Mr. Brian Kavanagh:

We have run the scheme for the past two years. There are many racecourses in Ireland relative to the size of the population and there are a lot of infrastructural needs. We were able to introduce the scheme as a result of the horse and greyhound racing fund but we regard it as a stimulus for the building sector. Horse Racing Ireland provides €400,000 for every €1 million spent on development and the racecourses provide the balance. The tracks are run largely by volunteers on local committees who are passionate about what they do. Sligo is one of the best examples and has a supporters' club of 400 people who pay significant amounts of money each year. The Exchequer recoups approximately €243,000 through VAT and employment taxes and, as is the case with prize money, this is a stimulus to the rural economy and the building sector.

The worldwide success of the Irish horse racing industry was mentioned but it also goes to the heart of the debate on rural Ireland. The industry in this country has natural advantages in the form of our soil, land and climate. We give out about the rain but it works for our business. The climate, the soil and the people are way ahead of what are available in other countries. The importance of developing industries to provide employment in rural Ireland has been emphasised and this ticks all the boxes. We try to spread the capital as widely as possible and racecourses are doing the heavy lifting by putting up 60% of the funding.

When I came into the job at first there were difficulties with some racecourses that had overstretched themselves, in particular, Punchestown and Fairyhouse. We have now put in a rigorous evaluation process for any capital grant because I do not want a racecourse to run into difficulty on my watch. Therefore, it goes through the normal rigorous capital evaluation process that would be expected under the code of governance.