Racing: Govt backflip on drug education panned

The Government's attitude on reducing methamphetamine use in New Zealand is hypocritical, says horse racings' human resource managers.

Prime Minister John Key has continually stated policies to eradicate methamphetamine, yet funding to educate young participants in horse racing against drug use has been withdrawn.

New Zealand Equine Training chief executive Bruce Howat, a former police dog handler, is desperate to see the reintroduction of funding that would allow drug education in racing that the Government withdraw at the end of 2009.

"This is critical," Howat told the Herald yesterday. "There is no place in horse racing for drugs, yet we all know they exist and we need every bit of help we can get to have them discouraged and stamped out."

Horse racing is unique in its position with drugs. It is a billion dollar-plus industry which, because of its gaming element, has a critical corner stone of integrity.

If a test cricketer is caught taking drugs the forgiveness comes with a century of runs or four wickets.

In horse racing, it's about safety on the racetrack or training track first, then the massive slur on the integrity of an industry, the economic health of which the country cannot afford to be without.

No one will ever be able to estimate the damage done to racing by champion jockey Lisa Cropp returning a methamphetamine positive drug test when riding three winners at Te Rapa on May 7, 2005.

Or by the protracted, bitter three year-plus defence battle Cropp engineered through the courts before finally being found guilty early last year and subsequently disqualified.

Last week, highly talented 21-year-old jockey Troy Harris was caught smuggling a urine sample in his clothing to a random illegal substances testing unit at Matamata races.

He has long battled massive weight problems and a possible lengthy disqualification could end his career.

Numerous high-profile participants in racing have either been caught taking, or are known to have taken, methamphetamine. Howat is keen to use the services of firms like Risk Management Group, a company run predominantly by former police detectives, that has done excellent work in safety and drug detection and education in many businesses, particularly in the dairy industry.

"Until the end of last year we could have used them, now the funding has been withdrawn."

Paul Thomas of New Zealand Training Institute said drug awareness programmes are considerably more important in an industry like horse racing than some of the initiatives deemed critical by OSH.

"We go into schools, ocean liners, oil refineries, freezing works, offices and the like with a lot of success.

"It doesn't seem to matter whether it's a company director or a factory worker when it comes to drugs like methamphetamine, everyone is vulnerable.

"The training is designed for awareness and people making informed decisions."