There is no justification for the continued funding of commercial greyhound racing, according to Social Democrats leader Holly Cairns.
“Budget 2025 saw a €4.1m increase in the Horse and Greyhound Fund, bringing the total allocation to just under €100m. Of this, almost €20m will go towards propping up the greyhound industry, which has been in decline for years and does not enjoy public support, largely due to animal welfare concerns.
“While it is accepted there are breeders and trainers who love and care for their dogs, they are operating within an industry where animal abuse, injuries, fatalities, overbreeding and culls are rampant.
“After RTÉ revealed in 2019 that as many as 6,000 dogs a year were being culled for not being fast enough, the Greyhound Board introduced a deeply flawed traceability system two years later.
“Non-coursing greyhounds are only registered on the system at 12 weeks, and only if born in the Republic. As a result, there is no way of knowing the extent of the overbreeding problem if we do not know how many dogs are born in a given year.
“Thousands of dogs have been bred and then destroyed because they did not make the cut.
“Public funding for greyhound racing must be phased out. The money squandered on bailing out the greyhound industry could be spent on other sports which are crying out for funding across the country, or for citically underfunded animal welfare charities.
“Ireland is one of only seven countries in the world where commercial greyhound racing is still legal – so why is the Government insistent on keeping this dying sector on life support?”
October 23, 2024