THE number of Turf Club inspections at training yards will increase by at least 50% to 120 next year.

This is just one of the targets set by the Turf Club for 2017 following the record allocation of €9.6 million for integrity services in the Horse Racing Ireland budget.

Dr Lynn Hillyer, the Turf Club’s Anti-Doping Officer, said: “We’re planning an across-the-board increase in activity. Post-race drug testing will rise by 25% but there is much more to integrity than that. We’re also hoping to develop pre-race testing and out-of-competition testing.”

Although the Turf Club and the Irish Thoroughbred Breeders’ Association have made progress on allowing inspectors access to stud farms, Dr Hillyer said that the majority of out-of-competition testing would take place at training yards. “The main aim of these visits is to help trainers comply with regulations,” she said.

Racehorse trainers have expressed satisfaction with HRI’s 2017 budget. Michael Grassick, chief executive of the Irish Racehorse Trainers’ Association, said his members were not only delighted to see the minimum prize money raised to €10,000 but also the reduction in costs for owners and trainers.

Entry costs for most races have generally been 1% of the total prize money but this has been reduced to 0.9% for all races worth €20,000 or less. The weighting of the entry fee payment has also been altered so that the cost is lower for horses entered but not declared.

Grassick said: “The cost savings is even bigger than the prize money increase, as so many owners and trainers are not winning much money. Owners are still contributing 30% of prize money. We would like to see that drop to 20%. If you haven’t got owners, you haven’t got trainers or horses.”

The IRTA is to meet the Association of Irish Racehorse Owners early next month to discuss whether it would be possible to have training fees collected from owners by Horse Racing Ireland.

Sourcing stable staff remains a major concern for trainers, Grassick said, and the IRTA is seeking information from RACE on the number of apprentices and grooms coming through the system in recent years.

On-course bookmakers also benefitted marginally from the HRI budget, their levy payments halved to just 0.25% of turnover.

There is further good news for the layers this week as, for the first time this Christmas, bookies will be allowed take bets indoors at both Limerick and Leopardstown.

At Leopardstown there will be a bookmaker working on both floors of the Pavillion, while at Limerick a space on the second floor of the grandstand has been reserved for bookmaker betting. Tramore will also allow bookmakers in from the cold on New Year’s Day, while Fairyhouse plan to do the same on Easter Monday.

Leopardstown chief executive Pat Keogh said: “Bookmakers add enormously to the atmosphere at the races and it’s no secret they have been struggling. We want to work with them to improve the racegoer’s experience.”

Francis Hyland, spokesperson for the Irish Bookmakers Association, said his colleagues were pleased to get access to indoor areas at racecourses as many racegoers do not venture into the betting ring in winter weather. “We welcome any relief in a business which remains in crisis. The number of permit-holders in Ireland is down from a peak of 250 to 121.”

He said there were 13 bookmakers operating at Thurles last Sunday and 10 at a recent Limerick fixture.

“The number of bookmakers serving point-to-points is also coming under pressure and that is a worry as there are no betting exchanges or guaranteed odds offers to compete with there.”

Betting turnover is so small at point-to-points that collecting bookmaker levy has been discontinued. Hyland explained: “It wasn’t worth HRI’s time to collect it.”