Lucinda Creighton (Dublin South East, Renua Ireland) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this Bill. I know that these are early days in its passage through the Oireachtas. However, it has been the subject of extensive consultation at the joint committee and with individual Deputies. I expect that there will be positive and genuine engagement with the Minister on Committee Stage. I hope some of the points that have been made by Deputies will be taken on board in a genuine way. I am aware that certain representative bodies within the sector are concerned. I trust that those concerns will be taken seriously and that there will be genuine engagement.

I welcome this opportunity to put a few points on the record. I am deeply passionate about this industry. It is unfortunate that this sector has been subjected to a great deal of misinformation and negativity in recent times. The first point to be made is that this is a sport in which we excel. We are the best in the world. It is also an industry where we happen to be the best in the world. That is something I am deeply proud of as an Irish person. I believe the vast majority of Irish people are extremely proud of it. We are probably a little shy about promulgating the major success story that surrounds the thoroughbred breeding and racing sector, which is a massive contributor to the economy. Various figures have been bandied around in the Chamber today, but I understand that approximately 17,000 or 18,000 people are directly employed in this sector. Many people in rural Ireland are indirectly employed because of the racing industry and the thoroughbred sector. It is a very important part of the life of this country, particularly in rural Ireland. Indeed, the important racecourse up the road in Leopardstown receives a great deal of local support in Dublin.

Sadly, we live in a time of major decline in rural Ireland, where significant challenges like depopulation, youth unemployment and emigration are being faced. The racing sector has endured and continued to excel throughout all of these difficulties. We have racecourses in 17 counties. Well over 1 million attend race meetings every year. As Deputy Heydon noted, that number is not in decline. If one examines what is happening in other countries in Europe, one will see that this is quite unique. It is something to be really proud of, and it is a testament to the resilience, hard work and vision of the people who work in the racing sector. The racing festivals at Punchestown, Galway and Listowel, to name just three, are massive earners in those communities. It is important to mention that they are significant drivers of growth and employment at various times of the year.

We have been subjected to a certain degree of inverted snobbery about racing. Nothing could be further from the truth than the notion that it is for an elite. While this is particularly true in the national hunt sector, it applies right across the board. This industry and sport is about the common man and woman. The fact that 93% of farms involved in this sector have just a handful of mares bears out the suggestion that it is about ordinary people. The vast majority of breeders in Ireland are small-time breeders. Many of them are living the dream, or hoping to live the dream, by investing constantly and working all year round to support their passion. I suppose they are hoping to strike gold at some point. Unfortunately, that does not happen for most people. This really important sport, which is part of rural Ireland and our way of life, encompasses all strata of society while attracting massive investment from some of the wealthiest people in the world. We are all familiar with the investment we have seen from Saudi Arabia and other parts of the Middle East. In recent times, significant investment has come from places like Qatar. That is happening all the time in counties like Kildare and right across the country.

Vision has been a feature of the thoroughbred sector in recent decades. It is not often that I give credit in this Chamber to previous Fianna Fáil Governments, but I will do so on this occasion because the introduction of the stallion tax was a really bold step that led to many opportunities, drove investment in the industry and gave Ireland the opportunity to be one of the best places in the world in which to invest and breed. We should be proud of that legacy, which continues today. Unfortunately, it contrasts with what is happening in the sport horse sector. I know the Minister has done a great deal of good work to help that sector in recent years. I hope the studies and reports he has commissioned will bear fruit in the sport horse sector, which is an area in which we took our eye off the ball and failed to show the same vision and ambition. Unfortunately, Ireland has moved from being one of the best producers of sport horses in the world to falling way down the rankings, with just a handful of horses in the top 100 of the Longines rankings. We need to see a new vision in the thoroughbred sector and a new vision for racing. The related question of ensuring there is a stable and long-term supply of funding and investment arose when we considered the Betting (Amendment) Bill and the Gambling Control Bill. We need an integrated approach. While I welcome the great ambition that has been shown, certainly by the Minister, Deputy Coveney, other elements of the Government have not necessarily shown the same degree of support, unfortunately. We really need to push for such support. There has to be no doubt that the industry will receive secure long-term funding.

I would say we have seen certain worrying trends in recent times. While the value of exports is increasing, the number of horses being exported is decreasing. Obviously, we are selling our best horses. While what is welcome, we have to consider the medium and long-term needs and objectives of breeding and training. Ultimately, we want to stand the very best stallions in this country. That is what the tax exemption for stallions was about in the past. I think we need to concentrate on trying to address the slightly worrying trend that exists in this area. I am sure the Minister is well aware of it. Equally, race horse ownership has declined. I am between two minds on whether that is necessarily a negative. During the Celtic tiger era, we saw too many bad horses running, frankly. Similarly, we saw too many bad horses being produced in the sport horse sector. We have to focus on quality. There are many ownership models that can be pursued, encouraged and incentivised by the Government through taxation or whatever.

It must be targeted. We cannot go back to producing low quality stock just to pump up the numbers. It is very important that we continually and rigorously focus on quality and I know that the Minister feels the same way about that issue.

Tourism is a very important factor and one that is often overlooked when we are quantifying the value of the sector in this country. There have been some very interesting and welcome innovations in recent years like the champion's weekend, for example, of which I am very supportive. We need to develop a lot more of our tourism industry around the equestrian sector generally, be it sport horses, hunting, racing and so forth. Much of that can be integrated because often it is the same people who are interested in all the different elements. There is real potential there.

Many of the concerns I have about the Bill have been highlighted by Deputy Anthony Lawlor. When one focuses on efficiencies and cost-savings, which is what this Bill is largely about, it is very important that the integrity and independence of the regulatory system is not compromised, but there are risks in this Bill. Deputy Lawlor pointed to the experience in the UK, which is not one we should replicate. There is a risk that the independence of the Turf Club can and will be compromised by this legislation. I know these concerns have been brought to the Minister's attention and I am sure he has given them consideration. However, I believe more consideration needs to be given to them before this Bill gets to Committee Stage. I have no doubt that amendments will be tabled at that point to try to improve the Bill and ensure this drive towards efficiency is not delivered at a cost to the integrity of the sector and independence of the Turf Club. This is an issue the Minister has heard raised many times but it is something he must seriously consider.

I note that I have run out of time. There were a number of other points I wished to make but I will not get an opportunity to do so at this stage. I hope to be in a position to do so on Committee Stage.

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