Prominent politician calls prospect of no Irish racing until June 29 'ludicrous'

High-profile independent TD Michael Lowry has described the prospect of Irish racing having to wait until June 29 to return as "ludicrous" and called for the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) to communicate its reasons for denying an earlier resumption.

Lowry, who topped the poll in a sixth consecutive general election in his Tipperary constituency earlier this year and has been largely supportive of the outgoing government, confirmed that Horse Racing Ireland has submitted proposals for racing's resumption to NPHET through the department of agriculture.

A lack of clarity regarding when horseracing will return has frustrated stakeholders since Taoiseach Leo Varadkar announced the government's roadmap for lifting Covid-19 lockdown restrictions on Friday.