BERNARD Caldwell has defended his governance of the Irish Stablestaff Association [ISA] though he expects to see the Association receive further negative coverage in the Sunday Independent this weekend.

Last weekend the Sunday Independent revealed that Horse Racing Ireland [HRI] had expressed concerns about the ISA’s accounts and membership records on several occasions over the past five years. The correspondence also showed that ISA director Mick Maher felt he was being “ignored” over issues around payments and expenses.

Caldwell told The Irish Field yesterday that the ISA has employed the services of a consultant to advise the Association on corporate governance issues.

“That’s not to say we were doing anything wrong before, but now we are more careful when recording the minutes of meetings and things like that,” he said.

He says the ISA has never maintained membership records as stable staff can drift in and out of the industry. In the belief that stable staff nationwide would struggle to attend Association meetings, Caldwell and directors such as Ger Flynn, Shane Lyons and Bubba Amond prefer to learn of any issues affecting stable staff at the racecourse.

“My job is out on the road, that’s what I do,” Caldwell said. “I cover 60,000 miles a year and I deal with queries from all parts of the industry. People trust us to deal with sensitive issues and we have the support of the vast majority of stable staff.

“Unfortunately there are always people out there who will try to bring you down and give you a hammering when you try to do something.”

He understands that the Sunday Independent intends to publish another story on the Association tomorrow.

Caldwell took on the role of ISA chairman and chief officer in 2007. He says he did not take any salary in his first year and only 50% of his entitled salary thereafter. He was a board member of HRI for approximately 10 years before retiring by rota last February. The seat is now held by Ger Flynn, a long-standing senior member of Jim Bolger’s yard.