Update 29/10/15: DTTAS changes Head of Tourism Division.
The IAFA welcomes the decision of the Department of Transport, Tourism & Sport to move Mr. Ray O’Leary, Assistant Secretary from the Tourism Division.
Mr. O’Leary had a central role in some of the issues which have been highlighted by the IAFA in recent years. Prior to his appointment as Assistant Secretary in charge of Tourism – replacing Mr. Maurice Quinn – he had worked as the Principal Officer in the area.
The IAFA is of the view that the replacement of Mr. O’Leary presents an opportunity to change the work practises in the Tourism Division to ensure compliance with public service best practice going forward.
IAFA disagrees with view expressed in Sunday Times that it has an entitlement to run the €100m events.
Department of Transport, Tourism & Sport covers up unsavoury interactions with organisers of substandard events.
On Sunday 11th October, the Sunday Times published a disjointed and confusing article concerning the IAFA’s interactions with the Department of Transport, Tourism & Sport. The IAFA would like to clarify some of the issues raised.
The IAFA is the National Governing Body (NGB) for the sport in Ireland. It is regarded as one of the most successful sporting organisations in the country having exponentially expanded its membership in recent years. The IAFA actively promotes Ireland as a destination for major American football events. In addition to performing a regulatory role, the IAFA has a policy of supporting the organisers of such events and assisting them with promoting the sport locally. The 2014 Croke Park Classic – which is the most successful of the large scale events to visit Ireland to date – is a very good example of this policy working well.
The IAFA strenuously disagrees with the statement in the Sunday Times that the IAFA itself should run the “€100m” events. The IAFA has never sought to directly run any such events nor is it planning to do so in the future. On the contrary, the IAFA believes that it is inappropriate for a voluntary NGB to take the commercial risks associated with such large scale events. If, as suggested in the article, the IAFA were to exercise an ‘entitlement’ to run such events, it could also severely limit the number of events coming into the country. The IAFA’s own rules currently envisage that these events will be run by those parties who own the event.
The IAFA can confirm that it has had a disagreement with the Department of Transport, Tourism & Sport on an important issue impacting on many sports in Ireland. All games and events run by the IAFA and its members must comply with specified ‘best practice’ requirements in areas such as health & safety, player welfare and child protection.
In recent years, the Irish sporting scene has seen significant growth in commercial organisations running sporting activities that are not linked to any sporting NGB or affiliated club. Most of these are small scale organisations in areas such as sports tourism, sports camps and independently run games/tournaments. Many involve children and young adults.
The IAFA is firmly of the view that all American football activities in Ireland should comply with the same minimum health & safety, player welfare and child protection standards as its own activities. It refuses to sanction the activities of, or provide assistance to, operators who do not comply with these standards.
Officials in the Department of Transport, Tourism & Sport have sought to put pressure on the IAFA to sanction and force its members to participate in third party run events which do not meet our safety and welfare standards. Officials, such as Maurice Quinn, who is quoted in the Sunday Times article, have cited the less stringent requirements in “other countries” – e.g. Tanzania and Mexico – as the rationale for seeking to force the IAFA to facilitate substandard events.
The IAFA has refused to compromise its standards and will not expose its members to potential harm by participating in such events.
The Irish Sports Council has told the IAFA that it fully supports its refusal to sanction substandard events.
In recent months, the Information Commissioner has conducted a number of investigations in the Department of Transport, Tourism & Sport at the request of the IAFA. Arising from these investigations and the consequential documents released to the IAFA, the following facts have come to our attention:
- Maurice Quinn, the official who wrote the letter quoted in the Sunday Times, did so at the request of an organiser who was refused sanction for an event due to serious safety and welfare deficiencies.
- Irish Sports Council CEO, John Treacy wrote to Maurice Quinn highlighting the health & safety issues with the aforementioned event.
- The organiser supplied the Department with false and misleading information.
- In a direct communication with the Department, the organiser expressed disturbing views on a child abuse incident in the United States.
- Maurice Quinn’s attempt to put pressure on the IAFA and his interactions with the organiser were not in accordance any documented Departmental policy or procedure in this area.
- The Department sought to hide evidence of its interactions with the organiser by not including them on the list of documents declared to be on file within the Department. These documents were subsequently discovered in physical searches ordered by the Information Commissioner.
We understand that Maurice Quinn has now moved onto another Government Department. We also understand that the above mentioned organiser has been active in other sports in Ireland in recent times.
This unsavoury incident is symptomatic of a disconnect between the Department and the sporting community in Ireland. Departmental officials should make greater efforts to directly engage with sports organisations, particularly where they propose to intervene their activities. They should take more care in checking the bone fides of parties they interact with and information they receive. They should also be conscious that as citizens and residents of this country, members of voluntary sporting organisations such as the IAFA, have the right to enjoy their activities without fear of being coerced into putting themselves and others at risk to provide commercial income to unconnected third parties.
On 17th September last, the IAFA asked the Department to undertake a formal investigation into this incident.