Gino Kenny (Dublin Mid West, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

Anyone who watched the "RTÉ Investigates" programme on the treatment of greyhounds and the greyhound industry last year would have been rather sickened at the way greyhounds were treated. I imagine there are responsible greyhound owners in Ireland who would have been completely sickened by what they saw on that programme. Many people, including myself, would not have known how the greyhound industry was funded. The amount of money allocated since 2000 is staggering. More than €200 million has been granted to this industry. Obviously, €19 million has been allocated this year with additional funding of €2.4 million.

Deputy Carthy referenced an article in The Business Postreporting that the Government is seeking legal advice on decoupling funding for the horse industry from funding to the greyhound industry. Will the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine be investigating that? Will he seek more legal advice to try to decouple the industries? Does the Minister have personal confidence in board members of GRI, especially following the comments made about Deputy Cairns? Does the Minister have confidence in the greyhound industry as a whole in the short term or the long term? As a layperson, it seems this industry is not fit for purpose. It tolerates dire animal welfare standards that should not be tolerated, especially when the funding is given through the taxpayer via the Government. Does the Minister have confidence in GRI as it is now?

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