Leading Australian figure hits back at false welfare claims

NSW chief takes on the antis

The head of New South Wales greyhound racing in Australia has fired back at members of the Animal Justice Party (AJP) over "continuous false claims” in their social media platforms regarding greyhound welfare.

Steve Griffin, chief executive officer of Greyhound Racing NSW (GRNSW), slammed the  AJP over "misleading" commentary and highlighted the main false claim of theirs being that "every 20 hours in NSW a greyhound dies from racing injuries".

Griffin said: "The industry regulator, the Greyhound Welfare & Integrity Commission, has confirmed the inaccuracy and distortion of the figures reported

"The claims made are false. There is not a death from racing injuries every 20 hours in NSW which would equate to 440 deaths annually.

"In the past year there were two sudden deaths at a race meeting, 14 greyhounds humanely euthanised at a racetrack, and 44 greyhounds reported as euthanised by private veterinarian or having died off-track as a result of injury at race meeting."

Griffin said the allegations made "by those opposed to our industry" were baseless and that it was time for everyone to stand up to them.

"Statements from political parties should be based on accurate information," he continued.

"And it's for this reason that GRNSW intends to lodge a formal complaint with the NSW Electoral Commissioner regarding the dissemination of these misleading claims.

"Our industry and its people are constantly under attack from those who are against it, but in this instance, the industry's regulator has confirmed the statement produced is clearly wrong.

"Those opposed to our industry have made it clear their end goal is to permanently close greyhound racing.

"We are the most regulated and monitored sport in the country, and we are more than happy to be completely transparent.

"However, we will not stand by and allow misrepresentations like this to be made about our sport.

"In recent times we have achieved considerable and significant progress and work throughout the industry in welfare and safety, and regardless of our critics and opponents, we will continue to strive to be the best racing jurisdiction in the world."

Since 2017-18 in NSW, on track euthanasia has reduced by more than 87 per cent while rehoming numbers have reached record levels.

"When it comes to presenting accurate data on our industry, we would expect better from political parties," Griffin added.