Written answers
Tuesday, 2 December 2025
Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine
Horse Racing Industry
Michael Fitzmaurice (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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462. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine further to Parliamentary Question No. 801 of 12 November 2025 if he will confirm the money allocated to each project application in 2025 under the equine technical support scheme, the percentage rate of funding; the unsuccessful applications, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67718/25]
Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael)
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In 2025 my Department provided for an overall budget of €854,000 under the Equine Technical Support Scheme. The scheme supports the development of our native equine industry through targeted investment under three programme headings, namely
-General Programme;
-Training/Education Programme; and
- Research into Equine Diseases Programmes.
The information requested by the Deputy in respect of the Equine Technical Support Scheme 2025 is as follows:
ETS Projects Approved 2025
| Year | Recipient | Project | Funding approved | Rate of aid (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Connemara Pony Breeders' Society | Parentage Verification for First Time Registrations 2025 | €86,716.00 | 70% |
| 2025 | Connemara Pony Breeders' Society | AIM’S Reset API | €6,650.00 | 70% |
| 2025 | Connemara Pony Breeders' Society | Database upgrades | €1,470.00 | 70% |
| 2025 | Connemara Pony Breeders' Society | Database upgrades | €1,435.00 | 70% |
| 2025 | Connemara Pony Breeders' Society | Online Inspection entry | €7,770.00 | 70% |
| 2025 | Connemara Pony Breeders' Society | IT development | €8,155.00 | 70% |
| 2025 | Connemara Pony Breeders' Society | IT development | €15,155.00 | 70% |
| 2025 | Connemara Pony Breeders' Society | Online Show Entry | €9,275.00 | 70% |
| 2025 | Connemara Pony Breeders' Society | Purchase of new passport stud machine | €4,033.74 | 70% |
| 2025 | Connemara Pony Breeders' Society | CPBS Stand at the RDS (Dublin Horse Show) 2025 | €11,655.00 | 100% |
| 2025 | Connemara Pony Breeders' Society | Marketing and Promotion | €16,000.00 | 80% |
| 2025 | Connemara Pony Breeders' Society | Inspections within the CPBS Studbook | €79,142.00 | 70% |
| 2025 | Connemara Pony Breeders' Society | Connemara Pony Breeders Education Initiative 2025: Bridging Tradition and Innovation | €11,211.20 | 80% |
| 2025 | Horse Sport Ireland (HSI) | Exhibit at Royal Dublin Society - Dublin Horse Show 2025 | €10,681.63 | 33% |
| 2025 | Horse Sport Ireland (HSI) | Horse Sport Ireland Studbook foal DNA Typing (Parentage verification and genotyping) | €114,100.00 | 70% |
| 2025 | Horse Sport Ireland (HSI) | Genetic Indexing | €6,174.00 | 70% |
| 2025 | Horse Sport Ireland (HSI) | Irish Cob Studbook Stallion, Mare & Gelding Inspections. | €6,064.80 | 70% |
| 2025 | Horse Sport Ireland (HSI) | Selection of Mares in the Irish Draught, Irish Sport Horse and Irish Sport Pony Studbooks | €54,079.20 | 70% |
| 2025 | Horse Sport Ireland (HSI) | Lean processing – Passporting and registrations services | €22,000.00 | 50% |
| 2025 | Horse Sport Ireland (HSI) | Irish Draught, Irish Sport Horse, and Irish Sport Pony Studbook Stallion Selections | €38,026.52 | 70% |
| 2025 | Horse Sport Ireland (HSI) | HorseSource I.T. Development | €50,000.00 | 70% |
| 2025 | Horse Sport Ireland (HSI) | Customer Services Training | €1,500.00 | 50% |
| 2025 | Horse Sport Ireland (HSI) | Studbook Arena Party Training | €5,166.00 | 100% |
| 2025 | Horse Sport Ireland (HSI) | Exchange of Information for Inspection Processes - Irish Draughts 2025 | €7,104.00 | 100% |
| 2025 | Horse Sport Ireland (HSI) | Linear Profiling & Research Dissemination | €5,180.00 | 70% |
| 2025 | Warmblood Studbook of Ireland (WSI) | Advanced Training in Evaluation of Conformation, Gaits, Loose-Jumping, and Arena Jumping Using WSI's Linear Profile System | €6,846.41 | 100% |
| 2025 | Warmblood Studbook of Ireland (WSI) | Equipment for Studbook Development | €4,515.28 | 70% |
| 2025 | Warmblood Studbook of Ireland (WSI) | Stallion Inspections for Designation as WSI Approved Stallion | €12,878.48 | 70% |
| 2025 | Warmblood Studbook of Ireland (WSI) | WFFS1 Testing of Fillies, Approved Mares, and Studbook Mares | €2,730.00 | 70% |
| 2025 | Kerry Bog Pony Co-operative Society Limited | Studbook Development: Kerry Bog Pony Studbook Inspections | €4,900.00 | 70% |
| 2025 | Kerry Bog Pony Co-operative Society Limited | Studbook Marketing: Kerry Bog pony Pop-up banners and associated marketing materials | €1,168.50 | 100% |
| 2025 | Kerry Bog Pony Co-operative Society Limited | Education and Training: Training seminar covering the importance of Kerry Bog Pony Inspections to the Studbook | €2,100.00 | 100% |
| 2025 | Irish Harness Racing Association CLG | PA System | €9,850.00 | 50% |
| 2025 | Irish Harness Racing Association CLG | Upgrading IHRA Vaccination and Medication Database | €17,500.00 | 70% |
| 2025 | Irish Harness Racing Association CLG | Upgrade of Passport producing equipment | €990.50 | 70% |
| 2025 | Irish Harness Racing Association CLG | National Ploughing Championship 2025 | €6,069.00 | 100% |
| 2025 | Irish Harness Racing Association CLG | Number Cloth Identification System 2025 | €9,120.00 | 70% |
| 2025 | Irish Harness Racing Association CLG | Irish Harness Racing Stud Book Development | €3,194.80 | 70% |
| 2025 | Irish Harness Racing Association CLG | Breeding Performance Authentication 2025 | €40,000.00 | 70% |
| 2025 | University College Dublin | Decoding the uterine microbiome in healthy fertile mares: a path for practical applications | €48,842.00 | 100% |
