Written Answers Nos. 1-23
8. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport for an update on his Department’s engagement with Galway City Council regarding the next steps for the Pálás cinema in Galway; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52575/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraPálás Arthouse Cinema Galway was operated by Element Pictures for seven years under a lease from Galway City Council. The cinema closed on 28 February 2025.
The cinema operator offered to surrender the remainder of the lease to Galway City Council leaving all relevant moveable assets in place to allow any new operator to have the benefit of existing equipment. In April, GCC accepted the voluntary surrender. The Minister had a charge on the property along with other stakeholders the Western Development Commission and Screen Ireland. As Minister, I consented to the surrender of the lease to the City Council as did the other stakeholders, allowing the property revert to the Council. As a result, Galway City Council can seek an alternative operator for the building.
Galway City Council took surrender of the lease of the Pálás on 3 April 2025 and is the lead Public Body with responsibility for this facility. On 29 May 2025, the Council called for Expressions of Interest (EOI) for the future management of the facility. This process has followed a structured two-phase approach:
Under phase one, required interested parties provided an overview of their vision for the future operation of the property, supported by a robust business case. Submissions were assessed against qualitative and financial criteria and those who met the requirements were invited to proceed to Phase Two.
The second phase involved the submission of a comprehensive business plan detailing each party’s proposal for site usage and the associated operational model.
The submissions received under phase two are currently being assessed by Galway City Council to determine the preferred bidder. I have been advised that the process is now nearing conclusion and Galway City Council anticipate confirming the outcome shortly.
13. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport to provide an update on the latest meeting of the steering committee set up under the National Counter Disinformation Strategy; to outline when the terms of reference and an implementation plan will be published; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52399/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe National Counter Disinformation Strategy steering committee, chaired by my Department, has so far met on two occasions: 20 June and 4 September 2025. The intention is that it would meet every two months. The terms of reference and minutes of the first meeting are available online on my Department's website.
In terms of an implementation plan, the first step was to establish the oversight arrangements. The steering committee, which will drive implementation, is being supported by a broader multi-stakeholder coordination group. That coordination group met for the first time on 30 September; the intention is that it would meet at least twice a year. Its terms of reference are being finalised and will be published in due course. The role of the coordination group is to support implementation by acting as a forum where relevant issues can be discussed and to support collaboration and coordination among stakeholders.
Progress on implementation will be considered by the steering committee and progress reports will be published on a periodic basis. The format and frequency of the progress reports is to be agreed by the steering committee.
Progress is already being made. In June, fulfilling one of the actions in the Strategy, I attended a multi-stakeholder media literacy forum which discussed the importance of access to trustworthy information, the importance of education and the value of collaboration and cooperation.
Furthermore, in relation to implementation, the Strategy has a commitment to supporting research to further knowledge of the impact of disinformation and help better target measures to counter its harmful effects. To support this, the Department is developing proposals for research. The issue of funding in this regarding will be considered as part of the Department's settlement in Budget 2026.
15. Deputy James O'Connor asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport the next steps his Department will take to find a new fibre line if a fibre cabinet is full following National Broadband Ireland intervention; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52173/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe National Broadband Plan is being delivered on time and within budget, a clear example of Government delivering on its promises and ensuring no community is left behind.
National Broadband Ireland (NBI) are building an individual wholesale high speed fibre network to serve the NBP Intervention area, which includes 564K premises, equating to connecting circa 1.1 million people across Ireland.
Over 431,900K premises are Available to Order or Pre-Order today and the remaining premises are actively being progressed to the detailed build phases to ensure they are connected by the end of deployment.
In relation to the reference to fibre cabinets, it is important to note that NBI does not use fibre cabinets as they are traditionally used in other Network implementations. These are generally associated with earlier ‘fibre to the cabinet’ deployments, which are different in design from NBI’s fibre to the premises network.
NBI do use existing physical infrastructure where possible to locate its equipment in the Intervention Area, but where this existing infrastructure is capacity constrained or limited in any way, NBI add new infrastructure to house this.
Fibre to the premises is a more futureproofed network, in line with the requirements set out in the National Broadband Plan. It delivers higher speeds and more consistent performance, giving households, businesses and communities the reliability and performance that is needed for working from home, cloud services, business applications and seamless streaming.
