Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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I welcome the Minister and his officials. We are discussing an important issue and I very much support both industries and the funding that goes to them. I am on record as saying we should increase it because the financial worth Ireland gets in return is colossal. I have a number of questions about the Horse and Greyhound Racing Fund. The Minister will be aware that this committee published a report in November 2021 regarding the horse racing industry. There were 11 recommendations in that report. HRI, the IHRB, trainers and departmental officials were before the committee in summer 2021 because there were a number of media accusations around drug-taking in the racing industry, which could have damaged its good name. It was a very important piece of work that the committee did at the time. I have a couple of questions on that work. It annoys me so much that the IHRB, to my knowledge, still does not have to disclose the salary of its CEO. To date, I do not think there are any females on its board to ensure gender balance. It is fully funded by the Department, the Government and the taxpayer. Does the Minister believe the salaries of senior people employed by the IHRB should be published, in the same way as HRI's are?