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Ryan Byrne/INPHO
Same Again

No cuts for first time in six years as €42.5m to be pumped into Irish sport in 2015

A good day for the Irish Sports Council.

FUNDING FOR IRISH sport will not be cut for next year after today’s Budget and the fact that it will remain at its current level of €42.5m provides a ‘positive platform for further investment’, according to the Federation of Irish Sport.

After six straight years of cuts – which lead to a 25% drop in investment in sport in that period – the Federation of Irish Sport welcomed today’s announcement that there is to be no reduction in the current funding.

“The fact that a floor in the funding levels for sport has now been reached provides a positive platform for further investment against a significantly improving fiscal backdrop,” said the representative body.

“In our pre-budget submission the Federation called on the Government to return the current funding for sport -as distributed through the Irish Sports Council to the Federation’s 100 plus members – to 2011 levels by 2016.

“The Federation remains’ committed to working with the Department of Transport, Tourism & Sport through the revised estimates process and into next year to secure this additional €4.4 million by 2016.”

The Government’s decision to provide a third round of the Sports Capital Programme was also welcomed and is evidence of ‘an increasing recognition of the contribution and role of sport to communities nationwide’.

President

Dublin footballer Bernard Brogan, recently appointed President of the Federation of Irish Sport noted: “As a country we now need to look at ways of increasing the revenues available to sport.

“The Federation will continue to work with Government to pursue our target of getting back to 2011 levels of funding by 2016, as well as ways of increasing levels of private sector investment into sport.”

The Irish diaspora got a €1 million boost in today’s budget

Adding it up: Budget 2015 in numbers