| 2025 | University College Dublin | Placentitis in Irish Broodmares: Examining diagnostic methods to maximise mare and foal health and welfare | €37,000.64 *REVISED TO: €36,738.28 | 100% |
| 2025 | Irish Equine Centre (IEC) | Molecular characterization of Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) isolates from Irish Horses | €122,648.40 | 100% |
| 2025 | ITBA | ITBA Education Programme 2025 | €9,409.00 | 100% |
| 2025 | Irish Horse Board (IHB) | Education & Training-Marketing skills for breeders and producers to maximise their market opportunities | €27,372.50 | 100% |
| 2025 | Connemara Pony World | Connemara Pony Tales Podcast: Promoting the Connemara Pony Worldwide | €12,441.45 | 50% |
| 2025 | The Irish Field | Artificial Intelligence in the Equine Sector Seminar | €5,000.00 | 100% |
ETS Projects not approved 2025
| Year | Recipient | Project | Funding approved | Rate of aid (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | UCD | Healthy Horses and ponies during and after general anaesthesia for a common elective surgical procedure | n/a | n/a |
| 2025 | WSI | Graphic Design of SDI Logo and Breeding & Production Passport Cover | n/a | n/a |
| 2025 | CPBS | CPBS stand at National Ploughing Championships 2025 | n/a | n/a |
| 2025 | HSI | World Breeding News Magazine | n/a | n/a |
| 2025 | WSI | Studbook Subscription to Breeding News for Sport Horses for Breeder Education | n/a | n/a |
| 2025 | CPBS | Genomic Profiling for First Time Registrations | n/a | n/a |
| 2025 | CPBS | Genomic Profiling for adult animals & first-time registration adult animals | n/a | n/a |
| 2025 | CPBS | Connemara Pony Breeders’ Society stand at HOYS (Horse of the Year Show) 2025 | n/a | n/a |
Michael Fitzmaurice (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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463. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the reason a tender process was initiated one year earlier than expected for the studbook services contracts; the number of applicant bidders for each lot; the score each bidder received in each lot; the names and qualifications of each member of the evaluation panel; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67719/25]
Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael)
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The Studbook Service contracts to which the Deputy refers commenced in January 2023 for a period of 24 months with the option to extend the term of the contract for a period up to 24 months with a maximum of one such extension. In line with the provisions of the contract it was decided that the contract would be extended for 12 months to the end of 2025.
A procurement competition was recently held for the provision of this service for the period from 1 January 2026. This procurement process is on-going and accordingly I am not in a position to release specific details requested regarding this competition.
The evaluation panel and qualifications for the studbooks request for tender were as follows:
Assessment Panel – Studbooks
| Name | Qualifications |
|---|---|
| Mr Paul Dillon – Chair of panel | Former Assistant Secretary General of the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. Invited onto the assessment panel to contribute his extensive knowledge, experience and competence in dealing with processes and procedures within the Civil Service and his broad and detailed knowledge of the Agricultural sector in Ireland. |
| Prof Donagh Berry | Prof. Donagh Berry is a Senior Principal Researcher in Quantitative Genetics at Teagasc. He leads research in quantitative genetics and animal breeding across a range of species including cattle, sheep, horses and dogs pioneering the development of genomic selection in cattle in Ireland as well as the national breeding objectives and breeding scheme design. He has a PhD in quantitative genetics and MSc in Bioinformatics and Systems Biology. Donagh was invited to form part of the evaluation panel because of his >25 years’ extensive knowledge on topics contributing to the success of animal breeding programs including phenotyping strategies, genetic and genomic evaluations, decision support tools, breeding goal development and deployment, breeding scheme design, validation and knowledge exchange |
| Dr Bridget Younge | Dr. Bridget Younge is an Associate Professor in Animal Nutrition at the University of Limerick. Her research includes nutrient metabolism and gastrointestinal function. She has over 25 years’ experience in animal nutrition research and university teaching, She lectures in equine nutrition, animal feeding and digestion, and equine genetics, and supervises undergraduate and postgraduate research. She also holds key governance roles as Course Director for Equine Science, Chair of the Student Status Committee, and the University Animal Ethics Committee. Bridget was invited to form part of the evaluation panel due to her practical and extensive knowledge of the sport horse industry and her research contributions, experience in academic governance and scientific evaluation. |
| Ms Frances MacAodhain | Frances MacAodhain is a Principal Officer in the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. She is responsible for Animal Identification and Registration including equine traceability and the delivery of the Minister’s Action Plan to reform the equine traceability system in line with the recommendations of Professor Patrick Wall’s report. Ms MacAodhain was invited to form part of the evaluation panel due to her knowledge of the complexities of equine identification legislation and her role in overseeing equine passport services to ensure they are efficient, reliable and secure. |
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