Bill to end greyhound racing a hollow political stunt that destroys jobs and fails animals
Minister for Racing, Winston Peters, today introduced a bill in Parliament that will end greyhound racing by dissolving Greyhound Racing New Zealand (GRNZ) — erasing a $159 million contribution to the economy and abolishing more than 1,000 jobs.
“The draft legislation confirms this is a Government that’s given up on fair treatment of New Zealanders to satisfy a Prime Minister who invented a policy under pressure in an election debate,” says GRNZ Chief Executive Edward Rennell.
“If the decision to end greyhound racing really is about animal welfare, then it must go much further and ban betting on overseas greyhound racing, anything less is just a stunt ”
The bill allows betting on Australian greyhound races to continue unimpeded— an industry with over 46,000 races a year, generating more than $238 million turnover annually in New Zealand alone.
GRNZ strongly opposes the ban, but says that if the Government insists on proceeding, it must do so with impeccable fairness with compensation and support for industry participants.
“It’s one thing to lose your job and lifetime investments due to market forces - it is wholly unacceptable to incur these losses due to ill-conceived government policy. It’s not only unjust, but deeply callous,” Rennell says.
“This bill means the Luxon-led Government will make another thousand people jobless, hand bureaucrats control over rehoming 1,500 dogs, and give itself unprecedented powers to take control of a well-run, financially sound incorporated society.”
Since taking office, Winston Peters has not once communicated with GRNZ, declining or ignoring multiple requests for a meeting.
“Instead, he’s resorted to name-calling in the media, publicly referring to our people as sinners when dismissing genuine questions on compensation to support our people,” says Rennell.
GRNZ says the bill will actually weaken greyhound welfare — removing protections, allowing rehomed dogs to be euthanised without cause, and relying on vague wording that could see dogs placed in unsafe or unregulated environments.
“For a Government claiming to take animal welfare seriously, the bill is a joke,” Rennell says.
“New Zealanders deserve more than a string of policy failures, they deserve leadership that respects people and acts with integrity rather than undermining the rule of law and trampling the rights of workers and communities.”
For inquiries and interviews please contact GRNZ CEO Edward Rennell:
