Mick Wallace (Wexford, Independent)
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256. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if there has been or will be testing of greyhounds for the new and reportedly widely-used drug stanozolol, particularly in view of the fact that despite the annual €2 million spent on regulation in the greyhound industry the Irish Greyhound Board has yet to identify a dog with stanozolol in its system; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3542/15]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Bord na gCon is the statutory body responsible for the regulation of greyhound racing under the Greyhound Industry Act 1958. In addition Bord na gCon has specific statutory powers conferred on it in the Greyhound Industry (Racing) Regulations 2007, which relate to the conduct of greyhound racing.

Bord na gCon has confirmed to officials in my Department that its drug surveillance services test for the presence of stanozolol and that there have been no confirmed cases of stanozolol reported for Bord na gCon samples to date.

In July 2014 my Department published the findings from a study, commissioned by my Department and conducted by Indecon into “Certain matters relating to Bord na gCon”. Indecon in accordance with its Terms of Reference considered the area of regulation and made a number of recommendations in this regard. The response of Bord na gCon to the Indecon report, which sets out a programme of action and a timeline for delivery, can be found on the Bord na gCon website.

Bord na gCon has recently completed a public consultation on proposed regulatory reform and intends to conduct further public consultations on this topic in the future. It has also launched a Review into Anti-Doping and Medication Control which is being led by Professor Tim Morris, with a view to strengthening the regulatory systems within the industry.

In parallel, officials from my Department have already commenced the process of identifying the legislative changes that are required to give effect to the recommendations contained in the Indecon report.

It is my firm belief that the future of the greyhound industry is dependent on the stakeholders having trust and confidence in the industry, and this is contingent on the industry having the highest standards of integrity founded on strong regulatory systems. The Board and the Executive of Bord na gCon have assured me that they share my view and are doing their utmost to enhance the regulatory systems underpinning the industry to ensure that they are effective and fit-for-purpose.

I expect that Bord na gCon, who as I outlined at the outset is the state body responsible for the regulation of greyhound racing, will be happy to provide additional detail sought by the Deputy on this topic.