Denis Landy (Labour) | Oireachtas source

There is a crisis in an industry which is estimated to employ 10,000 people in this country, namely, the greyhound industry. Last Saturday there was to be a picket placed at Shelbourne Park to highlight the difficulties within the industry. On Friday evening the interim CEO of the Irish Greyhound Board called off the race meeting due to be held in Shelbourne Park on Saturday night. Among other things, he claimed he was concerned that racegoers might be intimidated. The hard facts are that the people who attend race meetings on a weekly basis are the same people who were supporting the placing of the picket. The claim made by the interim CEO was unfounded and extremely unfair. The actions taken by owners and trainers have not been taken lightly but out of years of frustration at the lack of action in dealing with problems within the industry. I ask the Leader to invite the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine to the Seanad for a debate on this issue and to find out why the legislation which has been promised since last year and which I am informed is ready is not being brought forward. I also want to know the circumstances around the departure of the former CEO before Christmas and its implications for the Irish Greyhound Board in terms of contractual obligations, given that the person in question only served two years of a three-year contract. I also want to ask about the procedures used in appointing the interim CEO to the Irish Greyhound Board, how long the appointment is for and when the position will be advertised. The Leader referred to a meeting held last Wednesday in Naas between the Dublin Greyhound Owners and Breeders Association and the interim CEO. The meeting was a non-event and completely unsuccessful. One of the issues raised by the group was the closing of the race track at Harold's Cross, one of the most profitable tracks in the country. The interim CEO said he did not want to discuss it. The track was being closed - end of. Another picket will be placed at Shelbourne Park next Saturday at 3 p.m. The national awards ceremony is taking place there at 4 p.m., but this is not the action of people who want to disrupt the industry. They are frustrated at the lack of action on the part of the Government to clean up an industry they all love and to which many of them have given their lives.