Article
Call to End Tasracing’s Involvement in Inspection and Anti-doping
Media release – Coalition for the Protection of Greyhounds (CPG), 4 February 2024
Tasmanian Government must end Tasracing’s involvement in inspection and anti-doping
The Tasmanian Government can abolish its racing regulator, but unless it removes inspection and anti-doping responsibilities from Tasracing animals will continue to suffer, said the Coalition for the Protection of Greyhounds (CPG) today.
Ms Joanne Lee, CPG’s Tasmanian director, said the Government’s decision to abolish ORI (its racing regulator) is like changing the deck chairs on the Titanic.
“To allow Tasracing – the commercial racing body – to conduct inspections and anti-doping checks is a joke. That’s like giving Dracula the keys to the blood bank. Anyone who bets on Tasmanian racing is being taken for a ride. It’s time to bet on something else,” she said.
Ms Lee said CPG’s recent report on greyhound racing regulation shows two thirds of those presenting greyhounds with banned substances didn’t serve any period of suspension.
“Our report reveals industry body Tasracing routinely allows wrongdoers to continue racing their dogs. This maximises revenue, instead of prioritising the welfare of racing greyhounds by suspending participants who break rules,” she said.
“The Tasmanian Government allowed this to happen, not its regulator. ORI did what it was empowered and resourced to do which was an under-par job,” she said.
Ms Lee also said lack of punishment is a serious concern because there’s no incentive for trainers to play by the rules which means punters are being duped.
“Worse still, CPG’s report also shows there are no standard or minimum penalties to guide steward decisions, as there are elsewhere,” she said.
Instead, when stewards write up a report, there are random references to past interstate or past Tasmanian decisions: “This is not good enough and the State Government urgently needs to lift its game by issuing clear penalty guidelines,” she said.
CPG’s report also documents an alarming lack of published data about doping controls in the state’s racing industry.
“The State Government should empower the new regulator to release this data as occurs elsewhere, not Tasracing. It publishes no evidence of samples taken out-of-competition. Instead, these are only taken at race events,” said Ms Lee.
“This means the anti-doping regime is predictable and dishonest participants can rort the system, so doping rates will be much higher than what’s detected. Most importantly, dogs’ health is at risk due to doping.” (See the health risks here.)
Ms Lee said despite several government-initiated reviews recommending solutions to improve greyhound welfare, there has been little progress.
“The State Government has dragged its feet. Its failure to act shows a deeply ingrained disregard for animal welfare. All the Government cares about is the tax it gets from betting,” she said.
Backgrounder
What do animal welfare authorities say about greyhound racing?
The RSPCA recommends against greyhound racing due to its welfare failings.
However:
- betting revenue is used by both major parties to boost consolidated revenue in each state and territory (except the ACT where greyhound racing is banned),
- both major parties accept donations from the racing and betting industries in every state and territory.
Greyhound industry regulation in Tasmania
- Tasracing administers the commercial side of greyhound racing and uses misleading economic claims to justify being subsidised with taxpayer dollars.
- The Office of Racing Integrity (ORI) is an independent entity to Tasracing and is responsible for maintaining the probity and integrity of the thoroughbred, harness and greyhound racing codes. ORI sits under the Department of Natural Resources and Environment Tasmania.
CPG’s report – 13 recommendations
Recommendation 1
That the Tasmanian Government introduce legislation to clearly separate regulatory functions from those relating to racing operations, commercial interests or promotion of the industry. Regulatory functions must rest with a statutory authority accountable to the Tasmanian Government.
Recommendation 2
That the Tasmanian Government amend the Racing (Tasracing Pty Ltd) Act 2009 to:
● remove from section 25 the current eligibility of persons actively involved in the three racing codes to be nominated to the Board of Directors, and
● add to section 25 the eligibility of at least three persons with expertise and experience in animal welfare to be nominated to the Board of Directors.
Recommendation 3
That the Tasmanian Government amend the racing legislation to mandate penalties for breaches of doping-related rules, with appropriate provision for the decision makers to consider specific circumstances. For repeat offenders a penalty higher than the minimum penalty must apply.
Recommendation 4
That the Tasmanian Government amend the racing legislation to:
● make the presence of a prohibited substance in a greyhound a strict liability offence, and
● allow for provisional suspension of those presenting a greyhound with a prohibited substance.
Recommendation 5
That ORI:
● develop and implement an intelligence-driven doping control program that is consistent with the approaches and strategies implemented by Sport Integrity
Australia, and
● publish comprehensive information about the doping control activities undertaken.
Recommendation 6
That the Tasmanian Government amend the racing legislation to mandate penalties for breaches of animal welfare-related rules (subject to Recommendation 9), with appropriate provision for the decision makers to consider specific circumstances. For repeat offenders a penalty higher than the minimum penalty must apply.
Recommendation 7
That kennelling requirements for greyhounds be brought into line with the Tasmanian Government Department of Natural Resources and Environment’s Animal Welfare Guidelines for Dogs.
Recommendation 8
That the Tasmanian Greyhound Animal Welfare Manual be amended to mandate:
● insulated kennels that protect greyhounds from temperatures lower than 16C or higher than 26C, consistent with NSW Greyhound Welfare and Integrity Commission’s (GWIC’s) Greyhound Welfare Code of Practice),
● raised beds with bedding that is warm, soft, dry and large enough for a greyhound to lie on while completely stretched out, and
● mandates dental health checks, external and internal parasite control, and provision of vet care.
Recommendation 9
That the Tasmanian Greyhound Rules of Racing incorporating Tasmanian Greyhound Local Rules of Racing and Greyhounds Australasia Rules (Local Rules) be amended to require any person registered with Tasracing who, by omission or direct action causes the death of an animal, or causes an animal to be in such condition that euthanasia is the only option, to be:
● referred to a relevant body for investigation and possible prosecution under the Animal Welfare Act 1993,
● suspended from any further participation in greyhound racing while the investigation and prosecution is in progress, and
● banned from any involvement in greyhound racing for life if convicted under the Animal Welfare Act 1993.
Recommendation 10
That Local Rules be amended to specify that any person responsible for a greyhound, who cannot provide evidence of its whereabouts, receive an automatic disqualification from racing for a minimum of 12 months per greyhound.
Recommendation 11
That the Tasmanian Government amend the racing legislation to ensure all greyhounds that have been trained at a facility, where the use of live animals and/or animal bodies/parts is:
● suspected, be removed from further racing and given a behavioural assessment, and/or
● confirmed, undergo behavioural training to maximise their chances of transitioning to life as a pet.
Recommendation 12
That ORI continue to publish its quarterly breeding, race injury and retirement data, but that it improve the quality and transparency of these data so that it demonstrates a genuine commitment to welfare. This should include:
● calculating injuries based on the number of dogs rather than number of starters,
● collecting more comprehensive data on retirement to include greyhounds retired to programs other than the industry’s Greyhound Adoption Program (GAP), and
● implementing a regulatory strategy for ensuring that those involved in the industry fulfil their obligation to socialise all greyhounds, to give them the best chance of becoming pets at the end of their racing career.
This strategy must include inspections of socialisation programs and an assessment of their effectiveness, as well as collecting feedback from GAP and volunteer based greyhound rescue organisations. This information must be published.
Recommendation 13
That ORI publish comprehensive information about how Tasracing performs as a regulator of the greyhound racing industry and how well they ensure the welfare of greyhounds that race in Tasmania. The information gaps identified in this report must be addressed.