently wound up.
I understand a number of organisations are involved in sail training in Ireland and the Department of Defence currently provides funding to one of these organisations, Sail Training Ireland. Sail Training Ireland is a charity founded by individuals previously involved with Coiste an Asgard.
A total of €85,000 in funding was provided in 2019, and €20,000 in 2020. It has received no money this year as it has not been possible to have a sail training programme. A performance delivery agreement stipulates that funding provided is to be used to provide a sail training experience for 50 trainees from disadvantaged backgrounds. I am advised that no sail training took place in 2020 or 2021 due to Covid-19 restrictions. A sum of €20,000 was provided in 2020 to help support administrative costs. It is anticipated that €85,000 will be provided in 2022, subject to the resumption of sail training.
Separately, in 2015, as part of the Fresh Start Agreement, the Government undertook to work with the Northern Ireland Executive to agree a funding plan for the Atlantic Youth Trust, AYT, project. A similar commitment was included in the 2016 programme for Government. The proposal was to build a new tall ship at an estimated cost of €15.5 million, with an ongoing funding requirement. Officials in my Department held meetings with the promoters and the Department for Communities in Belfast exploring the project. Progress was slow, in part due to political difficulties in the North. On 24 September 2021, a new pre-budget submission from AYT was received, which will be reviewed by officials.
In summary, the Government is engaged with two sail training organisations. We remain supportive of the principles of the sail training programme and would like to see this done, where possible, on an all-island basis involving participants, North and South. It needs to be robustly assessed with regard to full costs.
I thank the Minister. I would certainly like to meet with him. The national sail training programme was an important programme. It enabled skills building, team building, and the kinds of skills in boat building that we need as an island nation and not just sail training. The Asgard II was a regular visitor to Killala Bay, in particular to mark the French arrival in Killala in 1798. Even before I became a Member of this House, I regularly witnessed the benefits that it had for participants, and the Asgard has a long association with the State.
The Minister has a proposal in front of him, and I believe that everybody can agree on it in the context of a sail training, skills building and team building programme, and that it should be done on an all-island basis. Is it not appalling that the opportunities the programme can present are being delayed because of political intransigence or political disagreement? This is bigger than politics. This surely is a programme that can be provided even in the political difficulties we are experiencing, because of the bridges that it builds and the experiences that it gives to those participants. Those experiences should be shared without a problem around borders. I would certainly like to meet with the Minister. He has a particular interest in this and it is something that everybody should have an interest in.
If anybody doubts the benefits of sail training, there are some interesting programmes in different parts of the world. From what I have seen, the Spirit of New Zealand is probably the best of them. Some people have perceptions of privilege around sail training, but it is the opposite. I have met a number of people for whom their service on the Asgard II, for example, changed the direction of their lives. We can use sail training proactively in a useful and constructive way to build confidence, teamwork, and self-esteem among people who may not otherwise have an opportunity to benefit from the experience of being part of a crew on a sail training programme. I am committed to trying to deliver this but we need to robustly assess the cost-benefit analysis and so on, and we need to work with partners. We have partners that we can trust, both North and South, to do something valuable in this regard. I look forward in the months ahead, I hope, to updating the House on where the project lies.
I agree with the Minister that this is not about privilege; it is about opportunity. There is nothing privileged about being stuck on a sail training boat in the middle of the Atlantic during a storm. The programme offers opportunities and life experiences, including the experience of travel. We are looking at building an appropriate boat, which involves skilled people. We are constantly talking about the need for apprenticeship programmes. This is an opportunity that also could benefit the apprenticeship programme. I welcome the Minister's long-standing interest in it. Let us all agree to progress it on the basis of the opportunities it offers on an all-island basis.
There are complexities to building a boat. There may be more value for money in purchasing a vessel that is kitted out and suitable for this purpose. We have encountered complexities in the past building vessels. We need to be cautious that if we are contributing taxpayers' money, it represents full value for money and we partner with organisations that can provide transparency and good output. I am confident that we can do all of that. I am also confident that we have strong support in Northern Ireland to be part of the project here. This was discussed, as a minor issue in the bigger scheme of things, in the context of the New Decade, New Approach agreement. This could be a positive North-South project. I believe it could be cost-effective in how it is run and we have willing partners with whom to work. I hope it is something we can progress in the months ahead.