NSW Premier Mike Baird announced yesterday that the greyhound industry will be closed completely from July next year. The decision came in response to the findings of a Special Commission of Inquiry into the greyhound industry. In accordance with this, over the past 12 years in NSW, between 49,000 and 68,000 dogs were killed because they were deemed as ‘too slow’.
Additionally, it found up to 20% of trainers had engaged in “live-baiting” – feeding live animals to the dogs.
Mr Baird stated that “as a humane and responsible government, we are left with no acceptable course of action except to close this industry down”.
Animal Welfare at the forefront
Animal Welfare League NSW is very delighted to embellish in yesterday’s announcement by the NSW Government to completely ban greyhound racing in NSW.
In align with Mr Baird’s decision, the RSPCA has released the following statements:
“We have been strong advocates for the closure of the cruel greyhound racing industry, and are incredibly supportive of the NSW government’s decision”.
AWL NSW CEO, Andrew Mason noted that “as an enforcement agency under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, we will be monitoring the welfare of greyhounds during this transition period”.
The RSPCA coined the move “one of the biggest days for animal welfare in the state’s history”, rejoicing in the ban.
What are the Economic Consequences?
Mr Baird is betting that the greyhound ban won’t impact NSW gambling revenue.
Having a look at the numbers – it’s an optimistic bet.
Tabcorp has revealed that NSW greyhound racing generates 5% of its total wagering turnover. These revenues injected $156 million into the Baird government’s pocket.
Unfortunately for Mr Baird’s prediction, the significant fall in Tabcorp’s share price yesterday indicates that the stock market is hedging its bets on the financial risks associated with closure of the industry. With that said, even if Tabcorp is correct with their foresight into the migration of financial effort towards other wagering products, it is still a very optimistic claim.
Moreover, the banning has put 10,000 jobs into jeopardy, including breeders, trainers and pen attendants. These employees are now facing the nervous wait to see how the economic ramifications pan out.
