Martin Kenny (Sligo-Leitrim, Sinn Fein)
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I was in the Chamber for a debate on the Mercosur deal. I thank our guests for attending. Many of us were not especially surprised at some of the practices we saw in the greyhound industry because we have been hearing for a while that there were issues. I will go through some of the details. The issue may already have been dealt with but I want to ask about the number of dogs that are bred and never run. The number of pups involved is considerable. Whose job is it to monitor that? Who is failing to do their job?

I also want to ask about the use of substances and drugs and the whole doping issue. We passed the Greyhound Racing Act in which we put tighter controls in place but all the controls in the world will only match up if people on the ground are prepared to implement them. Bord na gCon and everyone in the industry have a big job of work to do in trying to build confidence so that the general public, the taxpayers who are putting €16 million a year into this industry, can be confident that the industry is prepared to do its job. There was clear evidence in the programme that people in the industry are not doing their jobs.

On the export of greyhounds and dogs ending up in other countries, the programme showed a number of greyhounds in Pakistan, which had been advertised online for stud. They were still registered by the owner in Ireland. Has Bord na gCon followed up with the owner since the programme aired? What has been done in this case? Can our guests give an example of Bord na gCon taking the types of actions I expect it to take?

The programme also showed greyhounds being brought to an illegal or unregulated coursing event on an island. Has Bord na gCon any control over that? What element of control does it have in such circumstances? Are our guests aware that this sort of activity, while not common, is also taking place in other areas of the country?