Edward Rennell: Greyhound Racing NZ Chief Executive on the Government placing a ban on the industry

Supporters of New Zealand's greyhound racing industry are voicing their disapproval with the Government's latest decision.

Racing Minister Winston Peters confirmed the sport will be phased out over the next 20 months - with the ban drawing cross-party support.

Greyhound Racing NZ Chief Executive Edward Rennell says the industry is blindsided by this news - and they're looking to go through a select committee process. 

"We will certainly go through a select committee process and outline why we believe there is a place for greyhound racing - and why we believe it should continue."

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Boy, is this a big story in business but also
for the people who are involved. Greyhound racing will be
phased out over the next twenty months. It's an industry
worth one hundred and fifty million dollars a year. The
racing Minister Winston Peters, was on the show earlier. He
told me this shouldn't come as a surprise to the industry.

Speaker 2 (00:16):
They shouldn't have been blindsided, given that there have been
three of yous two thousand and thirteen, two seventeen, twenty
twenty one, which all pointed to the need to act
in the interest of the dogs. And don't forget, when
we're talking about dogs, we're talking about serious injuries here
someday so that they've got to be put down. And
that sort of record was just too high.

Speaker 1 (00:35):
Edward Reynolds, the CEO of Greyhound Racing end zed he's
with me this evening. Edward, good evening to you.

Speaker 3 (00:41):
Yeah, good evening, Ryan, good evening, listeners.

Speaker 1 (00:45):
You sound a bit upset.

Speaker 3 (00:48):
Oh, look, we're clearly we'd never so been very disappointed
with the decision, but you know it has come as
a surprise to us. But we're just looking to process.
But fairly our concerns are with putting the right support
programs around the fifty four people that derive their income

(01:10):
and livelihood from the industry. Say yeah, that that's our
immediate concern is the people.

Speaker 1 (01:16):
You say, you didn't see it coming. But there have
been three reviews over ten years and they've all been
highly critical. They've made significant recommendations and the Minister says
you haven't followed through.

Speaker 3 (01:28):
Yeah, that's not right. So there have been three reviews,
they have identified areas of concern and if we look
at the progress over the last three years, it's been significant.
The last significant review on twenty twenty Robertson reviewed raised
concerns around the youth in Asia of dogs after their

(01:50):
careers were finished, also race concern around the traceability of
dogs after their careers, the rehoming and the level of
race euthanasians. So in the last two years significant steps
have been taken. And if we look at the last
independent report on from the Racing Integrity Board, who have

(02:10):
been appointed by the government to independently monitor our performance,
the last report that went in noted that the progress
was very good.

Speaker 1 (02:19):
The twenty seventeen report by the High Court Judge that
found there were high numbers of unaccounted for dogs. Where
were these dogs going?

Speaker 3 (02:27):
Well, this was at that time that there was probably
dogs when their careers were finished that the people. A
number of dogs were being euthanized.

Speaker 1 (02:39):
At that point, hundreds of dogs.

Speaker 3 (02:42):
So we now have a one hundreds.

Speaker 1 (02:43):
Of dogs were being euthanized because they just weren't good
at racing anymore of that child.

Speaker 3 (02:48):
Yeah, So we now have a euthanasi policy rhyme where
a dog cannot be euthanized for any other reason apart
from welfare.

Speaker 1 (02:56):
Do you see how that's a bit of a problem?

Speaker 3 (02:58):
Home six hundred last year we rehomed.

Speaker 1 (03:02):
Yeah, I understand that in the last year or two
you've done something to turn it around. But prior to that,
and it's not that long ago, is that? Do you
think you've dug your own grave?

Speaker 3 (03:12):
Here? Look, hindsight's great and at the end of the day,
we can only you know, we've got to live in
the present and I can lock him in the eye.
So that we now in many areas, lead the racing
industry of New Zealand in terms of animal welfare. We're
the only racing code where the animal has a committed
commitment that has a life once it's racing career is finished.

(03:34):
So every dog that's raced goes into where rehoming program
and is re homed. And it's said last year we
re home six hundred and seventy three dogs and we
bread it just over five hundred. So you know, it
was a significant achievement and it highlights our commitment to
welfare in the interest of the doll.

Speaker 1 (03:51):
And now you've got twenty months to re home twenty
nine hundred do you think that's possible?

Speaker 3 (03:58):
Twenty months? Now, how long would it take. That's the
issues that need to be worked through. As so this
decisions has been announced today. We just have to process
that and consider the implications. But from our perspective, this
will be a change to the Racing Industry Act, so
we clearly will be looking to outline through the Select

(04:20):
Committee process what we believe is that there is a
future for grayhound racing that we have taken.

Speaker 1 (04:25):
Are you going to lawyer up?

Speaker 3 (04:26):
And I think we will certainly go through a select
committee process and outline and why we believe there is
a place for grayhand racing and why we believe it
should continue is if.

Speaker 1 (04:39):
You don't get your way. If you don't get your way,
do you think we'll have black market racing.

Speaker 3 (04:46):
I don't know. I don't believe that's a risk. But no,
I don't believe that's a risk, and certainly it's something
we wouldn't condone. We believe as a legitimate place for
grayhand racing. It's certainly where our efforts will be in
terms of talking to politicians and correcting some of the
misinformation that's out there, in terms of what we're doing

(05:06):
to try and ensure that the interest of the dog's
a paramount. Last year we had nine youth in Asias
from racing incidents.

Speaker 1 (05:16):
Yeah, I've seen that.

Speaker 3 (05:18):
Four years ago that level was sixty, but to put
it in perspective, we had thirty six thousand starts. Now
level was half what the Thoroughbred code was, So you know,
unfortunately there are some instances in racing where that will
happen that we have certainly worked hard to try and
get that level down. Our injury levels from a benchmark
perspective for lower than Australia.

Speaker 1 (05:40):
All Right, we have to leave it there, but I
thank you very much for your time and best of
luck with that Select Committee. Process Edward Reynold, the Greyhound
Racing news in on CEO.

Speaker 2 (05:49):
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