Professor Patrick Wall:

I will deal with some of the questions asked and then hand over to Mr. McDonald.

Our objective is aligned with that of Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív. We want to make Ireland the land of the horse and the go-to place for riders of all levels. Horse riding is a sport for high net worth individuals everywhere.

Just as we cannot drink all the milk or eat all the beef we produce in Ireland, we cannot ride all the horses we produce. The minor game is Ireland; the senior game is outside Ireland. Therefore, our strategy is export-led growth. We want to connect with all those people across the globe because we have special animals to offer. Some of our competitor stud books can produce elite showjumpers but they cannot do what we can do. We have an animal for all levels of riders, both horses and ponies.

The Connemara pony is an iconic brand that is known all over the world. The Connemara stud book has 18 daughter stud books which all meet every year at the Clifden show, which has phenomenal international participation and thousands of spectators. It is like the United Nations for Connemara. I think we undersell it. When we have Chinese visitors and the like here, we should give them a Connemara pony as a gift when they are going home. It is a brand.