THE Irish Sport Horse industry is deflated this week after a “minuscule” increase of €500,000 from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine in Budget 2019, bringing their total funding from that department to €3 million.

A figure of €600,000 was announced publicly by Minister Michael Creed at his Budget 2019 press briefing in Government Buildings in Dublin on Wednesday morning. However, a department spokesperson later confirmed the increase to be €500,000, the same increase as in 2018. Creed described that as significant, saying: “Horse Sport Ireland’s budget is going up to €3 million, from €2.4 million, so there is a significant increase in the budget there.” However, HSI’s funding in 2018 was in fact €2.5 million, not €2.4m.

“Indecon and governance and [the] new board are in place and we recently completed the appointments to that board, so I am satisfied now that we have in place a board that is capable of driving this sector, and [that are] focused on addressing the issues that were identified in the Indecon report.

“The increased funding I think reflects our commitment that funding would follow the Indecon implementations,” the Minister added. However, the figure has been met with much anger and disappointment from leaders in the industry.

Following a year of Horse Sport Ireland working to implement all the core recommendations of the Indecon Report, commissioned by Minister Creed and published in June 2017, and the publication of the Jim Power-penned ‘Uptapped Potential: Unlocking the economic potential of the Irish Sport Horse industry’ which was presented to the Minister in July 2018, a much more significant increase was expected for the industry, which makes a contribution of €816 million to the Irish economy and employs 14,057 people.

“It did not get the response and it is doubly disappointing in that we did what Indecon recommended. Given that, you would have expected some better response,” Horse Sport Ireland chair Joe Reynolds said.

“It is hard to understand exactly what is required. We are doing what we understood was required.”

MISSED OPPORTUNITY

Malahide-based businessman Barry O’Connor, on behalf of the Sport Horse Alliance group, who commissioned the Jim Power report, said: “Last week Minister Creed told the Dáil Agriculture Committee that he recognises the potential offered by the sector in terms of regional development, jobs growth and exports, but this week his failure to provide any significant funding uplift to the sector will be seen as a missed opportunity by thousands within the sector.

“Not only has the Minister failed to resource Horse Sport Ireland to do its job properly, but he has also sent out a message to those working in this sector, that the government will not fund the sector to help realise its true potential.”

Newly appointed HSI board member and CEO of Vulcan Consulting, Lucinda Creighton, said that the 2019 funding increase was a step in the right direction.

“The allocation is disappointing but it has to be viewed as a first step. HSI has only just completed the implementation of the Indecon recommendations and the new board will have a lot of work to do to develop a new strategy for the organisation and the industry,” the former Europe Minister told The Irish Field.

“This combined with the efforts of the group which commissioned Jim Power’s report will make a compelling case for further investment from both parent departments. It will not happen overnight but with the whole industry pulling together in a determined fashion we will achieve greater funding levels which will reflect the enormous contribution of the sport horse sector to the economy,” Creighton added.

SPORT IRELAND

Horse Sport Ireland also comes in for funding under the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport, through Sport Ireland, who welcomed a €6.5 million increase in funding in Budget 2019. Individual allocations to national governing bodies will be considered and announced in early 2019.

Sport Ireland CEO, John Treacy, said: “The funding confirmed today, coupled with the high performance funding injection received earlier this year, will be an important component in preparing our athletes for Tokyo 2020 and other key international events.”

The Irish eventing team became the first Irish team in any sport to qualify for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games and there is high hopes that the result will urge Sport Ireland to provide Horse Sport Ireland with a bigger increase.

In 2018, HSI received €1.23 million from Sport Ireland, as well as a €110,000 High Performance (HP) grant for the World Equestrian Games. They were also in receipt of a €175,000 HP boost from the Minister Shane Ross in August.

The Horse and Greyhound Fund were allocated an extra €4 million in Budget 2019, spilt 80/20, as per usual. Horse Racing Ireland’s funding will rise to €67.2 million in 2019, while the greyhound industry received €800,000, taking their funding to €16.8 million.

See more Budget 2019 coverage and reaction on page 107.