Grey Window Dressing Rulebooks are written in black and white but are best when open to some grey interpretations. Context is vital in most things, especially when it comes to responsibility. However there's a danger in too much grey. Right now there's a gaping grey area that can effectively turn breaches of the prohibited substance rules into a vacuum where no one's responsible because no one's to blame. And a regulation that can come to no better conclusion than that is little more than window dressing. The news of two more positive tests for cobalt, which brought to 19 the number of 'winners' disqualified for positive tests on the track and in point to points this year, inevitably focussed on Joseph O'Brien's horse Pedisnap. O'Brien is one of the most high profile names in the sport. Pedisnap lost the race at Gowran in August but O'Brien's E1,000 fine was waived after it was established the horse's positive result was due to a 'salt lick' it was exposed to on race-day. There was nothing so conclusive about the Mikey O'Connor trained Awbeg Prince losing a maiden hurdle at Ballinrobe in May. In evidence at last week's Referrals Committee hearing the head of anti-doping Dr Lynn Hillyr said O'Connor provided information about supplements the horse was given and added that the level of vitamin B12 and cobalt contained in them didn't indicate they were the source of the positive test result. The Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board position was that the substance was administered to Awbeg Prince by injection close to the race. O'Connor stated either he or a sister of Awbeg Prince's owner were with the horse at all times on the day of the race. He had no idea as to the source of the analytical finding. The Committee found O'Connor failed to take reasonable precautions to avoid a breach of the rules, imposed a fine of €1,000, disqualified the horse and accepted the IHRB position that the substance had been administered to Awbeg Prince by injection close to the race. However they were not sufficiently satisfied O'Connor was personally responsible for the administration and took no further action against him. So not for the first time this year when it comes to positive tests for prohibited substances the racing public is left to conclude no one's to blame with the impression left hanging out there that the matter just gets filed under 'one of those things.' And in credibility terms, for any regulatory body, and the reputation of any sport, such a vacuum is unsustainable. It isn't just a problem for Irish racing. The thorny question of where the extent of a trainer's responsibility as a licence holder begins and ends, and the complex nuances involved in strict liability versus taking all reasonable precautions, has been under the spotlight in Britain too, for example last year in relation to high profile cases involving Philip Hobbs and Hughie Morrison. There are very fundamental issues involved in such matters. Imposing liability without proof of wrongdoing can leave individual innocent parties wronged just because they hold a licence. It undermines the law and has potentially devastating implications for someone's reputation and livelihood. However there is a broader context too and no matter the jurisdiction racing's long-term regulatory credibility is threatened if it continues to throw up scenarios where rules get broken and no one's to blame because no responsibility can be assigned. That's too grey in anyone's book and leaves the disciplinary process open to charges it is an exercise in activity rather than action. The British Horseracing Authority's chief executive Nick Rust stepped on some sensitivities earlier this month over comments he apparently made about potential new penalties for misuse of the whip. He also seemed to suggest the BHA might be preparing for a future scenario where whips might be banned for anything other than correctional use within three years. All this came on the back of a review which produced recommendations about how to improve the safety and welfare of horses and riders in National Hunt racing generally, and at the Cheltenham festival specifically. To many it smacked of more window dressing in that jump racing will inevitably and unfortunately produce fatalities given its very nature. Rust however got it right when saying that statistics on the rate of equine fatalities have improved in recent years and that racing not only needs to do everything it can to further reduce those stats but be seen to do so. Otherwise he argued the sport's social licence with the general public might become an issue. The social licence concept is vague. It's hard to define. A lot of people at racing's coalface might even dismiss this idea of a link between racing's future and what a largely disinterested public think about it. It's not like you can reach into your wallet and pull such a licence out for inspection. But it is very real if it starts to disappear. If a social licence is anything it might be a subtle approval from the wider world that allows a specific area of activity to continue doing what it does. It can't be self-awarded and presumes legitimacy. Racing's core legitimacy relies on animal welfare being of paramount importance, and being seen to be so. Even the vast majority for whom racing barely registers at all will not tolerate anything less. As a whole racing lives up to its side of the deal in admirable fashion. But it can't presume that attitudes and expectations can't change. Which is why Rust's instincts, while they got him into political hot water this time, appear to be correct. It's why this imprecise but important concept of a social licence matters. Dismissing a wider world as ignorant and incapable of properly understanding what it is looking at in relation to matters such as the whip is a self-indulgent luxury the sport simply can't afford. The Christmas action is always among the best of the season and this holiday period in particular could be one to look forward to. So far it has been a winter in which ground conditions have forced a number of high profile horses into clashes they might otherwise have avoided and this week may be no different. Friday's Savills Chase at Leopardstown in particular will be fascinating if the Gold Cup favourite Presenting Percy is allowed run. Owner Philip Reynolds has said he hopes that at least the word 'yielding' appears in the ground description at Leopardstown. It does at the moment - just. But the outlook is for a dry week. Given time pressure though hands may get forced into running anyway. The same might apply to Laurina who has a choice of options over the holiday period although a Ryanair Hurdle clash with Samcro would be the most appealing route of all for those of us eager to see just how good this strapping mare might be. The sky could be the limit for Laurina. But she needs that sky to darken and ease the going. Whether or not Footpad can come back to his novice level will be intriguing too on Thursday. He needs to win to rejuvenate all the hopes held for him while the prospect of Apple's Jade against Faugheen and Supasundae is one to relish on Friday. Whatever the outcome it is all a prospect to make any racing fan eager for the off. Before that though Happy Christmas to you all.
