10 Mar 2023
Despite cross-party support for a ban, a Senedd debate was warned more evidence was needed before any decisions could be taken.
Allister Webb
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Image © francoisloubser / fotolia
A public consultation to consider the future of greyhound racing in Wales is likely to begin later this year, a government minister has said.
Campaigners calling for the sport’s abolition say they have been encouraged by the level of political support for their cause so far.
But a Senedd debate on the issue also heard fears, previously raised by a veterinary group, that a ban could potentially lead to many dogs being euthanised.
The session on 8 March was called after the chamber’s petitions committee urged the Welsh Government to consider all options for the discipline, including an outright ban.
More than 35,000 people previously signed an online petition calling for a ban and a majority of the committee’s members support a phased abolition.
Rural affairs minister Lesley Griffiths told members of the Senedd (MSs) there was a need for cooperation from the greyhound industry, as well as welfare organisations, to ensure the public had an “informed view” of the current situation and the potential effects of change when the consultation begins.
She said: “I want to do this as soon as possible, and work on a stronger evidence base will commence this year, with a view to publishing a consultation towards the end of 2023.”
Many MSs from across the political spectrum spoke in support of a ban, with Liberal Democrat Jane Dodds dismissing critics’ claims that other sports involving animals would also be at risk in the future.
She added: “This, for me, is about the sort of Wales we want. I don’t want the sort of Wales where animals are produced on an industrial scale for sports.”
But Conservative member Joel James, who was the only petitions committee member not to support a ban, said more evidence was needed first.
Echoing previous warnings from the Society of Greyhound Veterinarians, Mr James said: “If we ban greyhound racing, the concern that I have is that we will see a lot of dogs put down, and that is why I’m saying that much more needs to be done to investigate the implications of such a ban.”
Chris Burghes – chief executive of Blue Cross, which is among several charities campaigning for a ban – welcomed the consultation commitment and claimed the level of support for a ban showed greyhound racing was “a dying industry that cannot be defended in the name of tradition, or by empty promises from the industry to improve welfare”.
But Mark Bird, chief executive of the Greyhound Board of Great Britain, claimed “inaccurate, unevidenced and misleading information” had been shared with MSs ahead of the debate.
He added: “The role of this consultation must be to remove the emotion, innuendo and myth, and look at what is genuinely both in the best interests of animals and consistent across all animal welfare issues.”
