HUNTING enthusiast and well known businessman, Gavin Duffy, pulled no punches at the Horse Sport Ireland ‘No Deal’ Brexit seminar which he chaired.

There was a large attendance at the event in Palmerstown House Estate on Monday evening with a good cross-section of people from the sport horse and thoroughbred sectors.

“The sport horse industry is near and dear to my heart. I’m just warning you before you hear the experts, I think you are going to be in for a shock. Bad and all as you thought it was going to be, it’s actually going to be worse. It’s ok to take the horse to France but if you are taking the horse to the UK, it is going to be a nightmare.

“Our Department of Agriculture is well organised but in the UK, they have still not decided how they are going to handle this. A simple little thing like going to Balmoral Horse Show or going to Badminton, Burghley, or the kids going to pony camp in the UK, those things you did not have to give much thought to in terms of paperwork and legality will change quite dramatically.

“From November 1st in a ‘No Deal’ Brexit, the UK, in legal regulatory terms, moves to another part of the world altogether. It becomes a third country so there is no longer free movement of goods. We have been facing the dilemma of Brexit but it is now very very real and there is the possibility of it happening in a few weeks’ time,” said Duffy.

Chairman of Horse Sport Ireland, Joe Reynolds said: “We are calling this our ‘No Deal’ Brexit seminar, it’s impossible to say whether there will be a deal or not. There is so many different elements to the movement of horses, I’m not sure that anyone will leave here with the entire picture.”

Gravity

Summing up the informative seminar at the end of the evening, CEO of Horse Sport Ireland, Ronan Murphy, said: “It brings home the gravity of what we are all dealing with – the combined thoroughbred and sport horse sectors are worth €4 billion together, Ireland is a small open economy and this is pivotal. We have to deal with the challenge of Brexit, it’s a matter of when, not if. I thank the panel for their excellent presentations and thank Gavin for being MC.”

(See www.horsesportireland.ie for more information on Brexit.)