On the question of capacity, the NBI network has been carefully designed with full deployment measured and indeed has gone further to prepare for the future.
To allow for natural growth, NBI has included an additional 25 per cent fibre capacity across the network to ensure that new premises can be connected promptly using this additional fibre capacity. This can be seen in how the rollout has grown over time. At the start of the Project, the Intervention Area included 537K premises. Today, the Intervention area covers more than 564K premises, with an additional 25% capacity.
In short, the NBI rollout is not only delivering high speed fibre connections today but is also designed with appropriate built-in capacity and flexibility to support the growth of our communities, our businesses and our economy in the years to come.
18. Deputy Peter 'Chap' Cleere asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport the actions his Department is taking to encourage the participation of females in sport. [52514/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe participation of women in sport is an important element of both the National Sports Policy 2018-2027 and the associated Sports Action Plan 2024-2027 and represents a core priority for me and my Department.
This Government is committed to a "Sport for All" approach aimed at ensuring that all persons can partake equally in sport and physical activity. This commitment is reaffirmed in the Programme for Government and is also reflected in Sport Ireland's Women in Sport Policy.
Sport Ireland’s Women in Sport Policy was launched in 2019 and was subsequently updated in 2023 due to advancements made within the sector and society in general. It builds on the significant work that has already been undertaken in this area and, in recognising the opportunity to make a significant impact on the lives of women through their involvement in sport, it provides a blueprint for Sport Ireland’s future work.
The Women in Sport (WIS) funding programme, administered by Sport Ireland, was first established in 2005 and since then over €30 million has been invested through the National Governing Bodies of Sport and the Local Sports Partnership network.
This year Sport Ireland announced an investment of €4 million under the Women in Sport programme for 2025. This is vital funding to support sporting bodies, and my Department will continue to support programmes to increase women’s participation in all sports and to progress strategic objectives for women in sport across all areas including active participation, coaching, officiating, and leadership.
The Irish Sports Monitor (ISM) Report for 2024, shows that sport participation levels among women is at 47%, an increase of one percentage point since 2023, and the gap between men and women is now less than 3%.
In terms of governance, the Sports Action Plan 2024-2027 requires national governing bodies of sport and local sports partnerships to have at least 40% Women on their boards as a condition of their funding. As of December 2024, the average board composition of these organisations was approaching 50% women.
As Minister for Sport, I will continue to tackle issues to ensure that women’s sport reaches parity with its male equivalent and that females do not drop out of sport due to a lack of adequate training facilities or access to opportunities.
19. Deputy Keira Keogh asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport for an update on the works of Coimisiún na Meán in implementing the online safety code; the number of cases taken in relation to breaches of the code; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52010/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraOnline safety, in particular, protecting children, is a key Government priority. We have established the legislative foundations for Ireland's online safety framework and our online safety and media regulator, Coimisiún na Meán, is at the heart of that framework.
An Coimisiún was established under the Online Safety and Media Regulation (OSMR) Act, which transposed the AudioVisual Media Services Directive. That Act is one of three main elements of the online safety framework. The other two elements are the EU Digital Services Act (DSA), under which An Coimisiún is Ireland’s Digital Services Coordinator, and the EU Terrorist Content Online Regulation for which An Coimisiún is a competent authority.
Under the OSMR Act, in October 2024, An Coimisiún adopted a new Online Safety Code for designated video-sharing platforms established in Ireland, including TikTok, Facebook, Instagram and X. The Code sets out what they must do to protect users. In particular, they are obliged to put measures in place to protect children from harmful content online including providing for parental controls and have transparent reporting and flagging mechanisms.
Part B of the code It contains specific obligations for the platforms to put in place robust age assurance measures to prevent children from accessing adult content such as pornography or extreme violence.
Additionally, as Digital Services Coordinator under the DSA, An Coimisiún works with the European Commission to ensure platforms put in place the systems and processes required to minimise the availability of illegal content. In particular, it works with the European Commission to ensure platforms address the risk of exposure of children and young people to illegal and harmful online content, including by means of age-verification or age-assurance, setting children’s accounts as private by default, adjusting recommender systems and allowing children to block or mute users, for example.
