Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees
Wednesday, 22 November 2023
Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine
Horse and Greyhound Racing Fund Regulations 2023: Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine
Jackie Cahill (Tipperary, Fianna Fail)
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I want to make one final point. We talked about a report being done into the greyhound industry and in the past we had recommendations to close certain tracks. If we close a track in any part of the country, the dog pool in that area will disappear because dog owners will not travel significant distances to trial or race their dogs. Any track closures will have a significant impact on the greyhound industry. I know the attendance some of the smaller tracks get would not be huge but they are feeder tracks for the likes of Shelbourne Park and the tracks in the UK. Greyhound racing has recovered significantly in the UK and new tracks have opened in England which are being supplied by great Irish dogs but those provincial tracks are very important to keep the breeding industry going. I will not mention one in case I will be accused of prompting the closure of any track, but if a track closes, the pool of dogs in that area will disappear.