Junior minister for Sport Jack Chambers has explained why the GAA has lost its exemption from Level-5 Covid-19 restrictions.
In a surprise development last night, the GAA informed county boards that no inter-county activity would return until after Easter and that its elite sport status was lost.
Speaking this morning minister Chambers explained the exemption was only in place for the 2020 All-Ireland championship which concluded in December, while the professional nature of League of Ireland soccer allowed it elite sport status.
"In the roadmap that was published last autumn, we gave exemptions for professional sports. For example, the League of Ireland is a professional league. That is the distinction” Minister Chambers told RTÉ.
"But we do want to review the plan and how we live with Covid. That is why sport will be included in that”.
"To be clear, the government has been very thankful to the GAA and broader sporting organisations for supporting the public health effort. I want to see the Championship this year. I want to see our young people getting back playing”.
"When the GAA Championship was run off, that was done in the context of Level 5 and there was a concession outside of Level 5 framework approved by government. Once the Championship finished in December, as you know there was no fixtures scheduled at that point”.
"There was also a very difficult Level 5 lockdown for the country so the regulations didn't capture that because there was no fixtures in the current schedule. The concession concluded at the end of last year”.
"When you look at the context of the number of cases in January that is why the government is revising the plan. I haven't any communication from NPHET on this. It is a case of giving a direct answer on a concession for inter-county GAA."
"They made it clear that there was not a massive appetite to return in the medium term."
"We had a very positive discussion with the GAA and the other organisations. They've made it very clear they want to support the public health effort. We've had more Covid-19 cases in January than all of last year. It's also important to say in the broader context of the return to sport, as the Taoiseach said this morning, in the next two weeks”.
"What I'm seeking to do is work with the GAA and other sporting organisations is provide an update in the context of the revised plan and hopefully we can give certainty on the timeline for the broader return to sport."
A number of sports which have been unable to resume due to Covid-19 level 5 restrictions most notably basketball, who’ve have been vocal in opposition to guidelines in place.
The League of Ireland season is due to begin on March 19.
