Jackie Cahill (Tipperary, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank Mr. Sheahan. I will move to questions, but I would like to ask Dr. Smyth some questions first. I return to the opening statement which states that legislation provides for the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board, IHRB, to be responsible for the making and enforcing of the rules of racing, including making all decisions relating to doping control, forensics and handicapping in respect of horse racing and that funding is provided by HRI on the basis of an agreed annual budget. I have two questions on this and a third question for Dr. Smyth. Does he think it is appropriate that the membership of the IHRB is self-appointed from within the horse racing industry, given the fact that it is responsible for all surveillance of controls? In order to have proper governance and to restore public confidence in the system, is it time this legislation was revisited and the appointment of people to IHRB was re-examined? This has come up at our two previous meetings. It seems odd in the modern world, and in the context of proper governance, that the people who are in charge of the industry are appointed from within to govern the surveillance and the integrity of that industry.

The second question to raise its head is that the IHRB is funded by the HRI, with very significant State funding being contributed. Does Dr. Smyth believe it is correct that the salaries of senior members of the executive of the IHRB are not publicly available? What is his view on that?

I cannot understand, in this age of computers and traceability, how there is not a proper traceability system for horses to enable us to know where they are all the time and all their movements. I am a farmer. If we take cattle to the mart, that movement is recorded. If there is movement from farm to farm, that is also recorded. It is done on computers and in a seamless fashion. I cannot understand how every movement of horses is not tracked and monitored by computer in such a valuable industry. If we had that type of modernised tracking of movement in place, I do not think we would have seen last night's programme investigating the movement of horses to slaughter.

An important issue was raised last night. Today may not be the day to address this aspect, and we might need another meeting in that regard, and I also do not expect Dr. Smyth to be fully briefed on it, but the programme last night dealt with the case of a horse being raced in Fairyhouse. The horse had an accident on the racecourse and had to be euthanised. Five or six years later, that microchip turned up in Swindon. That was a serious finding in that programme last night. Dr. Smyth may not have had enough time to have researched the details the programme last night and I respect that. This is an issue that the committee will be returning to in future. If we had a properly computerised and monitored traceability system for the movement of horses, I do not think we would be dealing with a situation such as this. I ask Dr. Smyth to address those questions first.