Dr. Kevin Smyth:

We have jousted on this point before. I think this is the third time we have come to it. No economic appraisal has been done on that basis but 60% of the income of HRI goes towards prize money. The Deputy is right that it is done in a way that the more valuable races tend to go to the bigger trainers. It does not always happen. Some 70% of people who ran horses at racetracks last year picked up some form of prize money, which is not a bad return. The other thing is that smaller breeders and trainers are capable of selling their horses on. It is the way the market operates. Internationally, prize money is the basis on which the markets operate. In Australia, Ireland, England and France, it is the exact same system.

I have asked the Deputy before what alternative he is putting forward to the use of prize money as it is done at the moment.