Chambers hails progress with IABA
PROGRESS in talks between the Irish Athletic Boxing Association and Sport Ireland have allayed immediate fears within the sport of a further round of cuts.
Minister of State for Sport
Jack Chambers (right) says that 70 per cent of the recommendations made to the IABA in terms of governance and structural change have been agreed upon, and he is optimistic that all will be adopted in time.
Thus the threat of further cuts beyond a 15-per-cent reduction in the IABA’s core funding for 2022 has been put on pause.
“Over the last two months there has been engagement between Sport Ireland and the IABA, and Sport Ireland have reported to me that good progress has been made and that now around 70 per cent of the recommendations have been accepted,” Minister Chambers told RTE Radio. “They have informed me that it’s a good basis for further discussion and engagement on the remaining matters, that the discussions are in a more constructive space.
“So if you take a step back, you have gone from 0 per cent and an outright rejection to a point of progress of 70 per cent and they now want to work through the remaining matters.
Options
“As minister, there are three options open to me. There’s the restoration of the funding that we’ve cut and we’re not at that point because we still have remaining matters that have to be worked through. “There’s pausing further cuts to allow for the positive and constructive engagement to continue. Or there’s to make further cuts and I don’t think we’re at that point — where we now have good engagement and I think a place where we can resolve the remaining matters around governance. “So I welcome the fact that we’ve moved towards a more constructive space.”