Michelle Mulherin (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State. I also welcome this legislation which will serve to modernise the greyhound racing industry in this country. That is very important, not only from an animal welfare point of view but to provide more governance appropriate to the times we are in. That is particularly the case since substantial Government funding goes into the greyhound industry. This year it is €16.8 million. I welcome that. It is fair to say, going back to 2014 when the then Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy Simon Coveney, commissioned the Indecon report, there were a number of issues not addressed in respect of governance and animal welfare. Many of these have already been elaborated upon. I am a member of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine. We got to hear witnesses setting out their concerns and giving their suggestions as to how issues could be addressed.

Much work has been done. As has been mentioned, we have the report from the joint committee, after it heard the witnesses. The Indecon report rightly embraced all the stakeholders, so that we could get a full picture as to how we were to go forward with the greyhound racing industry. More recently, we had the Morris report commissioned by Bord na gCon itself. It looked at issues on anti-doping and animals being medicated, which is an animal welfare issue as well as a competition issue. All of this is very healthy for the industry. That is the general import of my colleagues' contributions.

It has already been said, but there is €16.8 million going into the greyhound industry this year. This is an industry that deserves investment. Now that we are updating the whole industry, it is important to reflect and communicate, because communication has been a problem and a concern at times for the public at large. Those issues have now had a light shone on them. It can be seen that we are now addressing them. In his report, Mr. Jim Power stated that between full-time and part-time jobs, there are 5,058 people employed in the industry. That has a spin-off of additional spending of €121 million. There are also 7,313 greyhound owners who derive some sort of economic benefit from their involvement in the greyhound industry.That generates €135 million for our economy. That is a considerable number of people and it illustrates the depth of interest and passion. While some people derive an economic benefit from racing, I expect many are not making any money and it is more a labour of love.

In towns and areas with race courses, meetings provide a great boost for the local economy with many people attending them. It means a lot and is a great source of pride. While Mayo does not have a greyhound stadium, there is a horse racing course in Ballinrobe. The town benefits significantly and great work is put into maintaining the course so well. There is so much local activity when the race meetings happen. Greyhound racing provides a platform for people who love dogs and want to race them.

The Minister of State comprehensively set out the governance framework. We now know much more about corporate governance and what happens with boards when we do not have proper governance and how things can go wrong. Many lessons have been learned, not only in the greyhound sector but across the board. It is welcome to see these lessons being applied to Rásaíocht Con Éireann. I also welcome that the legislation stipulates that there should be a gender balance. There will be more women on the new board, which is welcome. It also provides for more interface between the Minister and the board itself. It is more serendipitous, so to speak.

The Bill provides for regulation of the race tracks and the nuts and bolts of racing, which I welcome. There is considerable concern among the public regarding animal welfare. From what I see locally, breeders treat their dogs like princes but we cannot rely on individuals or expect that animal welfare will be delivered on an ad hoc basis. There must be standards and regulations and the Bill provides for that. The vast majority treat animals very well but there are people who have their own ideas. They have no concept of what it is to neglect or abuse an animal and they have no compunction about mistreating animals or show no concern when that happens. We must ensure that in an industry such as this animals are cared for in an appropriate manner and that animal welfare is central. We must also ensure we take steps to strengthen regulation to combat doping of animals. Traceability is welcome and this legislation reinforces that.

I welcome the legislation and look forward to it progressing through the Houses. I acknowledge all the stakeholders, individuals or organisations who have prepared reports or made inputs into the process. It has given a new impetus to the industry and it can be seen that there are many people who are serious about their business. They want everything to be done properly and now, through legislation, the Government will facilitate this and complement the welcome funding that has been provided.