Charity dinner in parliament to support Racing to School

The education charity Racing to School has been announced as the beneficiary of this year’s All-Party Parliamentary Group on Racing and Bloodstock Charity Dinner, due to take place in the House of Commons on July 4.

Racing to School, which aims to reach a record of almost 15,000 participants this year, delivers free outdoor learning activities for young people at racecourses, studs and trainers’ yards across the country, with the aim of enriching curriculum-focused learning, while at the same time introducing them to the sport of horseracing.

The charity currently works with approximately 250 primary and secondary schools and delivers more than 370 events each year.

Racing to School chief executive John Blake said: “We're so thankful to the All Party Group, in particular MPs Laurence Robertson and Conor McGinn for giving us this opportunity.

"We're the smallest charity working across and for the sport and are totally reliant on charitable donations to continue delivering our free programmes, so this marquee event can make a huge impact to our work with young people this year.”

For more information about the event, or to purchase one of a limited number of tables for the dinner, contact rob@racingtoschool.co.uk.

Anti-doping seminars in Ireland

The Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board are holding two anti-doping seminars for riders at the Keadeen Hotel, Newbridge, on Tuesday, March 5 at 7pm and Wednesday, March 20 at the same time at the Horse and Jockey Hotel in Tipperary.

The seminars will cover the testing process, what is a banned substance and what a rider needs to declare, the history of testing in Ireland, the disciplinary hearing and implications of a positive test and the support that is available.

Attendance at one of the seminars is mandatory for apprentices and claiming professionals.

30-day notification for foals

As of January 2019, breeders are required to notify Weatherbys Ireland General Stud Book within 30 days of the birth of a foal born in Ireland and bred for racing in a bid to improve transparency and traceability.

The notification is automatically triggered by submission of DNA (blood sample). The industry bodies have undergone extensive and lengthy consultation to ensure the implementation of this important development is not a significant administration or regulatory burden to breeders, and is at no cost.

This development is a declaration of intent by the Irish racing and breeding industries to enhance the already high animal health and welfare standards. This may be important in establishing future trading relationships and enabling horse movements across borders once the UK has exited the EU.

There will be no sanctions applied to breeders who are in breach, however the information relating to the late notifications will be recorded. In year one this data will be used to analyse the notification compliance and will not be for retrospective action.

The process of foal registration is not affected by the 30-day notification and all breeders should continue to ensure their foals are registered through Weatherbys Ireland General Stud Book in advance of the July 31 deadline.

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