BHS Manifesto to the new Government
With an individual membership in excess of 60,000, plus 38,000
members of affiliated Riding Clubs and a further 10,500 members
of affiliated Bridleway Groups, The British Horse Society
is consolidating its position as the largest and most influential
single equestrian organisation in the UK. The Society’s
areas of work encompass access, competitions, education and
training, riding clubs, safety, standards in riding and livery
establishments and welfare. We also have a strong commitment
to encourage social inclusion by bringing the benefits of
riding or working with horses to those who might otherwise
never come into contact with them.
The BHS has worked successfully with past governments to
address many concerns raised within the horse industry. The
Society believes that all Parties accept the economic, social
and environmental contribution made by the horse industry.
We therefore urge the new Government to address the following
areas where we believe the horse industry is being held back,
or where safety needs to be enhanced.
Training and Education
In order to ensure that those receiving instruction are taught
by instructors who are fully competent in all matters including
rider safety and child protection, the BHS calls on the new
Government to require riding instructors and those caring
for the paying public to hold a recognised and established
qualification.
Opportunities for All
The BHS is keen to provide opportunities for non-traditional
riders to experience the benefits of the sport. It is currently
funding projects involving inner city schools and approved
riding centres and thereby contributing to the goals of encouraging
social inclusion and increasing participation in healthy sporting
activities. The BHS calls on the new Government to ensure
that funding already available for the advancement of education,
health and social inclusion is available for providing horse
riding and caring activities for socially excluded members
of society.
Insurance for Instructors
Registered instructors are automatically covered by insurance;
unqualified instructors are not necessarily insured and therefore
represent a potential risk for pupils and clients. The BHS
calls on the new Government to require those instructing in
equestrian sports to be covered by adequate insurance.
Access to safe off-road riding routes
The rights of walkers to roam have increased significantly
in recent years but opportunities for riders and carriage
drivers in England and Wales have not kept pace (although
riders and drivers in Scotland enjoy far greater rights of
access.) In many areas they have decreased. Riding and driving
carriages on roads can be dangerous or, at the very least,
unpleasant. Volunteers continue to work to discover lost routes
and ensure that existing routes remain useable but the size
of the task exceeds the resources available to undertake it
fully. The BHS calls on the new Government to achieve, by
2015, a joined-up network of bridleways/multi-user routes
across England and Wales so that walkers, equestrians and
cyclists can enjoy open air recreation with minimal contact
with traffic. The new Government should look at radical measures
for achieving this so that the current lengthy, costly and
uncertain administrative and judicial processes can be replaced
by spending directly on the quality of recreational paths.
Special attention should be given to the protection and enhancement
of local networks that can be used by carriage drivers and
the disabled.
Riding & Road Safety
A reduction in horse related accidents is due largely to
the co-operation between the BHS and other authorities on
the education of drivers to “Think Horse”. The
BHS calls on the new Government to ensure that the safety
of equestrians as road users is considered in all road management
and development schemes that could affect them.
Liability
With the support of government and the co-operation of partners
within the equestrian and insurance sectors, the BHS has been
working to reduce the risks associated with equestrian pursuits
and resist spurious claims for injury to riders. However,
we cannot isolate equestrianism from wider society in which
there appears to be a predisposition on the part of many to
sue for alleged injuries whenever there is even a slight chance
of securing financial recompense.
Furthermore, we note that recent court cases (esp. Mirvahedy
v. Henley and Wilson v. Donaldson) have extended the application
of strict liability far beyond what we believe Parliament
intended. Together, these developments add to the already
acute financial pressure on equestrian establishments and
horse owners.
The BHS therefore calls on the new Government to introduce
legislation which explicitly recognises that horse riding
(and other named activities) are inherently risky and that
participants may be injured when they take part. In such an
event, the injured party should have no redress against any
other party.
The BHS further calls upon the new Government to amend the
law to restore the position where horse owners or riders are
not liable for injury or damage caused by their animals unless
negligence can be proved against them.
Welfare
Recent changes in the law now make it very expensive to dispose
of horse carcasses. The BHS is concerned that the costs may
exceed the ability of some horse owners to pay and that, consequently,
horses will not always be humanely destroyed when their health
may have deteriorated to a point where they are in a constant
state of suffering. Some of these suffering horses may be
dumped rather than tended. The BHS calls upon the new Government
to review the current situation with these welfare considerations
in mind and ensure that high costs are not allowed to compromise
equine welfare.
Taxation
The economic, social, health and education benefits of horse-related
activity are generally acknowledged. However, elements of
the fiscal policies of recent governments have operated perversely
in the equestrian industry. For example, riding hats —
an essential safety item — attract VAT at the full rate.
The cost of riding lessons from reputable establishments is
usually increased by VAT, making back-street riding establishments
an attractive (or even only) alternative for those on lower
incomes. The BHS calls upon the new Government to exempt from
VAT those products and services which are provided to improve
safety for equestrians.
Rates
Established equine establishments must compete with new establishments
set up by farmers, and with publicly-funded colleges, upon
whom the rates burden is effectively lifted. This represents
a distortion of the market. The BHS calls upon the new Government
to ensure that all riding establishments are able to compete
on equal terms, with no sub-sector enjoying rating advantages
not available to the rest.
Volunteers
Equestrianism depends in many instances on the willingness
of volunteers to devote time, energy and often their own money
to the greater good of the sport. We are fortunate that so
many people are willing to do so. But there are disincentives
to volunteering, including a fear amongst volunteers that
they will be liable to unreasonable action if something goes
wrong. The BHS calls upon the new Government (a) to recognise
the value of volunteers in equestrian (and other) sports,
(b) to take action to reduce the risk to volunteers from claims
when accidents occur, and (c) provide a financial incentive
to encourage volunteers to obtain relevant training and qualifications
to equip them as officials.
The British Horse Society recognises that the measures advocated
above are considerably more complex than a few lines of text
might suggest. The Society therefore restates its commitment
to work with the new Government to promote the many benefits
which participation in equestrian activity can bring to individuals
and to society at large.
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