Concern over number of Irish horses with verified pedigree

Michael Slavin: What about funding from Sport Ireland?

Ronan Murphy: Our funding from the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport for 2016 was just over €1.5m. We have not yet received the details of our allocation for 2018. However, we are working closely with Sport Ireland to explore additional funding to specifically support next year’s World Equestrian Games campaign and qualification for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic games.

The sport horse sector and Horse Sport Ireland (HSI) are significantly underfunded and we require significant additional funding to sustain and grow the sector which is worth over €816m to the Irish economy and supports over 14,000 full time jobs across the country and predominately in rural areas.

MS: Can a coherent mission statement for Horse Sport Ireland be published?

RM: A strategic plan for 2016-2020 was discussed previously by the HSI board on the completion of the Reaching New Heights Irish Sport Horse Industry Strategy Committee Report.

The Indecon Report considers whether HSI is organised in a manner calculated to best achieve the objectives in the Reaching New Heights Report. It is in this context that the mission for HSI should now be reviewed and considered by a restructured organisation.

MS: How can the successes of our riders abroad in some way be harnessed to greater benefit on the home front?

RM: We are very proud of the phenomenal successes of our Irish riders this year, across all disciplines. The first phone call I got after we won the senior European Show Jumping Championships was from John Treacy CEO of Sport Ireland. But, while high performance international equestrianism is vitally important, we must also ensure that the domestic sector continues to develop a sustainable business model for growth, development and increased investment. We must significantly improve our infrastructure, prize money, marketing, education and training and create a strong business culture to establish Ireland as a world leader in sport horse breeding, sport and leisure industries. MS: Should our studbook section get more autonomy with ring-fenced funding?

RM: The Indecon Report recommends that while HSI should retain responsibility for the national breeding policy, the proposed new board should consider the merits of the current structure of actually holding studbook licences.

I would like to see an Irish studbook committee established, where all approved equine studbooks and passport issuing organisations would meet to discuss all important legislative, operational and technical issues associated with the identification of equines and the administration of the studbooks.

I am also very concerned that more Irish horses receive studbook passports, with their pedigree verified.

MS: Will stallion and mare inspections be continued?

RM: We are listening to the breeders of Ireland.

This autumn we held mare inspections and we are scheduled to hold stallion inspections in the spring.

We will continue to review the cost/benefit analysis of the current inspections process in line with our obligations under the rules of the studbooks, EU regulations and breeders feedback.

MS: What is the benefit of Irish Horse Gateway (IHG) and is selling horses an appropriate enterprise for a national governing body like HSI ? RM: HSI does not sell or buy horses. IHG provides a web-based service that allows breeders and producers to market their horses on a digital platform. There are currently over 200, well presented, studbook-registered horses advertised by Irish producers on the site which is accessed by over 13,000 users monthly. Traffic to the website allows us to target our marketing efforts. Registered sellers are not obliged to disclose their business in terms of sales but anecdotally and, looking at repeat subscriptions, it is evident that plenty of trade is taking place.

We have currently commenced a strategic review of all marketing functions within HSI and the role of the IHG will be analysed in detail during this process. There is a significant requirement to focus our marketing activities, both domestically as well as internationally, and the IHG could serve this purpose. I would also like to see the continued increase in the public auction model across the Irish sport horse sector. Often the highest value animals are sold privately in both domestic and export transactions thereby further underestimating the important economic contribution made through trade in the Irish sport horse industry.