Ned O'Sullivan (Fianna Fail)

I draw the Leader's attention to a Horse Racing Ireland press release from yesterday concerning enhanced links between the Irish racing industry and the industry in Slovakia and the Czech Republic. It will be sending several Irish stallions to stand at stud in Slovakia. It is a welcome development and there has been a long tradition of national hunt racing in that part of the world.

Less satisfactory is the news that FÁS is attempting to recruit apprentice jockeys into Ireland from those eastern European countries. This has been a matter of concern for some time. Jockeyship has been always an important element of the Irish racing industry. Our jockeys have earned fame all over the world, from the days of Pat Taaffe and Willy Robinson to today's Tony McCoy and Ruby Walsh. We already have been recruiting apprentices from within the EU and it now seems we are going outside the EU. This has serious implications for Irish racing because Irish jockeyship is of a particular nature and is an essential important element in our racing game.

I ask FÁS to examine why we are not getting sufficient apprentices. There was a time when every major stable in the country was turning away would-be apprentices. Now we seem to be recruiting outside of the EU. I am concerned about this and ask the Leader to refer it to either the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food or the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment.