Mr. Matt Dempsey:

My view is that one takes the opportunities as they come. There is no doubt that at times there will be a need to ensure a high-quality standard stallion is purchased to be available to breeders and as a revenue earner for the National Stud. The situation is slightly more comfortable when one has one or two of those high-quality stallions in place. It is also important at the same time to have a range for the broader spread of mares that may not be suitable to go with those high-quality stallions. At this stage the stud owns six stallions and 23 brood mares. The number of mares has increased over the past three years. Talking with John Osborne, there is a certain degree of optimism that there would be good sales revenue coming from the yearlings they produce.