Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Perhaps I could respond quickly to some of the Senators' questions before they leave. On harness racing, I have much sympathy for the case made by the Irish Harness Racing Association. I have met its representatives and I did ask that harness racers be facilitated in Dundalk and they were. The Irish Harness Racing Association is an affiliate of Horse Sport Ireland rather than Horse Racing Ireland. The demands on funding in the sports horse sector are huge yet it gets only a tiny percentage of the funding provided to the racing sector. We provided €200,000 last year for the Jumping in the City initiative, which was one of the biggest new initiatives in the sports horse sector in terms of show jumping which was awarded the innovation of the year in the sports industry awards. That €200,000 was a huge amount of extra funding for that sector. I am happy to have the conversation around the harness racing sector. I want to help it and get horses off the public roads and onto appropriate tracks. We need properly regulated and safe areas where competitive events can be held. I know the industry wants that too. That is what they have asked for and that is what we have to try to facilitate. I am not going to have a allow a situation whereby a gun will be held to the head of Horse Racing Ireland in terms of it not being granted any money until such time as it agrees to provide a certain amount of that funding to the harness racing sector. I think that would be hugely unfair to the sports horse sector.