Horse Racing Ireland defends policies after tendering failures

Horse Racing Ireland has defended its purchasing policies after the State’s auditor raised concerns about its failure to follow tendering rules.

In his assessment of the HRI’s accounts, the Comptroller and Auditor General, Seamus McCarthy, said there were a number of instances where proper procurement rules were not adhered to.

These were in addition to the controversy in 2012 when one of HRI’s directors, who was also the chief executive of Irish Thoroughbred Marketing, resigned after he was twice sanctioned for conflicts of interest involving favourable treatment given to his wife’s consultancy business.

The latest breaches discovered by the C&AG occurred across a range of sectors. They included the filming of race meetings, the cleaning contract at its head office, and the provision of big screens and catering work at Fairyhouse and Leopardstown.

In an explanation document, HRI said it operated more than 200 contracts that were signed by it and its subsidiaries.

In response to a Freedom of Information request, HRI set out 14 separate agreements where it had been pulled up by the C&AG.

It said in some cases, contracts had run out and needed to be reissued quickly because of other priorities.

HRI said its processes were sometimes complicated by the need to fit in with racing schedules or ensure a continuity of service.

The company said it had done a lot of work in 2013 to rectify the situation.

“The procurement function has been the subject of thorough review in 2013. Following the findings of the Comptroller & Auditor General, additional expert resources [two staff] have since been put in place to increase capacity,” HRI said.

“All of the contracts identified have been or are in the process of being addressed as a result of having extra resources in procurement.”