The Online Safety Framework is relatively new and the focus now is on implementation to ensure platforms meet their regulatory obligations. Failure to adequately fulfil these obligations can lead to significant financial sanctions and continued non-compliance can lead to criminal sanctions for senior management under the OSMR.
Given the independence of the regulator, my Department would not have information on any cases instituted by An Coimisiún. However, it should be noted that Part B of the Code has only applied since 21 July of this year.
In relation to specific information on the work of An Coimisiún there is a dedicated contact point for members of the Oireachtas - oireachtasqueries@cnam.ie - I also understand that An Coimisiún held a briefing in Leinster House yesterday for members of the Oireachtas to update on their work.
21. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport if he has had any recent engagement with the FAI regarding its search for a new location for a centre of excellence in Cork; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52197/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Community Sport Facilities Fund is the primary means of providing Government funding to sport and community organisations at local, regional and national level throughout the country. The Programme aims to foster an integrated and planned approach to the development of sports and physical recreation facilities and assists the purchase of non- personal sports equipment.
The Fund operated on an annual basis from 1998 up to, and including, 2008. It subsequently resumed in 2012 with rounds in 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2020 and 2023. The Fund has evolved over the years, with increasing amounts of funding being made available to support community sports initiatives.
In the 2023 round, a total €277,924,553 was allocated to 3,046 sports clubs and facilities, benefitting over forty sports, as well as multi-sport facilities, throughout the country representing the largest-ever investment in sports facilities in communities across Ireland. In the past 10 years over €600m has been allocated from the various rounds of the Fund.
In relation to local applications, given the scale of funding available and the time required to assess the applications, it was agreed that officials would focus on the validity of applications, on ruling out invalid applications or elements thereof. Recommended allocation amounts for valid applications were then calculated using the Pobal index of deprivation as the primary calculation factor.
The 500 applications from the most disadvantaged areas received a minimum of 90% of their maximum valid grant and only 1 application received less than 50% of the maximum valid grant.
Over 19,000 projects have benefited from sports capital funding since 1998, bringing the total allocations in that time to over €1.4 billion. Grants under the Fund have directly improved sports facilities in every village, town and city in the country.
In line with previous rounds of the Fund, a review of the current funding round is currently being undertaken, with a view to making recommendations on how to improve the Fund and the processes arising for future calls. It is envisaged that the review will be completed in quarter 1 of 2026 and this will inform the timing of the next round of the CSFF. However, I would anticipate that the next round should be announced in 2026.
22. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport when details of the next community sport facilities fund will be announced; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52595/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Community Sport Facilities Fund is the primary means of providing Government funding to sport and community organisations at local, regional and national level throughout the country. The Programme aims to foster an integrated and planned approach to the development of sports and physical recreation facilities and assists the purchase of non- personal sports equipment.
The Fund operated on an annual basis from 1998 up to, and including, 2008. It subsequently resumed in 2012 with rounds in 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2020 and 2023. The Fund has evolved over the years, with increasing amounts of funding being made available to support community sports initiatives.
In the 2023 round, a total €277,924,553 was allocated to 3,046 sports clubs and facilities, benefitting over forty sports, as well as multi-sport facilities, throughout the country representing the largest-ever investment in sports facilities in communities across Ireland. In the past 10 years over €600m has been allocated from the various rounds of the Fund.
In relation to local applications, given the scale of funding available and the time required to assess the applications, it was agreed that officials would focus on the validity of applications, on ruling out invalid applications or elements thereof. Recommended allocation amounts for valid applications were then calculated using the Pobal index of deprivation as the primary calculation factor.
The 500 applications from the most disadvantaged areas received a minimum of 90% of their maximum valid grant and only 1 application received less than 50% of the maximum valid grant.
Over 19,000 projects have benefited from sports capital funding since 1998, bringing the total allocations in that time to over €1.4 billion. Grants under the Fund have directly improved sports facilities in every village, town and city in the country.
In line with previous rounds of the Fund, a review of the current funding round is currently being undertaken, with a view to making recommendations on how to improve the Fund and the processes arising for future calls. It is envisaged that the review will be completed in quarter 1 of 2026 and this will inform the timing of the next round of the CSFF. However, I would anticipate that the next round should be announced in 2026.
