The Minister for Agriculture has rejected a request from the Public Accounts Committee to review the pro rata distribution of the Horse and Greyhound Fund, The 42 has learned.
Gavin Cooney THE MINISTER FOR Agriculture Charlie McConalogue has rejected a request from the Public Accounts Committee to review the pro rata distribution of the Horse and Greyhound Fund, The 42 has learned.
The Act under which it was enacted ring-fenced all proceeds from the national betting levy for these two sports, with the money to be divvied up under a pro-rata basis: 80% of the money is given to Horse Racing Ireland , with the remaining 20% given to Greyhound Racing Ireland . The Fund is overseen by the Minister of Agriculture, and more than €1.5 billion has been allocated to the Fund since its inception.
The review will be completed by September of this year, but it will not include a review of the pro rata distribution to both sports.In correspondence from the Department of Public Expenditure to members of the PAC, seen by The 42, it is explained the Agriculture minister rejected the latter point as he believes it is a policy issue for the government.
Elsewhere, the Minister for Agriculture wrote that the social and economic impact of the fund is addressed in two separate documents: a 2023 HRI-commissioned report by Deloitte which reported horse racing supports more than 30,000 jobs and has a total annual expenditure to be €2.46 billion; and a 2021 report commissioned by the GRI and carried out by Jim Power into the Economic and Financial Significance of the Irish Greyhound Industry.
The HRI have accepted all other recommendations issued by the Public Accounts Committee, including a request that CCTV cameras are installed at all courses nationwide. This process has been completed.
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