Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity)

I will devote most of my remarks to the greyhound industry but I will mention that horse racing is endemically linked with gambling, which is a real scourge and an addiction. There have been programmes broadcast throughout the week on that.

Some €20 million is to be given to the greyhound industry. Animal welfare charities were given €6 million. Last year the ISPCA was given €1.2 million, which was €868 per dog to house, while the greyhound industry got €8,000 per dog. What is so special about this industry that it gets so much more money than other animal industries? In addition, 41% of dogs born in 2021 for the industry are dead or unaccounted for, and the figures are getting worse. Last year 5% of all dogs that raced were dead by the end of the race or very shortly after.

It should be noted how unpopular this sport is. Also, it cannot exist without the State funding. The State funding is literally propping up a decaying industry. We can cite the figures but that is the reality. Why? There are other industries we could prop up. We do not need to prop up something that is cruel to the animals involved, linked with gambling and not very attractive to watch.

I was asked by Greyhound Action Ireland to ask the Minister whether he can clarify an update on the figures he is using to justify the industry. The industry, he says, generates €132 million to the Exchequer. Could he break that down for us, please? How could it generate that for the Exchequer when it is literally being propped up by the Exchequer? Turnout at all the stadiums has fallen by about two thirds. The figures also presume racing careers of 48 months rather than the actual nine months. That is how long an animal can expect to make money for its owner. Six thousand pups are unaccounted for, as was said.

This is a dying industry. In Scotland and Wales they have banned it. I think they have just banned it in New Zealand. It is really time Ireland caught up. Leo Varadkar described us as a laggard in animal rights. Unfortunately, he did not do a lot about it but now we have a chance to do this. This is an industry that is fundamentally cruel, and it is very sad that we have an animal-hating cabal in the centre of the Department of agriculture right now.

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