SUNDAY, 17 JANUARY 2021 >TOUGH ROAD AHEAD= ABDULLAH=S FAMILY AVERY COMMITTED@ TO JUDDMONTE FOR POST-BREXIT HORSE It will be business at usual at Juddmonte Farms after Juddmonte Group Chief Executive Douglas Erskine Crum told ITV TRANSPORT on Saturday that there will be Ano change@ following the death of the global operation=s founder Prince Khalid Abdullah last week. Abdullah had raced 118 Group or Grade I winners since entering the game just over 40 years ago, of which he bred 102 of those. He owned stud farms in the UK, Ireland and Kentucky. AThe family has been for some time and still is very committed to keeping Juddmonte as it is going, focusing on the broodmare band, focusing on the homebred operation,@ Erskine Crum told ITV Racing. AOne of the last decisions in which the prince was involved was the matings for this year, in other words where his 200-odd broodmares are going to go. Whether they are going to go to Frankel, Kingman or some of the great stallions across the world. Cont. p5 Horse transport between Britain and the EU has become much more complicated | Getty Images By Emma Berry While Britain, Ireland and France are competing nations in the racing and breeding world, in recent years the Tripartite Agreement (TPA) has significantly eased the regular interaction between the three, particularly in regard to transporting broodmares and racehorses. The TPA recognised the high health status of Thoroughbreds and allowed for free equine movement between the countries. All that changed, however, when Britain=s departure from the European Union was finalised with the end of the transition period on Dec. 31. Now that the UK is no longer an EU member it has been granted >Third Country= status for future dealings with the EU bloc, and transporting horses to and from its Juddmonte Farms founder Prince Khalid Abdullah | Horsephotos European neighbours has become decidedly less straightforward. A section dedicated to Brexit on the British Horseracing Authority website warns, AIt remains the case that relative to IN TDN AMERICA TODAY arrangements prior to 31 December 2020, the process to move horses is considerably more complex administratively and time ECLIPSE AWARD FINALISTS ANNOUNCED consuming.@ Cont. p2 Authentic (Into Mischief), Improbable (City Zip) and Monomoy Girl (Tapizar) are the finalists for Horse of the Year. Click or tap here to go straight to TDN America. TDN EUROPE • PAGE 2 OF 7 • THETDN.COM SUNDAY • 17 JANUARY 2021 Post-Brexit Horse Transport cont. from p1 only a temporary export while a mare is being covered or a In addition, breeders moving mares, or owners moving horse is being sent to race overseas. The VAT can subsequently racehorses, will also find it significantly more expensive for them be reclaimed. to travel to Ireland, France and beyond. And that=s when they Willie Mullins was the first to test the system when sending are actually able to travel. With the Free Trade Agreement Grangee (Fr) from Ireland to run at Market Rasen on Saturday. between the UK and EU only finally being ratified on Christmas The trainer has indicated that the mare's owners have avoided Eve, the new documentation required by transporters, both for the VAT charges as she was transported under the 'temporary vehicles and drivers, means that for the time being they are admission procedure'. However, the TBA's tax expert Peter effectively grounded. Mendham still advises caution in this regard until further Rupert Erskine Crum, who owns Weyhill Transport in England, clarification is forthcoming from the British and Irish authorities. said, AOn 1 January the EU ceased to recognise GB transporter He said, "At the moment, as we understand it, the horse's authorisations. So effectively it became illegal for a GB truck to owner has to put up security for the VAT, which is 13.5% in go into the EU and an EU Ireland and 20% in Britain. truck to come into GB The temporary admission carrying horsesCand that=s procedure is absolutely fine GB rather than the UK as and can be used but the Northern Ireland is dealt issue is whether or not you with separately.@ have to lodge the security He continued, AThe with the authorities when fantastic irony of this is that you take the horse in. for the last 13 years, the Certainly the rules at the certificates, requirements, moment, in both the UK and vehicle inspections and Ireland, are that you have to driver training for put up security pending the transporters in Britain, return of the horse." Ireland or France have been Mendham added, "I would exactly the same. It=s be very wary of assuming pan-European.