Clean bill of health

THE Public Accounts Committee (PAC) last Thursday (January 20th) officially noted information from the now retired chief executive of Sport Ireland, John Treacy, requested by the PAC, regarding compliance and governance controls relating to Sport Ireland funding to Horse Sport Ireland. The Sport Ireland information was dated December 21st 2021 and was duly noted by the PAC.

Kildare North TD Catherine Murphy (SD) said: “I want to make one quick point. I see that KOSI [Auditors] has done a report and gave them a clean bill of health in relation to their finances. There may well be other issues that are value for money issues which we might come back to in the future, such as how they selected the location for the facility they are developing. There are serious questions around that and how the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine engaged with them as well. I wish to flag that issue.”

Let’s Talk Equine

TEAGASC Let’s Talk Equine webinars return on February 1st at 8.30pm with the first panellist of the year, Emma McCabe of Epic Management, a marketing management agency with an equine focus. Wendy Conlon will discuss the topic of optimising online marketing with Emma. Register at www.teagasc.ie/letstalkequine.

SJI pony awards

SHOWJUMPING Ireland has given the green light for the much-awaited SJI Pony Showjumping Awards. The awards evening will take place on February 26th at the Mullingar Park Hotel.

This year the organisation has chosen the Irish Cancer Society as their chosen partner. The evening will kick off with a welcome reception at 4pm, followed by dinner and entertainment. Tickets will go on sale Monday, January 31st and can be purchased online on www.sji.ie.

Adult tickets are priced at €50, while children’s tickets can be purchased for €35. There will also be an auction and a luxury raffle on the night.

Horse-drawn carriages

JUNIOR Minister at the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport, Hildegarde Naughton (FG), told the Dail that her Department is currently undertaking a stakeholder consultation process on proposals for the regulation of horse drawn carriages. It falls under Section 31 of the Taxi Regulation Act 2013 and the Road Traffic Act 2016.