Olivia Mitchell (Dublin South, Fine Gael)

I am not sure what the Minister is saying. Is he saying that it cannot be funded by the taxpayer? Yet, he has ceded to the Department of Finance a 1% levy, and this means he will be short €30 million to €40 million in his Department. Is he saying now that the income of the horse and greyhound industry will effectively be halved this year? If so it is a disaster for the economy, never mind the horse-racing industry, given its importance throughout the country, and in terms of bringing in foreign exchange. It is worth some €200 million in direct exports, not to mention the revenue earned from horse training, which is a major source of employment in the country. Is the Minister now saying that the industry's revenue is going to be halved and we are only hearing about this half way through the year?

The Minister says that the Department of Finance is taking the lead on taxation. Of course it is. However, Deputy Cullen is the Minister who is supposed to defend this industry and he has to assert himself at the Cabinet table. Yet, he has let the income be halved with no clear view as to how the revenue will be replaced.

Is the Minister talking about a ringfenced fund in the future if an alternative source of revenue is to be identified? If not, will the Department of Finance take it back into the general Exchequer, even if it identifies a source of funding? Will there be a special fund?

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