Horseracing Board's finance chief on voluntary leave amid 'grave' financial issue

The chief financial officer of the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board (IHRB) has been on "voluntary leave without prejudice" since Wednesday.

It was revealed in a meeting of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on Thursday morning that a matter of "grave importance" was raised in the last 48 hours.

The IHRB has commissioned a "full review" of the matter to be conducted by an independent firm, with the "preliminary facts" disclosed to relevant bodies including Horse Racing Ireland and the Department of Agriculture.

The IHRB’s chief financial officer Donal O’Shea, who has worked for the board since 2017, had been due to appear before the PAC, but was absent.

IHRB chief executive Darragh O’Loughlin departed from his prepared opening statement to the PAC to say that "within the past 48 hours I became aware of a grave matter".

When asked where Mr O’Shea was, Mr O’Loughlin replied that the CFO had taken "a period of voluntary leave without prejudice to his position". When pressed further, Mr O’Loughlin said the period of leave had begun on Wednesday.

Despite a reluctance to share details due to the external investigation, Mr O’Loughlin confirmed it related to something "financial in nature", specifically an issue dating from early 2022 which had come to his attention.

Mr O'Loughlin said he had first become aware of the matter on Tuesday morning, that he had informed his own audit and risk committee, and that the board had subsequently taken legal advice.

Early retirement payment

The IHRB has also come under scrutiny in recent months over its former chief executive receiving an additional payment of more than €140,000 after he took early retirement in 2021.

Denis Egan, who served as CEO of the regulator for 20 years, stepped down at the height of a controversy surrounding doping allegations made by trainer Jim Bolger.

The IHRB, a company limited by guarantee, was set up by both the Turf Club and the Irish National Hunt Steeplechase Committee in 2018 to take over the regulatory work they previously carried out.

The IHRB published its first ever annual report for 2021 alongside its usual statistical analysis and showed a turnover of over €11.6 million for that year.

It received funding from Horse Racing Ireland (HRI) of €10,149,289, while €1,390,044 was generated from licensing and registrations. There was also €118,120 of capital grants from HRI.