@ that you don't have to put Authorisation can now be Getty Images up security until we get a applied for within any one of the EU member states but Erskine formal ruling from both sides of the Irish Sea." Crum says that he and his fellow transporters are still awaiting Horses being transported from the EU for sales in Britain can details on how this can be done. be imported under the Docket System, which is being reinstated AAll our drivers have GB horse-handling certificates so now by Goffs UK and Tattersalls and means that the sales company they have to go to rebadge, say in Ireland,@ he added. AThe acts as the importer and is responsible for paying the VAT. vehicles now have to travel to an EU country to be inspected to Extra checks will be carried out for horses travelling into EU receive new certificates, despite the fact that all my vehicles countries, who will be required to enter via a Border Control have recent certificates under exactly the same regime that they Post (BCP). These currently exist at the ferry ports of Dublin and will be tested in Ireland, which of course brings considerable Rosslare in Ireland as well as Belfast in Northern Ireland, and at expense.@ Dublin and Shannon airports. On the French coast they can be found at Caen, Calais, Cherbourg, Dieppe, and St Malo. There is Increased Costs also a BCP at the Eurotunnel terminal at Calais (Coquelles), In addition to the extra expense which will be incurred by the though the cost for horses crossing the Channel by train has transport companies, and any trainer or stud farm owner increased significantly to ,350 per animal on top of regular transporting horses for commercial reasons in their own transport costs. horseboxes, the bills will also increase through the extra blood There are currently no BCPs at British ferry ports, though they tests and certification required for each horse. Furthermore, at will come into force on July 1, meaning that horses arriving in present it appears that VAT will be payable, or security posted, Britain from the EU will not be subject to checks until that date in relation to the value of the animal being exported, even if it is unless they arrive by air to Heathrow, Stansted or Prestwick. TDN EUROPE • PAGE 3 OF 7 • THETDN.COM SUNDAY • 17 JANUARY 2021 Talks Ongoing The Thoroughbred Breeders= Association (TBA) sent several missives to breeders in the countdown to the end of the transition period advising them not to attempt to transport horses in the first few weeks of January. Some made the decision to move mares prior to the deadline, while others have Senior Vice President adopted a >wait and see= approach, hoping that the situation will Gary King become less fraught as the covering season progresses. Twitter: @garykingTDN Julian Richmond-Watson, chairman of the TBA and the [email protected] Thoroughbred Industries Brexit Steering Group, said, AKevin + 1.732.320.0975 Needham [of BBA Shipping] is hopeful that by the end of the month the transport companies will have the certification International Editor required to start moving horses. Kelsey Riley Twitter: @kelseynrileyTDN [email protected] European Editor Emma Berry Twitter: @collingsberry [email protected] Associate International Editor Heather Anderson Twitter: @HLAndersonTDN Marketing Manager Alayna Cullen Twitter: @AlaynaCullen [email protected] racingfotos.com Contributing Editors Alan Carasso Christina Bossinakis AFrom Britain=s point of view, instead of having to put up the VAT when bringing horses back into the country we just have to Cafe Racing value them and the VAT goes to your quarterly return. We can=t Sean Cronin answer for Ireland and France, but I understand Ireland is Tom Frary looking at ways for mares to be classified as grazing horses.@ [email protected] Richmond-Watson added that he remains hopeful that an agreement can be reached with Ireland, if not France, whereby Irish Correspondent similar arrangements to the now-defunct TPA could be Daithi Harvey reinstated. Regular Columnists He said, AThere is a common travel agreement between us Chris McGrath | John Berry | Kevin Blake anyway. Maybe we will be able to come to some sort of [equine] Amy Lynam | Melissa Steele arrangement with Ireland.@ At present, Britain can also be used as a >land bridge= between Ireland and France, and horses travelling between those IN TDN AUS/NZ TODAY countries will not have to go through check points at the border but will require an Intra Trade Animal Health Certificate. Horses BOWDITCH HAILS ‘SPECIAL’ MAGIC MILLIONS SALE travelling between the UK and the EU will require an Export The record aggregate of $197,240,000 was over $17 million Health Certificate for each journey. greater than 2020. Click or tap here to go straight to TDN Aus/NZ. TDN EUROPE • PAGE 4 OF 7 • THETDN.COM SUNDAY • 17 JANUARY 2021 Post-Brexit Horse Transport cont. He added that talks are ongoing between the relevant Richmond-Watson added, ABorder Control Posts are going to departments in the British, Irish and French Thoroughbred be a big issue because they are only open for regular office industries.