Cuts to horseracing industry could be disastrous - Dukes

REDUCING THE level of State support provided to the horseracing and breeding industry could have disastrous consequences, economist Alan Dukes has said.

Mr Dukes said the industry, which employed more than 22,000 people and contributed €1.1 billion to the economy last year, was already under threat and could shrink by up to 25 per cent this year because of the recession.

Speaking at the publication of an analysis he completed on the economic impact of the industry, the former Fine Gael TD said a proposal included in the McCarthy report – to cut funding for the horseracing and greyhound industries by €16.4 million – could prove disastrous.

The State contributed €61 million to the industry last year, of which about €37 million was offset by a 1 per cent betting tax.

“In the face of these negative trends, any further reduction in the relatively modest level of net State support to the industry would be seriously counter-productive,” Mr Dukes said. “Particularly when support in our main competitor countries, the UK and France, remains at a much higher level than that prevailing here.”

He said State funding had been very successfully leveraged by the industry to produce a strong dynamic impulsion, which compared favourably with the returns from much higher levels of support to other economic areas.

“Government funding must remain to ensure survival of this very successful industry and to continue its growth into the future as one of Ireland’s most dynamic agricultural sectors.”

The analysis, conducted for the Irish Thoroughbred Breeders’ Association (ITBA), found that:

The value of thoroughbreds exported to 42 countries from Ireland last year was €216 million;

There was attendance of 1.4 million at race meetings in 2008, generating €260 million for local economies;

The value of bloodstock sales has dropped by 65 per cent in the last two years.

John Oxx, who has trained 37 group one-winning horses, said being able to offer attractive prize funds was key to keeping highprofile horses and trainers in Ireland.

He said there was a need for the Government to negotiate with betting firms to try to find a way to support the racing industry, on which some €4 billion was wagered last year.

ITBA chairman John Foley said a decision last year, under European Commission pressure, to remove Ireland’s tax exemption on stallion fees could prove negative. He said a number of leading horses had gone to stud in the US, UK and France.