Joint Committee on Social Protection, Rural and Community Development to hold Eeparate Engagements with Minister Dara Calleary and GAA

The Committee on Social Protection, Rural and Community Development will meet tomorrow, Wednesday, 10 June, for separate engagements with the Minister for Social Protection (DSP) and representatives from the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA).

The meeting at 9:30am in Committee Room 3 of Leinster House will be split into two sessions to discuss:

9:45am – Cost of Disability Strategic Focus Network Summit and related matters with Dara Calleary TD, Minister for Social Protection, and Minister for Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht, and officials from the Department of Social Protection.

10:45am – Demographic changes and its impact on rural and urban GAA clubs and communities with representatives from the GAA, Dr Peter Horgan, Strategy Insights and Innovation Manager and Mr Benny Hurl, Chair of the National Demographics Committee.

Ahead of the meeting, Committee Cathaoirleach Deputy John Paul O’Shea said: “The Committee welcomes this engagement with Minister Calleary. The meeting will provide an opportunity to discuss both the recent public consultation on the cost of Disability and the Strategic Focus Network Summit recently organised on the same issue. In our second session, the Committee will discuss how population and demographic changes in urban and rural Ireland pose an existential challenge to the GAA and the communities they serve.”

The Joint Committee on Social Protection, Rural and Community Development has 14 Members, nine from the Dáil and five from the Seanad.

The meeting in Committee Room 3 can be viewed live on Oireachtas TV.

Committee proceedings can also be viewed on the Houses of the Oireachtas Smartphone App, available for Apple and Android devices.