IHRB undermining its credibility by saying one thing and doing another

At the beginning of this year, the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board made a lot of noise about taking a hard line on recreational drug use by jockeys.

On publishing its findings after a referrals panelpo heard the cases of three positive tests, it noted that “the deterrent effect of the penalties imposed to date is insufficient to prevent the recurrence of positive tests. Consequently, the future starting point for penalties for similar offences will be a five-year ban”.

The publication then told us in pretty unequivocal terms: “Riders can expect to serve at least a period of 18 months of such a ban before reapplication will be permitted, save in very exceptional personal circumstances.”