Tourism minister will not review Foyle Cup grant decision

TOURIST Minister Arlene Foster will not review the Northern Ireland Tourist Board (NITB) decision to reject the Foyle Cup’s application for funding for this year’s tournament.

By The Newsroom

Published 23rd Jun 2011, 11:27 BST

Mrs Foster explained that an Appeals Panel met on May 12 to review the application and upheld the earlier decision of two assessors that the competition did not score well enough across ten key criteria to qualify for a grant.

The Minister was responding to a Stormont Assembly Question tabled by Foyle MLA Mark H. Durkan.

She stated: “The Foyle Cup applied to the new NITB funding scheme but did not score well enough in the process to be awarded funding. An Appeals Panel met on the 12 th May to review the application. The appeals panel upheld the original decision. None of the panel members were involved in the original selection process.

“As the Foyle Cup is primarily a sporting event, I have asked my officials to discuss alternative funding arrangements with Department of Culture, Arts & Leisure (DCAL) and Sport NI.”