Speech to New Zealand Thoroughbred Breeders Association AGM

Thank you for inviting me to your AGM and for the opportunity to talk to you.

I'm taking a positive approach to the challenges racing faces because I believe in your industry. I'm impressed by the passion shown by people throughout the industry and I back your industry's leaders. You are going to be the first to hear about the positive steps your leadership are going to take to improve racing's profitability.

As Minister for Racing, my goal is to see racing flourish, not languish. Racing is part of our history. It makes a positive contribution to our economy. It is dynamic and exciting to be part of.

As breeders, you lay the foundation stones for racing. In the marketing speak of today; you determine the quality and the quantity of the "product". Many of you also race horses and are involved in racing administration at some level, so you have broad interests across the industry.

Some of you have said to me, "Racing Ministers come and go". And that is true. You might sigh and say "we've heard all this before". But I hope you will appreciate that I have every intention of seeing positive change in racing in my time as your Minister.

One thing I am sure of, it is time for change. And by this, I am very clear that means change from within; not changes mandated by Government. The industry needs to work together, as one business, with common goals, if it is to seriously compete for leisure time and the leisure dollar.

It is time to act. The talking seems to have been going on for 20 years with each year showing more decline that the previous one. In dollar terms, that's a wagering decline of $100 million in the past 20 years. I don't know too many, if indeed any, businesses that can sustain that kind of hit and expect everything to go on the same as it did 20 years ago.

Most of you here run businesses so I know you understand this. Like any business in a tough economic environment worldwide, racing must constantly assess its viability. In the past couple of years every organisation that is still in business has taken a long, hard look at where costs can be cut and efficiencies can be made. Racing cannot be exempt from this reality. Government - both at local and central government levels - certainly hasn't been.

I come from Northland and I have been in Parliament for 23 years. I've got a good pedigree when it comes to "horse trading". I'm at my desk pretty early every day and I'm still doing this job because I believe in effecting change.

The way I like to do things is to get all interested parties to sit around a table and talk until they can agree on common ground. Once that happens and a good foundation of trust and shared goals has been laid, moving forward is a matter of course.

Getting this to happen in racing has been a challenge.  But I believe your industry is at the point of finding a way forward that will increase participation and profitability and ultimately, benefit you all.

I know there are many issues you are interested in as thoroughbred breeders, including races for fillies and the level of stakes. But these more detailed issues can't be addressed until the core issues that determine the future of racing are fixed. In a nutshell, more people need to be interested in racing - all forms of racing - and more people need to bet on racing - all forms of racing.

As you may be aware, yesterday there was a meeting in Wellington of the leadership of the three racing codes - thoroughbred, harness and greyhounds - and the New Zealand Racing Board. We all sat around a table and we reached some agreements.

Under the Racing Act 2003, as Minister for Racing I have no jurisdiction over the thoroughbred, harness or greyhound codes. The Act gives me a relationship with the New Zealand Racing Board and my role is largely one of guidance.

But I believe these four organisations - the board and the three codes - are all part of the same puzzle. The pieces need to fit and they all need to be in place for the puzzle to be complete.

I asked everyone in that room yesterday to forget about past history, suspicions and grievances and to only look forward. History may shape us, but it shouldn't block our way forward. I know that's a big ask, but I'm asking anyway.

Let's be clear, the meeting was NOT about One Racing. One Racing is not palatable to two of the codes and while that is the case, it isn't on the table. I am not interested in hearing any more conspiracy theories about One Racing. There is no conspiracy. There is a group of people - your industry leaders - each and every one of them, who want to improve the profitability of racing so everyone benefits.

The meeting agreed on two major things. The integrity services model currently operating needs to change. And the industry needs to be marketed as one functional unit, offering an exciting menu of entertainment, to increase participation.

It was a positive meeting. Getting a positive focus in racing has been a surprising, and at times extremely disappointing, battle for me.

Regarding integrity, making both the policing and judicial systems of racing independent and transparent is critical. People will not invest in an industry - with time or money - if they don't believe in its integrity.

And there are some integrity issues. We all cringe when we see big articles in the paper about P use in racing or things being "not quite right" in the trusts that administer pokies.

This Government has taken a tough stance on P specifically, and drugs in general,  and your industry should too.

As Minister, I have made it clear to the racing industry leaders that I think it is wrong for people on racing boards or in racing administration to also be on the boards of trusts administering the proceeds of pokies.

And while I know it is within the current law, I want to see the racing industry's dependence on pokie money for stakes phased out. Any money received from these trusts should be used for infrastructure. Racing clubs need to improve their facilities if they want to get more people along to the tracks.

The idea of improving overall profitability of the industry is to be able to feed that money into stakes.

Rightly or wrongly, there is a public perception issue that racing is not always run with integrity. A high level of integrity makes marketing racing as one brand more viable. At the moment there is a tendency for the industry to operate in silos without the benefit of an overarching plan.

The Racing Board has an overarching plan; it's strategic plan. I'm excited by this strategic plan; it's aspirational, but so it should be.

Maybe I'm the eternal optimist, but what I see is all good. People won't go to the races if the racetracks don't offer facilities as good, and preferably better, than other entertainment venues. They won't even know about the races if the excitement of seeing and being part of the action on the track isn't marketed to them. They won't go into a TAB if they don't feel welcome or don't understand how the systems work. They won't want to race or buy or breed horses if they have no idea about the magic of this sport. They won't have a bar of the industry if they don't see it as being run with integrity.

I would love to see the great stories of racing - the stories of triumph against the odds, of great friendships forged, of mighty athletes both human and animal - given coverage by mainstream media. It's up to you to get out there and tell them.

Everyone in the industry needs to back the Racing Board; you all benefit from this. As a simple example, if the pie (that is, the money available to the industry via wagering) gets bigger, then each code's share will get bigger and everyone's prospects will improve.

Thoroughbred racing has a representative on the Racing Board and that gives you a voice to shape the industry. Use that voice. This is my eighth term in Parliament as the MP for Northland and I believe I continue to win my electorate seat, with increased majorities, because I listen to my constituents and I do my best to get their voices heard in Wellington.

I'm not interested in dictating terms, agreeing to submissions that don't have industry-wide buy in, or messing with racing's governance structure. I am interested in the industry working together to find solutions to its own problems and plans for growth. If there is majority agreement and it fits in with the end goal, then I will back it.

It is early days yet, but there is every intention of having the highest quality racing industry in New Zealand. I sincerely believe that this is the objective of those tasked with managing the industry at the board and code levels.

In closing, I'd like to bring you back to my belief that pretty much everything can solved by people sitting around a table and talking about it. Good communication has been lacking in racing. I urge you to think about how you communicate with each other. How you make your issues know. How you ask for change.

I urge you to talk TO your industry leadership, not ABOUT them. And I will share with you what we in politics know only too well; if you are not being heard, then think about how you are delivering the message. Listen to other views. Sit down and talk about it.

Thank you.