Jackie Cahill (Tipperary, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for his presentation I would like to declare a personal interest. I am a director of a privately-owned greyhound stadium.

These two industries are very important to the Irish economy. We had the unprecedented achievement in the past couple of week of three Irish-trained horses finishing first, second and third in the Melbourne Cup, which is known as "the race that stops a nation". That Ireland could bring three horses to Australia and that they would fill the first three places is a major achievement and a significant advertisement for our industry.

Those involved in greyhound racing and horse racing were disappointed that no increase in funding was announced in the budget. In light of the increased revenue from taxation of both industries, they are of the view that there is a valid argument for an increase in funding. We have met representatives from both industries and they put forward very valid arguments in respect of where the extra money could be invested for the benefit of the horse racing and greyhound industries. Horse Racing Ireland and Bord na gCon have very ambitious plans to advance their industries.

Senator Paul Daly outlined the potential on the taxation side and questioned whether we are capturing all of the revenue from the taxes that apply. I wish to make a case for those in one sector of the industry that are under extreme pressure, namely, track bookmakers. These individuals are definitely voting with their feet because the number of them involved in the sector is growing progressively smaller.

Unless we do something on the taxation side to give them an incentive, track bookmakers will become an extinct species. Track bookmakers are vitally important to the social aspect and the whole concept of Irish racing. I refer to the atmosphere in the ring. The track bookmakers are a huge part of that environment. Bookmakers make the point to me that the track bookmakers are using exchanges to try and boost their turnover. Their view is that the level of tax that is being charged to the large corporations should not apply to track bookmakers, and if there was exemption for those under a certain turnover and the level of tax on betting exchanges was reduced, that would be a very significant incentive for track bookmakers and would allow them to try to stay in business. There has been significant growth in the yield from taxation but the amount of money that is being taken off track bookmakers in taxation is small. Unless we do something concrete for them, I fear for their survival. As I stated, they are a significant part of the sector and it would be a sad day if they disappeared off the scene. A monopoly would not be in anyone's interest.

The Minister mentioned the draft general scheme of the greyhound industry Bill. That has gone through the committee here. The proposed Bill is urgently needed. The sooner it can become legislation the better. I suppose there has been much adverse publicity for the sector. The sector needs the mechanics of this Bill in order to deal with the issues it currently faces. Issues are dragging on for far too long and they are not being dealt with promptly enough. Talking to members of the sector, their hands are tied as regards advancing those issues quickly. The proposed Bill could tighten up a lot of the legislation. When an offence is committed, we need to intervene and bring it to a conclusion a lot more quickly and not have it dragging on for six or 12 months, as is the case in some of the occurrences in the recent past.

Point-to-points were mentioned. I attended my local point-to-point on Sunday last. It was held in Thurles and there was a fair crowd. It brought home to me the value of it to the local economy that the small man can start off there with his horse at minimal expense and get it into a shop window. If one is lucky enough to have a horse that is good enough to win, even at a local point-to-point like that, the big buyers are there and the opportunity is there to get a worthwhile return on a shoestring budget. I had occasion to see a local horse winning on Sunday and there was a knock-on benefit in the form of a queue of people who were trying to purchase a horse that looked to be promising. Everyone who has a horse lives for that dream, namely, that he or she will have one that can go out and win and give a significant return. Thankfully, Ireland's reputation as the producer of top-class horses is greatly adding to the economical benefit of producing those young horses.

Senator Paul Daly made a couple of points about the definition of agriculture and the way employment law and rates are being interpreted by different Departments. On the employment side, there has to be recognition that if we change the categorisation, it will make it impractical for stables to operate. Unfortunately, long days are the norm. If one has a horse going to a sales or a race meeting, the person who is handling that horse will have an extremely long day. In agriculture, we are used to peaks and troughs. At harvesting time, long days are accepted. A re-classification of the horse-breeding sector to non-agricultural is not practical and will not work in the future. That issue must be addressed. On the rates side, it is agriculture and it should be rated as such.

As Deputy McConalogue stated, we as a party are glad to support the motion. We see the benefits of this fund for the two sectors. There are very ambitious plans by both Horse Racing Ireland and Bord na gCon and the fund has a huge part to play in that. We have two sectors that we can be justifiably proud of and anything we can do here for the development of these sectors must be welcomed.

On the harness racing mentioned by Deputy McConalogue, everyone here has been lobbied. It is in an infant stage. They have had trial racing at Dundalk track and it has gone well for them. They have had connections with the French sector where harness racing is extremely big. They see very significant potential in this sport. They want to try and develop a race track for themselves. What they have proposed to us does not involve a huge amount of money. It is dealing with a different type of horse. There is very significant potential for us to develop this sector. As regards the seed capital they are looking for, the Department should try to look favourably on this, give them a leg-up on the ladder and see how far they can go. Up to now, they have achieved everything they stated they would do, including getting French sponsorship. They are at a crossroads. Everything has been done on a voluntary basis up to now. They need to put a structure in place if they are to develop this sector further. It would be regrettable if we were not in position to give harness racing the chance to fulfil the potential those involved in the sector strongly believe exists. It will be a specialised sport but it can have a niche market. It is one we should try to develop.