Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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230. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will indicate the current strength of the sport horse sector with particular reference to the production and marketing of Irish draught horses; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16134/25]

Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael)
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An important pillar of Government policy is to support the development of the sport horse sector and enhance the breeding and marketing of Irish sport horses. My Department and the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media (DTCAGSM) via Sport Ireland (SI) provide public funds to the sport horse industry to assist them meet these objectives.

My Department provides direct funding totalling approximately €6m annually, for the sector through:

a) Equine National Breeding Services (NBS) delivered by Horse Sport Ireland (HSI)

b) Equine Marketing Services delivered by Irish Horse Board (IHB)

c) Equine Technical Supports (ETS) for equine industry projects based on a competitive application process.

Irish Draught breeders are in a position to benefit from these initiatives.

HSI is the recognised breed society under the Animal Breeding Regulations (Regulation (EU) 2016/1012) and approved to operate a breeding programme for the Irish Draught breed. For the 2024 foal crop, HSI has informed my Department that total registrations will exceed 1,041, reflecting the stable annual registration pattern observed in recent years, which typically ranges between 900 and 1,000 foals.

Breed improvement remains central to the studbook’s mission. In 2024, 235 mares were inspected, with 72% achieving Class 1 status. I am informed that seventeen stallions were presented for inspection, with six awarded Class 1. The 2025 stallion selections, recently completed, resulted in a further ten stallions achieving Class 1 status and being made available for the forthcoming breeding season. The spring mare inspection tour is currently underway and nearing full capacity. All inspection outcomes are published on the HSI website, ensuring transparency and accessibility for breeders.

In line with advancing breed strategy, the Irish Draught studbook published its first Genetic Diversity Report in 2024. This important publication provides data driven insights to inform responsible breeding decisions. Complementing this, the studbook has introduced mare specific breeding reports, enabling breeders to compare their mares against active stallions, a valuable tool to support long term genetic health and sustainability within the breed.

The Irish Draught breed are also recognised as a native rare breed. Therefore, breeders have priority access tier one to the Agri Climate Rural Environmental Scheme (ACRES) and benefit from further payments to support the breed being maintained by Irish farmers.