1. Deputy Joanna Byrne asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport given the significant deficiencies in Ireland’s swimming pool infrastructure and the pressing need for urgent investment and strategic planning to ensure every Irish person has access to swimming facilities, to outline in detail the way in which he intends to action this; the timelines for same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32735/26]

Sentiment score: 0.22

Considering the significant deficiencies in Ireland's swimming pool infrastructure and the need for urgent investment, can the Minister of State make a statement outlining how we intend to action this, and provide some indicative timelines for same?

Sentiment score: 0.38

Ireland has only public pool per 81,000 people. That is a significant deficit compared with other nations like Scotland, which has one per 14,000 people. The Government, like previous Governments, has acknowledged the problem but there is no viable plan to resolve it. The Minister of State has accepted the Swim Ireland report, a pool within reach. That remains a distant reality amid critical swimming infrastructure gaps. There is just no movement in resolving the issues. This is not tomorrow's problem. There is not enough swimming infrastructure to sustain the current levels of participation, let alone plan for the future. Currently, swimming infrastructure in Ireland is almost entirely in private pools. That means increased cost for clubs, participants and the parents of children who want to swim. It also means very early or late night swim times for clubs and competitors due to the sharing of facilities. All of this needs to be addressed. We need a research-based approach to building pools and we need to deliver them throughout the State. We need to support local authorities in an endeavour to deliver this as well. Action plans like the one the Minister of State mentioned provide everybody with an opportunity to swim. It is just not a reality. If it is, it is at an extensive cost to those who are participating this sport.

Sentiment score: 0.14

An adequate number of swimming pools for modern Ireland will not be delivered by the already oversubscribed large-scale sport infrastructure fund or the community sports facilities fund. The local authority swimming pool programme was to provide capital grant aid to local authorities for new, refurbished and upgraded swimming pools and never really did. Now the shift for future funding has moved to the LSSIF. If this remains the approach, then all of these supposedly ambitious public pools in Louth and Meath, in Drogheda, Dundalk, Trim and Navan, will have to continue to pay high rates to private commercial operators. I do not see this being delivered through this scheme. It is something that needs to be considered. This is an ever-growing sport. Participation levels are increasing day by day, but, unfortunately and sadly, so are costs for parents and clubs, as is the need for facilities for those who are competing at a competitive level. We are just not meeting the mark in that regard.

Sentiment score: 0.05