Page 5146 - Week 14 - Tuesday, 28 November 2017
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
on the public record that there are seven trainers linked to live baiting in New South Wales who have raced here in the ACT. That is why we cannot limit our assessment to the records of the Canberra Greyhound Racing Club and the findings of the Durkin report, which are ACT specific.
A true assessment of the record of the greyhound racing industry must also consider the incidents revealed by Four Corners in February 2015 and the subsequent findings of the New South Wales special commission of inquiry, also known as the McHugh report.
We cannot pretend that the extensive findings of abuse and neglect highlighted in the McHugh report have nothing to do with greyhound racing in the territory. Data analysed by the RSPCA shows that the vast majority of individuals who participate in greyhound racing in the ACT are actually from New South Wales, including 90 per cent of all starters and 89 per cent of trainers.
The findings of the McHugh report are damning, highlighting the prevalence of inhumane and unethical practices such as live baiting and wastage. The McHugh report found that the greyhound racing industry implicitly condoned, as well as caused, the unnecessary deaths of tens of thousands of healthy greyhounds, engaged in the barbaric practice of live baiting, caused and will continue to cause injuries to greyhounds that range from minor to catastrophic, treated greyhounds as dispensable commercial commodities, and deceived the community concerning the extent of injuries and deaths caused during race meetings. The Greens believe that the greyhound racing industry is an outdated industry that relies on animal exploitation, and we base those beliefs on the significant amount of evidence that we have just outlined.
Despite several attempts by the Canberra Greyhound Racing Club to bully and silence critics of the industry, including threatening a defamation suit against me and similar SLAP suits against the RSPCA, the figures show that dog deaths and injuries are inescapable realities of greyhound racing. If the club does not consider the incidents I have highlighted to be serious animal welfare issues then I think this further confirms that at least those doing their public arguing are out of step with what our community expects in the modern world. That is why the Greens are supporting this legislation to bring about an end to the industry in the territory.
I appreciate the view that has been put forward by some people that the industry should be given an opportunity to address these issues through reform. However, it is the Greens’ belief that these practices were found to be so systemic that genuine reform would not be possible. The ACT has some of the highest standards for animal welfare in the country, and we do not believe that any amount of reform in the industry can achieve the animal welfare outcomes demanded by the general community, particularly when we consider those earlier figures that I cited, which show that death and injury are evident by-products of this industry.
While it is disappointing that the New South Wales government has backflipped on its commitment to also bring an end to the greyhound industry over the border, the ACTÂ cannot wait and hope that the New South Wales reform process will be a
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video