Brian Stanley (Laois-Offaly, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I will ask another question on that. There are also complaints from various race tracks regarding how some race tracks do not benefit to the same extent from the prize money and funding. What does the Department do there? Mr. Gleeson spoke earlier about the need to consolidate the footprint of the industry. Many people in the sector are looking at that. Attendance at race meetings is not what it used to be. People do not have as much time to go to the races as they used to have. There are not as many publicans in the country as there used to be. People cannot take a day off and head off to the races as easily as they used to do. Also, with technology, people do not have to be there because they can bet online etc. A case has been made by some of the smaller or less popular tracks around the country that they do not benefit to the same extent. What is happening there? Basically, they are becoming economically unviable and that is contributing to it.