Gutwagon I think you miss the point. Yes it was about the Breeding Industry. BUT it proposed to fund a breeding initiative by slugging OWNERS.
Lets look at a proposed OWNERS report. We are losing owners (parallels to the number of foals reducing) and a proposal is made to have the NOCS (National Owners Credit Scheme). To help keep owners in the game, it is proposed that each time their horse runs, they receive credits which are able to be used to purchase future horses.
The Owners panel go to the owners associations and ask them how do we fund this project, it will cost around $2.2 million a year.
Ok, like the breeders lets source from within our own (meaning see if we can raise funds from within ownership ranks). A annual registration is proposed on each and every racing animal (like it was to Breeders concerning broodmares).
Owners associations go up in arms, NO YOU CANT DO THAT!!!!! (Just like the Breeders said).
So the panel need to look at alternative methods of funding. Well, we can't raise the money from within ownership ranks, so lets go and slug another part of the industry.......whom can we target.....ummmm......yeah, breeders. Lets smack them.
So in the final report, the recommendation put forward was to slug breeders at the sales a $400 registration to be able to commercially sell your progeny. So you are targeting a certain percentage of breeders, the ones whom supposedly 'make a buck' from it.
Now you tell me, do you think that breeders would cop that - funding an owners scheme?
Didn't think so.
You can buy going horses in Australia. You can buy them from NZ. If there was a $5000 fee on the purchase of going horses in Oz, how do you think that would go down?
You want people to support Australian breeders right? Well produce the right kind of product, one that will be attractive enough for OWNERS to fork out the dollars for. It happens, it happens every day. You tell me why Australian breeders cannot compete?
I ask you Gut to ask me - will being forced out of purchasing horses from NZ to race make me more likely to purchase horses from Australia?
Don't worry about asking because I will answer: Categorically not.
And - to make the proposed Import Fee all the more preposterous it is a flat fee. So it hurts the bottom end of the market more than the top end.
It is like the govt introducing this carbon scheme that will impact on everybody, but providing no relief for anyone at all in the lower income tiers.
By all means raise funds for the NBCS because it has merit, but you have to slug EVERYBODY, not a select group - a group whom those that can least afford it will be the ones affected the most.