Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 14 February 2023
218. Deputy Jim O'Callaghan asked the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media when funding will be provided by Government for the upgrading and refurbishment of the RDS arena that is used widely for different sports. [6487/23]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Large Scale Sport Infrastructure Fund (LSSIF) was launched in 2018 to provide Exchequer support for larger sports facility projects, including swimming pools, with at least €100 million being made available over the period to 2027.
The first allocations under the LSSIF were announced in January 2020 and, thus far, approximately €86.4 million has been awarded to 33 different proposals. Included in the first allocations was a provisional grant of €10 million towards the RDS Main Arena Redevelopment project. The application was supported by Horse Sport Ireland, the Irish Rugby Football Union and Leinster Rugby. The proposed project includes the demolition of the existing Anglesea stand and terrace and its replacement with a new increased capacity two-tier grandstand.
The terms and conditions of the LSSIF provide that once provisional allocations are announced, the successful projects will undergo a further process of due diligence. This process includes a further review of projects including economic appraisals and feasibility studies as appropriate to comply with the Public Spending Code. The grant for the RDS project as announced in January 2020 remains in place and once the due diligence process is complete, my Department will be in a position to issue a grant agreement to facilitate the actual drawdown of the grant.
While the priority in the short term is to advance the projects that were already allocated funding, a review of the LSSIF Programme is underway. My Department has now met with all successful grantees and work is at an advanced stage in drafting the review. I expect this work to be finalised shortly. As part of that review, the Department is examining, inter alia, progress on all projects awarded funding to date.
