The present furore about the sale of tickets for various events, particularly sport, is timely but may be too late. Back in 1990 this column approached Deputy Pat Rabbitte TD and urged him to introduce legislation with a view to putting curbs on the activities of ticket touts. He did his best but got little support. In fact he was opposed by the then Minister for Sport, Frank Fahy. This was a big surprise to many and the whole thing came to nought.

Since then the problem has become even more serious. Many years ago when the writer of this column first came to Dublin to live and work (1962) ticket touts were making money by selling over the top tickets for the cinemas on the streets of Dublin, particularly at the weekends.

This was not popular at the time but it was accepted that the people who engaged in this trade were probably unemployed and were doing their best to keep body and soul together and it was tolerated.

Things have changed drastically in recent times, however, and the touts are now very well-heeled wide boys who see a killing in the increase of "corporate sector" interest in major sporting events.

The various sporting bodies have encouraged this trend or, at the very least, have turned the Nelson eye to it and if it continues the whole thing could end in tears. The change in rugby "laws" as they are so self-importantly called, which allow players to be paid, have put very serious pressure on what were previously amateur clubs supported and run by enthusiasts. It seems to me that many of these clubs are in difficulty in regard to the payment of bills for players.

This in turn has tempted some of them into selling their ticket allocation to the highest bidder in order to help pay the bills and the ordinary supporter is the loser.

Players have also become greedy. Only recently I was told that a prominent player phoned his club on the morning of an important match and reported that he would not be available because he had toothache. What effect that news had on the people who devote much of their leisure time to running the club, often at some financial cost to themselves, can be imagined.

Such developments are to be condemned by the top officials of any sporting body involved. Players, no matter how talented, must realise that they have responsibilities to the sport itself and to the people who have nurtured and developed it over the years.

Anyone who is a member of a club will appreciate the value of the comradeship and pride which this generates. This is often expressed in financial terms but, if too many demands are made on the pockets of enthusiasts, the enthusiasm will be underminded.

It is this attitude which has brought ticket touting once more into the limelight - and not before time. Cynics may very well say that it cannot be stopped and that the introduction of legislation is useless. Negative thinking of this kind benefits nobody.

What all sporting bodies must accept is that, if they abandon decency and honesty, they are in danger of abandoning the sport for which they are responsible. Ultimately the sport itself will be damaged. If that happens all will suffer, except for those who have pocketed the money and gone away to address their craven and predatory attention to some other vulnerable but lucrative pursuit.

It doesn't seem to me to be helpful for the Minister of State for Labour, Trade and Consumer Affairs, Mr Tom Kitt to put the responsibility totally on organisers and promoters of the events for the problem which everybody accepts exists.

In the Dail on Wednesday Tom Kitt said: "While support (from sporting bodies) is to be welcomed, the organisations concerned might usefully look at their distribution arrangements rather than rely on the Oireachtas to resolve a difficulty to which their actions may very well be contributing."

There is a touch of hand-washing in that statement. Tom Kitt is, nevertheless right in one respect. Sporting organisations have responsibilities and should live up to them. The Oireachtas, however, has responsibilities above and beyond that and the protection of the law is one of those. The Oireachtas has been asked, albeit by the main opposition parties, to take a stand on this issue. Kicking to touch by the Government parties is less than helpful.

The Taoiseach is a devoted and genuine sports fanatic and that is welcome and admirable. Perhaps he should bang a few heads together the next time they get around the Cabinet table together. Using the proposed legislation as a political football will not serve any of the sporting bodies well. They have responsibilities , of course, but a little a little help from Government would not be out of place.