Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Nobody knows better than me how important Punchestown is to the rural economy and to the economy of Kildare. I worked at Punchestown Racecourse for four years and was actually a course builder for a number of summers on the three-day equestrian course, which is a fantastic facility in Punchestown. I would love to see HSI set up in Punchestown. Punchestown has been mentioned, as has Goffs, and there are numerous other places such as the Kill Equestrian Centre, which the State has previously invested in but which is in private ownership. These are all different options that I would like to ensure are fully exhausted.

I also want to see that the approach in terms of capital funding has been fully exhausted by HSI because the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media has a very critical role to play here. I have only been in the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine since 1 July and I have seen maybe three to four different proposals on where HSI will go. As such, I can understand the Senators' concern about this latest one, but from my perspective it is another one I have seen. What I want to see teased out is the real potential we have to develop a state-of-the-art system that will see an improved system for HSI. Ideally, as Minister for Kildare, so to speak, I would love to see it in the county, but from a 32-county perspective we must get this right for the long-term future of Horse Sport Ireland.