Welsh Government announces ban on greyhound racing

The Countryside Alliance Wales has criticised the Welsh Government’s announcement of a ban on greyhound racing in Wales, branding it as “irresponsible” and “a very slippery slope”.

On 18th February Huw Irranca-Davies, the Deputy First Minister and Minister for Climate Change and Rural Affairs, announced that his government will ban greyhound racing in Wales “as soon as is practically possible”. This comes after pressure from charities such as the RSPCA, Hope Rescue, Greyhound Rescue Wales, Blue Cross and the Dogs Trust.

The Countryside Alliance previously responded to the consultation the Welsh Government ran, off the back of which they made this announcement, and strongly opposed it.

The announcement, made on the floor of the Senedd, follows years of campaigning by various organisations.  These campaigns culminated in a coalition of animal welfare charities committed to an outright ban, under the umbrella of “Cut the Chase”. 

The Minister made mention of a petition raised by the charity Hope Rescue that reached just over 30,000 signatures. However, he did not acknowledge a counter petition supporting greyhound racing in Wales. 

In his statement to the chamber, the Minister said: “Now is the right time to ban greyhound racing in Wales and we are proud to be the first country in the UK to do this”. 

He set out his plans to end greyhound racing “as soon as practically possible”, and stated that he intends to form a group of stakeholders to deliver the ban through an implementation group. 

He failed, though, to outline any plan of how the ban would be implemented. This has led to fears that rescue centres will soon face a glut of greyhounds needing re-homing.

Rachel Evans, Director for Wales at the Countryside Alliance, said: “It has been wholly irresponsible of Welsh Government to make this announcement, and say it will be brought into effect as soon as possible, while not clarifying how greyhounds will be catered and cared for as a result of the ban.”

The Countryside Alliance has supported the regulation of greyhound racing in Wales, believing that this would strengthen the sector and improve its accountability to the public and politicians, but has consistently opposed an outright ban. 

Though they have lauded the decision, Animal Aid also admit on their website that the fate of these greyhounds lies in the hands of already overcrowded rescue centres. 

They claim that “there are currently 2,500 dogs in trainer’s kennels awaiting a spot to become available at a rescue centre” and that the rehoming will be left to “rescue organisations who are already at breaking point”.  

Rachel Evans added: “This is a very slippery slope. This could lead to further bans on animal related activities here in Wales.”

She pointed out that the Senedd’s Petitions Committee report of December 2022, titled ‘The Final Bend?’, recommends to the Welsh government that ‘in considering a ban on greyhound racing, the Welsh Government should also look at other sports where animals compete.’ 

When answering to Senedd Members during yesterday’s announcement the Minister also referred to “racing with other dogs, not greyhounds”. This means that small local running clubs for various breeds who compete for fun and not prize money could also be affected by the ban.