Jerry Buttimer (Fine Gael)

Listening to the Minister of State, I was reminded of a delegate to the county board in Cork, the late Mick "Langton" McCarthy, who, when he did not get his way, used to throw his hands up to heaven and ask: "Where are we going?" I must ask the Minister of State where he and the Government are going with this legislation. It is extraordinary that having had light regulation in the banking sector, we are choosing to impose double regulation on the greyhound industry. What does that tell us?

Perhaps I am misreading the position but the greyhound industry - owners, breeders and trainers - must register stud dogs and mating, provide a declaration of litter and have an identification procedure for pups and the naming of adult greyhounds. As Senators Bradford and Coffey mentioned, the 1958 Act covers the welfare and operating procedures of the greyhound industry. The Minister of State's reply, which I know is not his own, is disconcerting because it questions the control steward. What does that say about the control steward and the industry as a whole? Are we questioning the integrity of those involved in the greyhound industry? The Bill fails to make a distinction between greyhounds and what I would term pet dogs. I recognise the importance of animal welfare and Senator Bradford mentioned the mistreatment of dogs in puppy farms. To put it in simple language, however, the Minister's arguments, not just today but in general, are weak, uninspiring and ill-informed. In addition, they fail to recognise the way in which the 1958 Act governs the management of the greyhound industry in a variety of situations.

Is the Minister of State seriously telling this House that the licensed trainer, owner, breeder and the greyhound industry's governing body are not in compliance with the 1958 Act and are not doing their jobs properly? Is that what he is saying? I appreciate that Fianna Fáil Members are in difficulty over this matter, as is the Government, but the time has come for them to stand up for rural Ireland. I do not represent a rural area, even though my origins are in rural Ireland, but I can see the benefits of the greyhound industry to this country. Senator Burke cited the last Irish dog to win the Waterloo Cup and, in this regard, we should appreciate the employment the industry has created at greyhound tracks throughout the country.

If the former Ministers, Joe Walsh and Deputy John O'Donoghue, were in Cabinet, I wonder if this Bill would be before us now. Members of the Cabinet do not seem to appreciate the important benefits of the industry to this country. This Bill is a bit like the over 70s medical card issue last year, which was not politically proofed. Now that this legislation is in the second half of the 5.25 at Curraheen Park, so to speak, the Minister has discovered it has been caught on the last bend. He will go back to the Dáil and thus upset his Senators who are being forced to suffer the ignominy of voting for this Bill. Meanwhile, their colleagues in the Lower House will vote through a different type of Bill.

I wonder if, in preparing this Bill, the Minister of State read the submission by the Irish Greyhound Board. I do not think he did. He has an obligation to discuss this legislation further with the relevant stakeholders. A working group was established to progress the Bill but, since introducing it, the Minister has listened to nobody. The Opposition has put forward reasoned arguments, as have Fianna Fáil Members, yet we have reached a roadblock. It would be wrong to force Members to vote on the Bill when there is a better, alternative system.

Are we seriously going to put jobs and millions of euro per annum at risk in this industry to appease a few people in the Green Party who do not necessarily understand the operation of the greyhound industry? They see it in a certain guise through a prism which I am afraid to describe. They are seeking an Ireland where everything is as they wish, but that is the wrong place to be. This section of the Bill will have a profound impact, so I hope the Minister of State will have the common sense to withdraw it.