The Galway Races is one of the biggest weeks on the racing calendar and is currently in full swing.  This year there has been almost as much talk though about the Indecon report on the future of the industry, commissioned by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, as there has been about the horses.
The report has been met with mixed response from the different stakeholders in and around racing but it will have a lasting impact and the first implementation of some of its suggestions could come as early as September.
Comment and reaction is now being sought from those with an interest and Sport for Business will be looking at the proposals and the likely outcomes in this week’s Members Weekly to be distributed among members on Saturday.
The report contains a number of granular suggestions on streamlining the operation of those who govern and manage the sport; from shared facilities between Horse Racing Ireland and the Turf Club to a tighter board on the former and a greater certainty on multi-year funding for the integrity services run by the latter.
There has been strong reaction to suggestions that elements of the Betting (amendment) Bill might be altered ahead of its passage through the Oireachtas, particularly with regard to the treatment of betting exchanges.
The most critical long term impact will be on the shape of the permanent funding arrangements that are needed to replace the current exchequer funding of €29 million through the Horse and Greyhound Racing Fund.
The report suggests this level of central funding is not sustainable but almost in the same breath recognises that the industry supports 16,000 jobs, generates €157 million per annum in exports to 35 countries and encourages 80,000 sports tourists each year.  On those figures alone it could be argued the state investment yields a better return on investment than many of the industry supports promoted and distributed via organisations like the IDA.
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