BBC SPORT | NORTHERN IRELAND | Irish government split over GAA funding

The Irish Government is split over Prime Minister Bertie Ahern's decision to grant more than �130m in funding to the GAA.

Deputy Prime Minister Mary Harney said on Monday that it would be unacceptable to allocate the GAA substantial funds while the organisation refuses to allow other sporting bodies to use its facilities.

Ms Harney's comments follow the narrow decision at the GAA's Annual Congress at the weekend to deny access to Croke Park for other sports.

The repeal of Rule 42 which prohibits the playing of any other sports in GAA grounds was defeated by a very slender margin at the Congress.

On Friday, the Government, led by Mr Ahern's Fianna Fail party, announced its intention to contribute �60m towards the re-development of the Dublin stadium.

It later emerged the decision had not yet received Cabinet approved.

The funding proposal was agreed in principle after talks between the GAA and Mr Ahern, Finance Minister Charlie McCreevy and Sports Minister Jim McDaid.

This is taxpayers' money and I think we should be using it to encourage a more open attitude

Mary Harney

In addition, the GAA is to get a further �70m in funding on top of the �60m announced by Mr Ahern on Friday.

Mr Ahern is expected to face tough questioning in the Irish parliament on Tuesday over the �60m handout.

In addition, Ms Harney, the leader of Fianna Fail's coalition partner the Progressive Democrats, has called for a full cabinet debate on the GAA funding.

"This is taxpayers' money and I think we should be using it to encourage a more open attitude by organisations to those that play different games," said Ms Harney.

The additional �70m is set to be paid at the rate of �10m annually under the National Lottery funded sports capital programme over the next seven years.

A Government spokesman said on Monday night that "as of now" they were no strings attached to the grants.

However, he acknowledged that the legal agreement still had to be drawn up and brought to Cabinet for approval.

Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern
Bertie Ahern: Described as "obsessional"

Opposition parties have criticised Bertie Ahern's decision to announce the initial �60m grant on the eve of Saturday's GAA vote on opening up Croke Park to other sports.

Despite the government handout, GAA delegates voted narrowly to retain the bar on other sports at Croke Park.

Labour Party sports spokesman Brian O'Shea told the Irish Independent that the timing of the Croke Park funding announcement as "almost a bribe on the part of the government".

Mr O'Shea also described the Bertie Ahern's decision to press on with the proposed National Stadium project as "obsessional".

Another opposition spokesman, Fine Gael representative Jimmy Deenihan, himself a former GAA star, said Mr Ahern should have a "serious re-think" on Stadium Ireland.

The Irish prime minister said he was "disappointed" at the GAA delegates' decision not to open up Croke Park to other sports.

However, Mr Ahern said that he hoped that the GAA would change the decision adding that he believed change was "imminent".

"The GAA spent �200m developing Croke Park, got themselves in major financial difficulties and we had to bail them out," said Mr Ahern.

The GAA got themselves in major financial difficulties and we had to bail them out

Bertie Ahern

The Irish prime minister added that GAA members would have suffered if the government had not given the grant.

Meanwhile, Armagh are among a number of counties holding post-mortems after a number of their Congress delegates apparently defied mandates to vote in favour of the Croke Park motion.

Three Armagh delegates voted in favour of the motion with the other three swaying the other way.

One Armagh source told the Irish News that the delegates had been mandated to support Saturday's motion but this has been denied by Armagh GAA chairman John Moley.

Moley was among the trio who voted against the Roscommon proposal.

A Limerick delegate is also said to have defied a county mandate to support the motion.

One more vote in favour of the motion would have been enough to win the day.


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