Clare Daly (Dublin Fingal, Independent)
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698. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will immediately stand down Bord na gCon as the first step in addressing the mismanagement of the industry which has received large amounts of public money, in view of the litany of problems in the greyhound industry. [10237/17]

Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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Bord na gCon is a commercial state body, established in 1958 under the Greyhound Industry Act, 1958, charged with the regulation and development of the greyhound racing industry. Bord na gCon is a body corporate and a separate legal entity to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine.

I am satisfied that the Chairman and Board of Bord na gCon continue to discharge their functions and that against the background of a difficult operating environment over the past number of years, they are taking positive steps to address the issues identified in the Indecon Report, the Report of the Joint Committee for Agriculture, Food and the Marine on the Greyhound industry in Ireland and more recently in the Morris Report, including those in relation to finance, governance and integrity services.

I expect to bring the Heads of a new Greyhound Racing Bill to cabinet soon which address the governance of Bord na gCon, strengthen regulatory controls in the industry, modernise sanctions and improve integrity with a view to building a reputation for exceptional regulation in the sector.