Ministers and HRI chairman have questions to answer

For an organisation which has invariably attempted to put a positive spin on the state of the Irish racing and breeding industries, Horse Racing Ireland has scored an own goal in putting forward the case that its long-serving chief executive Brian Kavanagh is in effect indispensable.

The clear inference is of a fundamental strategic weakness, evident in a reluctance to embrace change at the top of the organisation, and an insistence Kavanagh is uniquely qualified for a position he has occupied since HRI was set up a decade and a half ago.

Kavanagh may well be the best man for the job, but in opting to reappoint him without allowing for the opportunity to appraise potential rival candidates, the board has left itself open to the suspicion it does not have full confidence in its own management structures. Any healthy organisation should be geared up to cope with periods of transition that are a natural part of the business cycle.