THE art of spin is to basically try and put forward a particular angle on some unpopular topic or hot subject so as to lessen its impact on the public’s perception.

Irish politics and corporate life, like other nations, is no stranger to it and in some cases, skillful spin doctors can lighten the load for their clients. It’s also true to say that sometimes the very opposite is true.

It was suggested to me recently that some Irish breeders were really not that bothered over the increased registration fees - some were described as being ‘thankful’ that HSI fees had not increased for the past 17 years.

Grassroots views

This week therefore, we sought to gather the direct views of breeders, riders, owners and producers on this hot potato of a topic and to find out what the people on the ground really think about the fees increase and their future impact.

Their views were resoundingly against these hefty fees increases - their comments were clear, frank, and in many cases, quite damning of the future implications these fees - some of which are over 64% higher than HSI’s nearest competitor - will have on the Irish Sport Horse and Irish Draught Studbooks.

(The online forum remains open at www.theirishfield.ie, terms and conditions apply)

See adjoining article and also see page 87.