For Irish people, sport is a national passion. It is a cornerstone of our national identity, bringing together different communities, walks of life and nationalities through a wide range of activities and events. Acts of sporting greatness are a part of the fabric of our nation, which live on in memory long after the final whistle has blown.

The benefits of participation in sport are clear: a healthy lifestyle, social interaction, civic cohesion, promoting self-confidence and national identity, and tackling obesity and mental health difficulties. Over 1.3 million people in Ireland regularly participate in sport and physical exercise. 400,000 people volunteer every year to help in clubs. The ESRI estimated in 2005 that combining the cost of playing, club membership, attendance at events and volunteering, the economic value of sport was about €1.4 billion.

Labour’s approach to sport is simple: we need to build participation from the bottom up, while also supporting our elite athletes from the top down. Sport should be something that happens in the community, not exclusively behind high walls or expensive membership fees.

This is the principle that underpins Labour’s approach to public investment in sport.

Summary

MAKING SPORT ACCESSIBLE TO ALL

– Successful Local Sports Partnerships which increase participation will be mainstreamed, and support will be maintained for the Community Games. Local Sports Partnerships have the potential to build participation from the bottom up. Labour will mainstream successful sports partnership pilot projects that have proven their effectiveness in broadening participation, using funding from a reformed betting levy. The Community Games will continue to be supported since they help to widen participation, while providing elite athletes with a vital first step on the road to elite success.

AN INNOVATIVE APPROACH TO PROVIDING COMMUNITY FACILITIES
– Funding will be provided from a Community Development Fund for core, integrated, multifunctional community amenities, such as Youth Cafes, Arts Centres, Indoor Recreational Space, facilities for older people and other amenities which have the capacity to generate income streams identified by local communities. These income generating amenities would sustain the operation of the core amenities. One amenity, which meets this criterion and is valuable in its own right, is the provision of synthetic grass playing pitches, which can be hired to users on a commercial basis, and which could generate an operational surplus of €60,000 per annum. This dual approach to facilities would address the current problem whereby the provision of capital funding alone and the lack of an income stream for operating costs means many community facilities are unable to sustain themselves for maximum community gain.

– The Community Development Fund will receive funding from the reconstituted Beneficiary Fund of the National Lottery. Efficiency savings of €15.6m from a reconstituted Beneficiary Fund of the National Lottery will be used to fund up to 12 pilot projects in the first year of operation.

– The application process will be reformed and ownership of the multi-functional facilities will be vested in the recognised community group. This will be the Community Group registered with the Voluntary and Community Directorate of the relevant Local authority. Failure to maintain the amenity will result in ownership reverting to the control of the Local Authority. Ownership of the synthetic grass pitch will be vested in the local school on which the facility is constructed.
A COHERENT APPROACH TO DEVELOPING SPORT INFRASTRUCTURE
– The National Sports Facilities Strategy will be the blueprint for developing facilities. Capital investment in multi-use sporting facilities will be prioritised. Labour believes that funding of Irish sport should be re-allocated away from capital projects, and towards employment and promotion of sport on a local and national level, which is proven to be more effective at increasing participation in sport.
– Any future grants will reflect the National Audit of Sports Facilities. Grants allocated under the Local Authority Swimming Pool Programme will reflect the National Audit of Sports Facilities and the amount of private facilities in the area. It will place most emphasis on the refurbishment of derelict pools; on ensuring provision in areas which have experienced rapid population growth; and areas that demonstrate a clear need.
SUPPORTING IRELAND’S ELITE ATHLETES
– The International Carding Scheme will continue to support our elite athletes subject to review after London 2012. Through the Department of Tourism, Culture and Sport we will review the current structures and strategic plans of sporting bodies, examining the implementation of High Performance Plans and long-term coaching plans within the bodies.
ADOPTING A MORE JOINED-UP, STRATEGIC APPROACH TO SPORT IN IRELAND
– Policy making will be the responsibility of the Department. Agencies will implement and assess outcomes. It is in the interests of all stakeholders that national policy for sport should be effective and funding transparent and strategic.
– Funding for state agencies and governing bodies will be made more transparent and structured, with the Minister holding ultimate responsibility for funding decisions. In future, funding will be conditional on beneficiaries signing up to dispute resolution services, such as the Just Sport Ireland initiative, and adhering to mandatory codes of conduct regarding child protection in sport.
– The Irish Sports Council will be renamed Sport and Recreation Ireland, with an expanded remit. Sport and Recreation Ireland will partner local authorities, OPW, Waterways Ireland and Coillte to identify appropriate outdoor facilities such as treks, walks and cycle ways, camping and water sports. It will also work with the local authorities to improve recreation facilities. A number of positions on the Sports Council’s Governing Board will be made directly electable.
– Partnerships between schools and local clubs to share facilities will be encouraged. Building partnerships to share sports facilities can be self-financing.
CHANGING THE FINANCING OF THE HORSE AND GREYHOUND FUND
– The Horse and Greyhound fund will be maintained, though without direct subvention from the Exchequer. Instead, Labour will introduce a betting levy of 1.5%, extended across all media and on-course transactions. Part of the revenue raised from this levy will go towards the Horse and Greyhound Fund. We also favour the benchmarking of Horse Racing prize money to a level above that of our competitor nations in Europe. How a reconstituted fund will be raised and administered will be decided in consultation with all stakeholders.