Mr. Phil Meaney:

I thank the Chairman and members. I will deal with the existing structures of the Irish Greyhound Board, IGB. I am very comfortable with the ability of the able team in place to my right and my left to deal with the issues raised today. I was appointed chairman of the board three years ago. I neither sought nor lobbied for the position but, having taken it up, I have given it everything I possibly could in the three years. Two members of the current board were in place when I became chairman. Indecon recommended an increase in the size of the board from six with a chairman to eight with a chairman. That is a good idea which we have taken on board in our response to Indecon.

It is important to clarify that the position of chairman and his colleagues are non-executives roles. Our functions must be taken into the equation. When I became involved, the structure that existed in Bord na gCon was not operational. I do not for a moment criticise my predecessors, who were all good people and, like myself, did things to the best of their ability. It was a very flat structure with 19 people reporting to a CEO. I had come from the private sector where we had functional directors and my immediate task once I got my feet under the table was to bring the greyhound board to a similar scenario, where each of the functions, namely, finance, wagering, commercial, which is not with us today, regulations and racing governance would be all headed up by an expert in the field. The executive was completed a couple of months ago. I freely admit that it took longer than I had planned or hoped. Things tend to happen a little more slowly in the IGB than in private industry, but we now have a full executive in place. I can confidently say that each member of the executive is very well qualified in his or her field. That takes a huge onus off the board. While board members have very definite skills ranging from legal to finance, we do not run the business on a day-to-day basis.

When I became chairman of Bord na gCon, our borrowings were €22 million. There was an outstanding IOU for Dundalk since 2006 that had to be honoured. We were faced with either closing the stadium in Clonmel due to health and welfare issues or investing money in it. We invested €1 million there and similarly in the stadium in Youghal. Deputy Ó Cuív spoke about hiding behind the economic collapse. Whether he accepts it or not, without doubt in the same period it was a very difficult time for trading in Ireland, in particular in the leisure sector where people can decide whether to go racing. Despite having to honour the commitment on €2.5 million, the finances of the IGB have remained static. There was a massive reduction of more than 30% in State support since the economic downturn.

If I felt that I or the board were not doing an appropriate job, we would stand aside. I am confident that with the new skills we have on the board and the new executive that is in place, we can and will turn this business around in a short period. Deputy Ó Cuív and another speaker described the Indecon report as damning. It clearly states, however, that if the industry follows the recommended path, it can and will be very successful. I will leave it to my executive to get into the nitty-gritty. That is probably the best way. I would like to deal personally with many of the issues raised, but it would be wrong not to let the functional directors deal with them. I am more than happy to take a question on any point.