The Turf Club senior steward Gerry Scanlan yesterday described as 'deplorable' the way the current dispute regarding the funding and administration of racing is being played out through the media.
Speaking at yesterday's annual Turf Club accounts report, Scanlan emphasised the Turf Club's support for permanent funding for racing but stated again that any changes in the structure of how racing is administered must be in the long-term interests of the sport.
The Minister for Finance Charlie McCreevy is offering the betting tax revenue in return for a merger of the Turf Club, the Irish Horseracing Authority and the Association of Irish Racecourses, a move that is opposed by the Turf Club and the AIR.
That has resulted in a hardening of positions and on Tuesday night, a meeting of the breeders association, the owners association, the trainers association, as well as groups representing the jockeys, stable staff and bloodstock agents unanimously backed the Minister. The meeting was chaired by Mrs Chryss O'Reilly.
The Turf Club hit back yesterday, however, and Scanlan said: 'Negotiation has some attraction, dictation has none. It's a question of coming up with the right answers, not quick ones.'
The senior steward said the current structure, set down in the 1994 Act, has worked well, and while he didn't rule out an alternative, such a venture needs careful examination which cannot be rushed.
The Turf Club intends to work initially with the racecourses, and then with the other various bodies, to develop a considered model which can be put before everybody.
'This must be achieved by the consensus of all and it will not be achieved by the discord of recent weeks. I deplore the way this matter has been thrashed out in the media and to put it mildly the kind of bickering going on at the moment is not helpful,' Scanlan said before emphasising the importance of keeping the independence of the integrity services.
'In all of this no one has complained about the integrity services and how they are operating so I don't see why an organisation with no experience in the matter should want to take them over,' he said in a reference to the IHA which he said not only wanted overall responsibility for racing but also wants to manage it.
'We are being told there will be an economic benefit to be achieved from putting the IHA and the Turf Club together but I can't see it. Our people perform a totally different role. There is no overlap and the fundamental question is where is the gain for all the pain,' Scanlan added.
Tuesday night's meeting of the various interest groups stated: 'Time is of the essence and this opportunity must be addressed by all concerned in a positive and constructive manner in order to safeguard the future of our industry.
'If satisfactory progress between all parties is not achieved, this committee reserves the right to meet directly with the Ministers for Finance and Agriculture and request them to resolve the impasse in the interests of the industry at large.'
Racing's political wrangling put yesterday's actual Turf Club accounts announcement in the shade. However, the organisation reported a consolidated surplus of £123,000 which is well down on the 1998 figure of over one million pounds.
However, the 1998 figure was described as 'exceptional' due to a large taxation write back and an increase in investment income. Other significant costs for 1999 included increases in the cost of integrity services, legal costs, investment in information technology facilities and the settlement of retrospective pay claims.
Going Global moved a step closer towards a possible tilt at the Epsom Derby when he saw off four rivals at Ripon yesterday.
The colt proved himself wellsuited to the muddy conditions as he produced a powerful late thrust for John Reid to to land the spoils in the Galphay Classified Stakes. 99293495
