Horse Racing Ireland (HRI)’s budget for 2024 was approved at its Board meeting on Wednesday December 13 and with a record 395 fixtures scheduled for 2024, the budget sees an increase of €1.3m to prize money levels to reach €69.4m (+2%). This will create additional opportunities for horses and participants at all levels. The Board also approved budget increases in equine welfare and integrity, the continuation of the IRE Incentive Scheme and the launch of a Racecourse Sustainability Scheme, as well as ringfencing support for Industry Education and Training solutions for the industry.
Integrity and Integrity Services
Integrity funding is set to increase to €17.3m (+7%) as HRI continues to invest in all aspects of Integrity (IHRB, point-to-points, as well as racecourse operational integrity needs). This figure, which includes €0.8m in business-critical IT capital funding to the IHRB, has increased from €16.1m in Budget 2023 and has grown from €12.4m in 2020, reflecting the significant strategic commitment HRI has made towards ensuring the highest levels of integrity within the Irish horse racing industry.
Equine Welfare
The 2024 Budget provides for investment in equine welfare activities and welfare related grant funding of €3.5m, an increase of €0.8m on Budget 2023. The HRI Equine Welfare focus continues to be on Standards, Traceability, Safety Nets and Education. On-going support of Treo Eile and the Irish Horse Welfare Trust will help to promote the versatility of thoroughbreds for alternative careers. 2024 activities also include phase two of the Equine Injury Risk Reduction (EIRR) project - actions to mitigate risk, continued monitoring and reporting including publication; the introduction of a Welfare Standards Assessment online learning course tailored for Irish Industry participants; and delivery of an Equine Welfare Conference in May 2024. HRI will also continue to support the IHRB with respect to their ongoing welfare activity.
People: Industry Welfare, Education and Training
Recruitment, Retention and Development of employees remains challenging for all industries going in to 2024 and racing is no different. HRI continues to support investment in Industry Education & Training, through its equuip department, with €0.8m to support all sectors of the industry with a range of activities to support attraction, retention and development of people and to deliver sustainable and best practice employment. In 2024, this includes an additional €0.1m investment in a graduate recruitment programme to ultimately support succession planning across all parts of the industry. Budget 2024 has also ringfenced revenue and capital funding with respect to the ongoing project to create an overall education and training framework for the industry.
Breeders
Next year will also see a continuation of funding for the IRE Incentive Scheme for breeders to meet the challenges posed by difficult market conditions in 2023. The Scheme is producing a significant multiplier effect in terms of investment at the sales and will provide for €1.3m in vouchers for qualifying winners that can be spent on Irish-bred horses at Irish sales in 2024.
Racecourses
Next year will see payment of the final €1.4m in relation to prior approved capital schemes, namely for stableyard expansions(€0.3m) and racetrack and industry facility improvements (€1.1m). Consultation has also commenced with respect to assessing future capital needs of racecourses and it is anticipated that details of a new capital development scheme will be announced during 2024.
Point-to-Points
Funding for the Point-to-Point sector of €2.6m, including Point-to-Point integrity, is provided for consistent with Budget 2023. A new support of €0.1m specifically for Insurance grants for point-to-point organisers is included within the budget and HRI will also lead an industry insurance taskforce in 2024 to co-ordinate an industry-wide response to ongoing insurance risks facing the industry.
Ownership
The 2024 Budget includes continued investment of €0.7m in Ownership Development for targeted initiatives to increase the number of new owners and to retain existing owners. Administration charges to Owners will increase in 2024. This is the first such increase in 10 years, charges remain below 2013 levels, and is necessary to support the increase in fixtures in 2024 which in turn are providing owners and their horses with a record number of opportunities.
The Board approved the increases in order to safeguard the current levels of prize money, without reducing the number of fixtures or races, or cutting base values. The increase will vary between 10% and 25% and will see, for example, syndicate renewal fees rise €5 from €20 to €25, and syndicate registrations increase by €10. The increase in charges to Owners will mirror an increased contribution being sought from Racecourses in 2024.
Sustainability
HRI has just launched its 2024 Sustainability Strategy, ‘Racing towards a better world’, which outlines key next steps and timelines in this area across various environmental, social and governance activities. The new strategy has the twin objectives of driving sustainability best practices throughout HRI’s organisation and operations, while also supporting the sector in becoming a recognised leader in sustainability. HRI will take the initial step in assisting the industry with a racecourse green scheme to be launched early in 2024 and will also co-ordinate industry stakeholders to form an industry wide sustainability taskforce next year.
Digital/IT
HRI and the IHRB have agreed a combined Digital Strategy which aims to deliver modern digital platforms based on cutting-edge technology to drive simplified, integrated end-to-end business processes. This will aid both organisations to significantly reduce paper usage and enhance the flow of data across our industry. The strategy will lead to improved IT systems, business alignment and governance by providing ease of access to data and analytics for insights and decision making. Additionally, it will strive to provide a better, more automated end user experience.
Suzanne Eade, Chief Executive of Horse Racing Ireland, said:
“The value of the Irish Horse Racing and Breeding Industry was measured in 2023 and amounts to €2.5bn, an increase of over 30% since 2016, despite some challenging times in the intervening period. In framing the industry budget for 2024, Horse Racing Ireland wants to create the environment for that contribution to the economy to grow again.
“Deloitte’s research found that the industry fuels in excess of €500m of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) every year and we know that prize money remains the most significant lever in attracting investment into Irish racing. This FDI contributes heavily to rural economies all over Ireland, and so in increasing the fixture list to 395 fixtures in 2024, we do so by increasing the prize money fund to €69.4m and maintaining current race values.
“This budget for 2024 sees increases in the crucial areas of integrity and equine welfare; following the launch of HRI’s Sustainability Strategy, it provides for an initial sustainability scheme for racecourses; and it ringfences support for one of the greatest challenges our industry faces: the recruitment and retention of industry staff.
“The IRE Incentive Scheme for breeders will continue in 2024 in recognition of the difficult market conditions at many sales in 2023, and HRI has extended its support for the Point-to-Point sector to include insurance specific grants in 2024.
“2024 will also be an important year for racecourses being the first year of the new media rights deal which will underpin their financial security for the next five years, against a backdrop of uncertainty with respect to gambling regulation. HRI will continue its significant investment in upgrading racecourse facilities with the short-term focus on improving industry infrastructure, while our Marketing team will continue to support racecourses’ promotional activities with campaigns to grow interest in our sport and drive fan engagement and increase race day attendances.”
