An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (Resumed)
Seanad Éireann — 2026-06-09
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Joe Flaherty (FF), Nominated by the Taoiseach

Recent days have unfortunately brought more disquiet and concern over governance issues at Horse Sport Ireland, a heavily funded organisation to support and grow the vibrant sport horse sector. Representatives for professional riders and equine veterinarians have resigned from senior positions saying their roles are no longer tenable. The Irish Equine Veterinary Association has withdrawn its representation from HSI and cited governance issues. Also resigning last week was Barry O'Connor, representing professional competitors. He is one of the most respected voices in the sector. His decision is damning. I have repeatedly endeavoured to raise issues of concern at HSI, as have many staff members who as a consequence were bullied out of the organisation. The chief executive has been before the agriculture committee several times and continuously stated that the organisation had no cost exposure as a result of HR issues over the past three years but we now know the HSI had in fact been availing of employment practice liability insurance to cover the cost of those actions. All costs, legal and settlements, are covered by a very expensive insurance policy. In January 2025, Nadia Rea took a bullying case and settled for a six-figure sum. In July 2025, HSI settled a case with Michelle O'Reilly, another former staff member. Brian Hennessy, a former press officer, has also filed an action against HSI. I understand the organisation is also facing two defamation actions from former showjumping coaches. In the current Olympics cycle it will receive €3.6 million in funding from Sport Ireland but of greatest concern is the fact that it is one of at least two organisations tendering for contracts with the Department at the moment worth €6 million and €2 million. One is for national equine breeding services and the second is for the provision of marketing services. I have asked in the past for this organisation to be wound up. Now at the very least it needs to be omitted from the competitive process for these two contracts. Anything short of that is a dereliction of the Department's responsibilities to the sport horse sector and the integrity of governance across the public sector.

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Source: Houses of the Oireachtas. Licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). The Official Report is revised after first publication; the fetch timestamp below identifies the version quoted.

Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2026-06-09/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:55:01+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-06-09