Minister Heydon appoints Dr Pamela Byrne as Chair to the board of Horse Sport Ireland
- Foilsithe:
- An t-eolas is déanaí:
The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Martin Heydon TD, has today appointed Dr Pamela Byrne as Chair to the Board of Horse Sport Ireland (HSI). The Minister has agreed, in consultation with Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport, Patrick O’Donovan TD, and Minister of State with responsibility for Sport and Postal Policy, Charlie McConalogue TD, on the appointment of Dr Pamela Byrne as chair of HSI.
Minister Heydon said:
“Dr Byrne has served as interim chair of HSI in recent months, having succeeded Mr Michael Dowling. I am delighted to announce her appointment in a permanent capacity. Since assuming her role on the Board of HSI in October 2024 and more recently in her position as interim chair, Dr Byrne has demonstrated her expertise and a clear commitment to HSI and the sport horse industry in general.”
“I’d like to express my sincere gratitude to Dr Byrne for accepting this position and I’m confident that her experience will guide and lead HSI for the benefit of Ireland’s sport horse sector.”
Notes to Editor
The HSI Constitution provides that the term of office of the Chair and other Directors shall be three years from date of appointment and Directors are eligible to serve a max of two terms.
The Constitution for HSI provides that the Board includes nine Directors as follows:
- four members including the Chair appointed by the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine in consultation with the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport (currently one vacancy)
- one Northern Ireland representative (currently vacant)
- four Industry representatives (currently one vacancy)
About Dr Pamela Byrne
Dr. Pamela A. Byrne was the Chief Executive Officer of the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) from March 2015 to March 2025. During her tenure as CEO, she was the Vice Chair of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) management board and the co-founder of global International Heads of Food Safety organizations (IHFAF). She is also the Vice President of the Global Food Regulatory Science Society.
Dr. Byrne holds a PhD in Environmental Ecotoxicology from University College Cork, an MSc in Aquatic Resource Management from King's College London, and a BSc in Zoology from University College Cork. She has also completed executive education programs at the Harvard Kennedy School and the London School of Economics.In addition to her professional roles, Dr. Byrne has significant governance experience, serving on several boards and committees, including Interim Chair of Horse Sport Ireland, Chair of the Board of the Irish Management Institute, Chair of the Governance Committee of the Centre of Scientific Excellence for the Microbiome in UCC, and she is an Adjunct Full Professor at University College Dublin. She was also Chair of the Board of the Irish Management Institute and a member of the Board of the Institute of Public Administration.Pamela has had a keen interest in horses all her life having competed in eventing, dressage and showing competitions. In the last few years, she established a small Irish Draught breeding programme with her husband, Pierre, on their small farm in Kildare.