Jack Wall (Kildare South, Labour)

I welcome the motion and commend Deputy Deenihan on tabling it. No right-thinking lover of sports should tolerate doping. Doping and drug abuse pose the greatest threats to the integrity of sport. From athletics to horse racing to Gaelic games, the use of performance-enhancing substances stands alone as the biggest scourge on the participation of young people and attendance at sporting fixtures. Ireland's two most recent achievements at the Olympic Games, at Atlanta in 1996 and Athens in 2004, were tarnished by allegations of drug abuse. Sport in Ireland is vulnerable to allegations of doping of humans and animals.

The effect of such allegations should not be underestimated. Forty years of cheats being caught has ruined the reputation of the Olympic Games, the European Championships and the Commonwealth Games. The use of performance-enhancing substances has ruined the spectacle of the games and in some cases athletes have been sent home before the games commence, undermining the competition.

All competitions are televised, benefiting organisations that try to entice young people to participate in sport. However, this is undermined by the prominence of drugs in these games. Instead of the success of the competitor being highlighted, drugs are seen to dominate. This aspect will rear its ugly head at the next Olympic Games, causing major problems. Every gold medalist in these games is now suspect. Given the extensive list of those who have been caught, suspicions exist, to the detriment of sport. The viability and integrity of international sport has been damaged, particularly in respect of athletics. The issue of doping must be confronted.

I recognise the efforts made in recent years in this country. It was pleasing to read the Irish Sports Council anti-doping report of 2005 and to note that no Irish athlete tested positive for a banned substance that year. We should use this in advertising sports. A strict anti-doping regime exists in Ireland and I hope that this will continue. The confidence in the Irish Sports Council anti-doping programme will be a positive measure rather than finding someone who took drugs to falsely give the impression of being a better athlete. Testing and monitoring of athletics has become more stringent. I do not underestimate the task of weeding out those who resort to cheating but the recent report was positive news in a depressing international outlook.

The spotlight has been placed on doping in the greyhound industry in recent times. These events led to the commissioning of the Dalton report by the Minister for Arts, Sports and Tourism earlier this year. Despite this report being complete, the people mentioned in the report being made aware of its findings and large sections appearing in the newspapers, it has not yet been published.

I am disappointed to hear the criteria announced by the Minister. If this had been done during Question Time two weeks ago, we would feel more confident in the structure. Instead, a drip-drip system of leaks occurred and Opposition spokespersons were given no indication of when the report would be seen besides the Minister's announcement of the final date for submissions. The Minister should have explained the procedure and announced a timeframe. That this did not happen is to the detriment of the industry, the Minister and Bord na gCon.

No one would deny due process to a person in this situation because of the importance of the industry. Announcing a timetable would allow us to look forward to each section of the report and speak to those who make representations to us on this matter, highlighting due process, the timetable and the debate on the report in the House. Will no action be taken on the Dalton report before the summer recess? The report will be published next week, allowing a real debate. Much interest has been generated by this matter.

From my involvement in syndicates, I see many young people are attending race tracks and joining syndicates. Bord na gCon and various Ministers must be congratulated on the amount of money allocated. I remember going to Newbridge when one needed two coats to break the wind blowing in from the Curragh. Now, Newbridge race track brings a new dimension to entertainment for young people. Many young people regularly attend at the weekend and experience the wonderful achievement of having a dog run, creating a new level of interest. Some 1.5 million people have attended race tracks over the past year and we will see an increase in this. We must use the Dalton report as a marker. It will indicate that this sport is beyond reproach and will not be caught in the conundrum we see at international level in other sports. With the horse racing industry, we have seen the matter dealt with by an independent body. We wish to see a similar independent body applied to the dog racing industry.

We should all work together to ensure that the 17 tracks will be successful and that there will be interaction between the tracks. I stated in the Chamber on numerous occasions that there should be a competition that would involve all the tracks competing against each other. I do not see a reason this cannot be done.

I know, for example, people from Waterford with dogs racing in Newbridge and people from Newbridge with dogs racing in Mullingar etc. The home turf is these people's own track. In that regard, I am sure interaction between the tracks can take place. Such a competition might conclude with a final meet in Shelbourne Park. It would create a wider image and support group than we have now. I can imagine a derby night in Shelbourne Park if such a mechanism was put in place. There is no reason it should not be done.

