BRC and SEA

Date:  18 April 2005                                       Release: Immediate

British Horse Society Scotland withdraws from the Scottish Equestrian Association

Annella Cowan, Chairman of the Scottish Committee of The British Horse
Society, announced today (Monday, 18 April) that BHS Scotland is to
discontinue its membership of Scottish Equestrian Association Ltd (SEA).

She said: "The British Horse Society has built up an unparalleled
international reputation for its work, which covers a spectrum of equine
interests not matched anywhere else in the UK.  It is essential, if the
Society is to continue to maintain its standards and further expand its
work, that we focus on the essentials and do not spend valuable resources
on peripheral issues which do not advance our aims.

"We have concluded that membership of SEA has proved a distraction from
our primary purposes of raising standards across the board and bringing
the benefits of equestrianism to all sectors of the community.

"We appreciate that the loss of BHSS's 4,000 members, and the 4,600
members of the riding clubs which are affiliated to British Riding Clubs
(a part of the BHS), will result in a much smaller SEA which falls outside
the top 10 governing bodies in Scotland.  Nevertheless, we cannot justify
spending more staff time and members' money on affairs which do not yield
a commensurate benefit."

Mrs Cowan added: "The immediate focus of the Society's activities in
Scotland over the next month includes The Borders Festival of the Horse,
the launch of Tweed Trails and the Horses Welcome pilot project, lobbying
on stone mastic asphalt, the BHS ragwort control Bill for Scotland and
responding to consultation on transition arrangements for the registration
of farriers in the Highlands and Islands.
"All this is in addition to the Society's staple of safety, welfare,
training and access education work. The Society will also continue to
co-operate with other bodies in advancing the interests of horses, riders
and drivers, repeating the success it achieved with Scottish National
Heritage (SNH), local access groups and Midlothian Council to secure the
opening of the Tyne Esk trails rides."