Denis Landy (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the members of the board and staff. In 2014, Bord na gCon received €10.84 million in State funding. I have discussed this matter with the Minister of State, Deputy Hayes, who has responsibility for Bord na gCon. He initiated the Indecon report, which was due out earlier this year but eventually came out in recent months. Many issues with regard to Bord na gCon about which we were concerned have arisen during this discussion. When the report came out, the credibility of Bord na gCon was shot dead because the report is horrendous, not alone with regard to the financial situation in the organisation but also with regard to the governance and regulation of the greyhound industry, the doping of dogs and the follow-up on it, the performance of the organisation as a business entity, and the procedures put in place by Bord na gCon.

Where would Bord na gCon be as an organisation if the Minister of State, Deputy Hayes, had not initiated the report and if Indecon had not brought out the damning report in front of us for discussion today? Would we be rumbling along as we have been for the past five or six years, seeing it going down the tubes? I come from Carrick-on-Suir in Tipperary, a couple of miles from Clonmel which, as everyone knows, is the home of coursing. I am a regular attendee at race meetings. I am the former owner of some bad dogs. I have seen the industry fall asunder in front of our eyes and nothing has been done about it. The two statements we have heard are quite encouraging as stand-alone statements, but the big problem is the history which preceded them. I do not believe this can be turned around by what has been presented to us in the statements we have heard today and in the response from Bord na gCon to the Indecon report. It is the job of the witnesses to convince me it will happen.

I bring everything down to basics, and the basics are that people will not go to dog racing any more because of the doping. When doping is found, the investigations are not followed up and ordinary people who have paid for dogs will not go to the track on a Friday or Saturday night because they do not believe their dog will have a chance. This is the basic nuts and bolts of what is going on. All pious platitudes of what will be done in future are torn asunder by the fact it has not been done until now. If the Indecon report had not been written, would we be here today?

With regard to the decision to sell the various landbanks, specifically Harold's Cross, what business case has been made that it should be the first track to be sold? Prize money is small enough in its own right at present. Was any alternative to reducing it examined? It is the bread and butter of the small breeder and trainer. Will the witnesses give specifics on how they will turn around the financial disaster that is Limerick? Will they make a credible case that Limerick will be dealt with properly? I understand that two years after a stud dog dies, the sperm is taken out of use. Will the witnesses clarify whether this is happening? Both speakers referred to a control committee. How was this put together? Who are the members? To whom are they answerable for the decisions they make? Will the witnesses clarify who decides on the staff at tracks under the control of Bord na gCon? How are they monitored with regard to the need for numbers and from where does the money come to pay them? Is it directly from the board or does it come through other mechanisms?

I have many other questions but I am conscious other members wish to speak. I would like to come back in again if I can get an opportunity to do so.