8 May 2013, 12:19
The Oireachtas Joint Committee on Transport and Communications this morning met with the Minister of State with responsibility for Tourism and Sport Michael Ring TD to discuss the upcoming Council of Sports Ministers meeting.
8 May 2013
Taking place in the configuration of the Education, Youth, Culture and Sport Council, Minister Ring will chair the meeting as part of the Irish EU Presidency. The meeting will have a particular focus on better coordinating the efforts of Member States to prevent drug taking in sport.
Committee Chairman Tom Hayes TD says: \"Our Committee this morning heard of the efforts being made at European level to combat the scourge of drug taking in sport. Committee Members questioned whether enough was being done internationally to ensure fair play for all competitors. The presence of Travis Tygart, the high-profile head of USADA, at next week's meeting in Brussels will undoubtedly serve to focus discussions on how to better tackle doping in sport. While the anti-doping systems in place in Ireland are robust and well-resourced, we heard that the Minister plans to press for more to be done at a European level, not just in relation to testing, but also in enhancing cooperation and data-sharing between police and customs services across jurisdictions.
\"Committee Members widely commended the 2012 Sports Capital Grants programme, which had a particular focus on dispensing funds for projects to increase participation at community level. We take on board the Minister's argument that such investment has a significant economic dividend, with every €1 invested in sport resulting in a benefit of €1.26 to the wider economy. Acknowledging the straitened economic times we live in, the Committee agreed to write to the Minister for Finance to request that funding be made available for another round of grants for sports clubs nationwide, given the wider societal and health benefits deriving from such initiatives.\"
For further information contact:
Paul Hand,
Communications Unit,
Houses of the Oireachtas,
Leinster House,
Dublin 2
P: +3531 618 4484
M: +353 87 694 9926
Committee Membership
Deputies
Michael Colreavy, Sinn Féin
Timmy Dooley, Fianna Fáil
Dessie Ellis, Sinn Féin
Terence Flanagan, Fine Gael
Tom Fleming, Independent
Noel Harrington, Fine Gael
Tom Hayes, Fine Gael (Chairman)
Seán Kenny, Labour
Eamonn Moloney, Labour
Michael Moynihan, Fianna Fáil
Patrick O’Donovan, Fine Gael
John O’Mahony, Fine Gael (Vice-Chairman)
Ann Phelan, Labour
Brian Walsh, Fine Gael
Senators
Terry Brennan
Sean D. Barrett
Eamonn Coghlan
Paschal Mooney
Ned O’Sullivan
John Whelan