Anthony Lawlor (Kildare North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The witnesses made a number of interesting points, which can be boiled down to two simple issues, namely, funding and integrity. The big issue for me is integrity of the racing industry. The last thing we want is the situation which arose in the UK in regard to doping and one of the main owners and breeders in that country. There were fears that the integrity of the racing industry might be damaged as a result.

It is important that promotional bodies, such as Bord Bia, and health and safety governance are separate. When HIQA goes into a hospital, the management of the hospital is fearful. The Irish racing industry is worth €1.1 billion and we must ensure adequate integrity and international confidence in our ability to run a proper industry. We cannot allow a situation whereby someone who pays the integrity body is able to define the rules and regulations to be applied. The integrity body would lose its independence if that were to happen. In regard to integrity, would it be necessary to go cap in hand to HRI in order to get additional funding for an investigation into something that might have a detrimental impact on the racing industry?

That does not make sense. Does the Turf Club have difficulty with HRI accessing the funding they agreed earlier? If it is an issue, the legislation cannot allow HRI to take more control of the funding aspect of the integrity body. It is amazing that the Turf Club is not in control of the starting stalls but must refer to HRI if there is an issue with them during a race. It is very important to the integrity of a race meeting that punters who back horses and owners who pay large sums of money to enter their horses in races know they will get value for their money.

Although people are talking about streamlining and saving money, when I asked HRI how many staff would be let go and how much money would be saved, they kept saying it would happen over time. Given that the Turf Club has been in operation for more than 200 years, "over time" is a long period. In the private sector, when there is an amalgamation, everybody knows there will be staff cuts. However, HRI has not identified any. It has not yet published its accounts for 2013, which is ridiculous given that we are nearly in the final quarter of the year. Where does the funding that HRI takes from the media rights go? How much does it take out? I cannot find out because the figures are not available.

I am fascinated by the fact that the sector is entirely voluntary. Like many people, I am part of a voluntary organisation, my rugby club. However, HRI members are all paid officials. The increase in volunteerism among people over recent years has been great and I would hate if it were in difficulty. I am concerned that if the Turf Club wants to do something to try to ensure the integrity of Irish racing is maintained, it must go cap in hand to HRI. It is not right. I welcome the fact that the Turf Club is willing to come before the Comptroller and Auditor General. It is a very positive move and should alleviate any concerns that the funding it receives from the State is not accounted for. If a wheel is not broken, one need not mend it.