Joe Flaherty (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

It is very apparent that there is a rift. It is a bit like marriage counselling here so I am trying to be polite in what I say, but it is very apparent these bodies are at odds with the governing body. There is always friction between the different groups but it is great to see such a united front in the sector.

As I said earlier, we are here on the back of unprecedented success. We have several Irish-bred showjumpers competing internationally. The great concern is we are not able to keep those horses in the country. They are being bought by the best international riders, are very marketable, and are being sold abroad. Therein presents a great opportunity for rural Ireland. We should have more small farmers breeding more horses and we should be getting more farmers involved. We in this committee are trying to change the way we farm. We will not mention nitrates or anything like that, but we are trying to change the way we farm. Traditionally, every farm bred a sport horse in this country and it was backboned by the Irish draught horse, which was the workhorse on the farm. We have probably moved away from that, and in a halcyon world we should probably move back towards it.

The submission is very concerning and we have to take note of it. Would it be fair to say Mr. Corrigan's ask of us in this committee and of the Government is that we get a strategic review of the sport horse sector?