Last year a great number of people attended greyhound tracks around the country and a large amount of money was put through horse and greyhound racing. We were fully supportive of that, as we can see what it can do in the overall context of the greyhound and horse racing industry, and how it affects employment. I would like to know the number of people employed in the greyhound industry. I do not know if it has been calculated, but the number is growing by the week. Different studs are being created, training tracks are being used and trainers have to hire staff to help to train dogs. That was unheard of until now. Such action is continuing to develop the industry.

There should be a relentless drive for transparency. Whether it comes about in this Bill, which I support, or legislation put forward by the Minister after the Dalton report, we must have transparency as a matter of urgency. We have heard different aspects of the methods being used with regard to drug testing and the use of drugs to enhance greyhound performance. Nobody wants such drug-induced enhancement and it is not part and parcel of the sport we want to enjoy.

We must ensure that people get a fair crack of the whip and, if a dog is backed, that it has an equal chance of winning. With my knowledge of greyhounds, it may not be the dog one thinks will win that will pass the post first. Although it will have a chance going into the box, it might not always come out of it favourably. The element of chance is still there.

With regard to preparatory work, the Minister has stated that if the Bill is pushed to a vote tomorrow, he will oppose it. If that happens, I hope that in the short term, as a result of the Dalton report, we debate it next week. It should be an intensive debate over a shorter period of time. I hope the legislation needed to provide independent and transparent investigation of drug misuse in the sport will be put in place as soon as possible. It is imperative that is done.

There are one or two international meetings in the year. There is one after the derby in Dundalk, for example. There is an ideal opportunity to develop this further. The stadia here are now a major factor, and I was recently in Shelbourne, Newbridge, Galway etc. Much work is being done in every area. There is now no fear of using those facilities with regard to attracting tourists, especially English tourists. We have always discussed the problem in getting tourists outside the Pale, or outside Dublin. We have an ideal opportunity to do this because of the interest that English people have in the greyhound industry.

We can try to build in a more international dimension to some of our race meetings, as we have done with the horse racing industry. We now have the Galway races, Punchestown and other festivals. We must build up similar events in greyhound racing. If one goes to the greyhound track on the Friday and Saturday after the Galway horse races, there is a huge attendance. These people know that when they go from the horse racing track to the greyhound track, there will be fully equipped restaurants etc. there. This interlink should be developed. On its own, the international dimension of the greyhound industry can be developed further.

Another issue has raised its head in recent weeks — I put down related questions to the Minister and the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government — that is the unfortunate matter of when greyhounds retire. Money has been made available by Bord na gCon to some of the agencies which deal with retired greyhounds, but it is not enough. These agencies are very anxious for money. Perhaps something can be done by the Department in this regard.

I think that the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, through local authorities and dog shelters, should act in this area. It has told me it cannot, that the matter is for Bord na gCon. Bord na gCon has stated it does not have enough funding for the issue, and that may be the case. The issue should be addressed as some of the retired greyhounds may be exported. Over a number of years, we have seen dogs being ill-treated after being moved or exported to some of the lesser-known tracks across Europe.

I will speak on the advantage the tracks have provided with regard to charity nights. Schools, sporting organisations and some political parties have used such events. They have generated an interest among people who may never have gone to the dogs, but go to such an event. They may then be attracted to greyhound racing. They may become involved in a syndicate or go on to purchase a dog.

This reflects on what this Bill is about. The Bill must ensure that fair play and transparency are part and parcel of the greyhound industry. I hope the debate we have had this evening and the debate we will have tomorrow will lead us to make the definitive decision that legislation on this aspect of the sport is required in the short term rather than the long term. One would expect to see legislation, or at least the heads of a Bill, being prepared and put in place as a result of publication of the Dalton report next week. I hope to see those before the end of this session of the Dáil.

Section 6 and section 18 are the most relevant in the Bill. Section 6 sets out the general functions of the board in controlling doping in the greyhound industry and in making regulations to perform that function, as well as the position of an appeals court in this respect.

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