15 September 2016

ABC Online: Racing on notice: will racing go to the dogs?

The thoroughbred industry has watched on in horror as the greyhound industry failed to reform and paid the price.
In the 1990s, when the NSW TAB was privatised and floated, all three codes of racing negotiated deals with the then Carr government to become self-regulating.
Now Premier Mike Baird has shown there is no going back; his government will shut down rather than re-regulate.
Baird will actually forgo wagering revenue rather than put a cent into enforcing existing animal welfare laws.
They will see businesses and clubs close and jobs lost before they will ensure bodies like the RSPCA, with a statutory duty under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, have enough resources to do more than just rely on public complaints and covert media footage.