Dublin secretary John Costello has emphasised the county's lack of resources in having to cater for a third of the country's population and announced the details of a major development plan for the city. In his report to next week's county convention, Costello reiterates points made in his report of six years ago, which have not been acted upon.

"The tragedy of Dublin is that it has been starved over the years of the necessary financial resources to meet Dublin's needs. In recent years the situation has been exacerbated by the fact that competitor organisations have been investing significant amounts of money in marketing their games in Dublin.

"With over one third of the population of the Republic and almost one quarter of Ireland's total population and with a greater real catchment population for GAA activities than two of the provinces, it is critical to the development of GAA in Dublin that substantially increased funding be made available from Leinster and Central Council to enable Dublin's plans to be implemented.

"I should add that in making this point, Dublin is not looking for any special treatment.

"The reality is that individuals in the GAA are happy to court Dublin when running for positions of authority in the association but conveniently forget about our problems when declared elected."

He goes on to detail a memorandum of activity agreed for the development of the GAA in the capital.

A Strategic Policy and Resource Committee will be put in place for a minimum of five years with members drawn from Central Council, Leinster Council and Dublin. It will appoint a policy and resource executive with terms of reference agreed by the committee, which will oversee a five-year plan for Dublin.