THE Minister for Agriculture, Michael Creed, and independent TD Clare Daly had a heated exchange in the Dáil this week over drug testing in racing.

Reacting to the news that the Anti-Doping Task Force was to be reconvened, Deputy Daly quizzed the Minister on “the continuing absence of a proper drugs protocol in the horse racing industry”.

The Minister insisted that the current anti-doping measures meet international standards and that the Task Force recommendations, though not implemented, represented an attempt by the racing authorities to be “best in class”.

He said it was Horse Racing Ireland’s medium-term ambition to develop a ‘reference’ laboratory which would be to the highest international standards though this will require significant investment.

Describing the Minister’s answer as “light in substance”, Daly stated that the regulatory authority [Turf Club] had to give effectively a week’s notice before testing horses not on licensed premises and she said it was unclear if there were any consequences if horse owners refused to grant access in such cases. She asked the Minster to defend this “incredibly loose criteria”. The Minister repeated his stance that testing procedures were up to scratch and he criticised Deputy Daly for not acknowledging Irish racing’s success in the Melbourne Cup. “It reflects your attitude to the industry generally,” he said.