Mr. Darragh O'Loughlin:

I am grateful for his comments. I echo his words about Deputy Jackie Cahill, the Cathaoirleach of this committee, who has always been a great supporter of the horse racing industry. I have had conversations with him at racecourses across the country. He is not just a supporter but a constructive critic when that is needed. That is always useful. We send him our regards through the committee.

I am grateful for Senator Boyhan's observations. I am grateful that he took so much time to read our documentation. As he said, we are trying to be as transparent and open as we can to set out a plan for the future. We are guided on a daily, weekly, monthly and annual basis by that strategy. My staff are probably sick of hearing me tell them why we do what we do under that strategy and linking that work back to that strategy. It is important to have a vision for an organisation. That vision for us includes governance, probity, transparency and accountability. That is important.

The Senator spoke of, and emphasised the need for, consultation and collaboration. I agree with him. Over the course of this year, which is the first year of the strategy, we have made particular efforts to expand our consultation and collaboration with stakeholders. We have, for example, engaged frequently, professionally and constructively with the Irish Jockeys Association, even in relation to penalties for riding offences under the rules of racing. There has been a need to increase penalties in some areas and to ease them in others to modify behaviour and ensure safe riding. We have found through that engagement that the jockeys have been very helpful. The resulting changes have landed much better. They have been accepted by the members of the association and that audience, which makes for a smoother and better regulatory atmosphere. We are not asking them what penalties they want but we are explaining why we are doing what we are doing and the jockeys are helping by telling us how they think we should do what we were going to do anyway. I agree with the Senator on that point and, as I said, I am grateful to him for taking the time to understand our organisation and industry to such an extent.