The industry will mount a lobbying strategy and consider legal action to save the sport. Video / Carson Bluck
The greyhound racing industry plans legal action and a public relations campaign to oppose the proposed ban.
Greyhound Racing New Zealand CEO Edward Rennell argues the ban is politically motivated and unfair.
Animal welfare charity Safe calls the industry’s attempts to stop the ban “desperate” and highlights ongoing injury concerns.
The greyhound racing industry is considering legal action and will mount a public relations blitz by “rallying the greyhound army” as part of a campaign to stop plans to ban the sport.
A confidential eight-point plan sent to greyhound racing trainers – and obtained exclusively by theHerald – reveals Greyhound Racing New Zealand (GRNZ) is investigating how New South Wales managed to overturn a ban in 2016 to see if the argument could be replicated in New Zealand.
The plan, written by GRNZ chief executive Edward Rennell, says a “defined industry lobbying strategy” across all media will be rolled out with the intention of changing the negative focus on greyhound injuries.
A key component of this will be “rallying the greyhound army” to spread the message about the positive contribution the industry makes to the economy and to “correct misinformation”, he said in the plan.
The plan emphasised the importance of keeping the details within it secret to ensure nothing is taken out of context, which could be “used to undermine our position”.
Edward Rennell of Greyhound Racing NZ has sent a confidential plan to trainers outlining moves to fight a proposed ban on the sport.
Rennell said in the plan GRNZ is firm in its belief that the decision by the Government to end greyhound racing is “not based on substantive evidence”, is “politically driven” and “manifestly unfair”.
“A hundred per cent we believe the decision is wrong and we will certainly be lobbying to try and get the decision reversed.”
According to GRNZ’s plan, legal action is being considered. Part of this will involve assessing the successful fightback against closing the industry across the ditch.
“We’re certainly reviewing what happened in New South Wales and taking advice from our New South Wales counterparts,” Rennell told the Herald.
Greyhounds chase a lure at Cambridge Raceway in January.
Key to the industry’s argument to keep greyhounds racing is to delve into the argument that injuries in its code are unacceptably high.
Rennell said the minister had not told them what constitutes unacceptable.
“Our injury rate, which was deemed to be unacceptable by the minister, compares favourably with Australian jurisdictions, and at no point have we been advised what is an unacceptable rate.”
As part of considering a legal defence, Rennell wants to compare the greyhound industry, which has “full and transparent” injury reporting, and the horse-racing industry.
“I would say the level of euthanasia in greyhound racing is lower than the racing euthanasia rate in the equine codes. I’m not saying their rate’s unacceptable, but I don’t believe ours is either.”
Asked if fewer horses were injured in horse racing than on the greyhound track, Rennell said he didn’t think all horse racing injuries were officially noted.
Greyhound Racing NZ CEO Edward Rennell says there's more transparency in reporting of injuries in the greyhound industry than there is in equine racing codes.
“I would argue a lot of them are not reported. The level of reporting [in greyhound racing] is different.”
Rennell’s plan also stressed the importance of racing continuing as normal in 2025.
“It is important business as usual is maintained, with strong racing programmes to deliver income to participants.”
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, here posing with greyhound Donald, says he's pleased the Government's ending greyhound racing.
Source: Michael Morrah Tiktok
‘Politically motivated’ decision
Rennell believes Peters and Prime Minister Christopher Luxon have made a “politically motivated” decision based on the lack of public support for greyhound racing in New Zealand.
“I think that’s a reasonable assumption,” Rennell told the Herald.
He said he’d requested a meeting with Peters, but said no in-person discussions had eventuated.
“We haven’t met with the minister. We continue to ask for a meeting. We don’t know the reasons [for the proposed ban], we’ve had nothing in writing.”
Racing Minister Winston Peters announced in December a plan to outlaw greyhound racing in New Zealand.
He was critical of Luxon’s ongoing talk of growing the economy amid plans to wipe out an industry which he said made millions of dollars for the country.
“We have the Prime Minister talking about a growth strategy, yet he’s quite prepared to sacrifice an industry that delivers 1054 jobs and $164 million to the economy each year.”
He said the Government’s plans to reinstate livestock exports by sea, a practice deemed cruel by animal welfare groups, was at odds with plans to end greyhound racing.
“I think there are inconsistencies politically with this decision,” he told the Herald.
He also questioned whether the TAB should still be allowed to take bets from Kiwi punters on Australian greyhound races if the local industry was no longer deemed safe.
“Given that the welfare standards are similar, or I believe inferior to ours, to continue to take betting on that to generate profit for the TAB would certainly have a question mark against it.”
Compensation for trainers?
Kiwi greyhound racers say safety standards in the industry in Australia are the same or lower than those in New Zealand.
Rennell told the Herald if greyhound racing is closed, he’ll want compensation for industry participants.
“That’s part of discussions we would be looking to have with Government in terms of what form of support there would be for our participants in the wind-down period.”
He said if racing stops in July next year, and dogs are not rehomed, trainers will suffer.
“How does a trainer provide the care to feed and look after and walk all the dogs and the costs incurred if he has no income coming in?”
Asked if it was fair that trainers who earn millions of dollars annually from greyhound racing should get taxpayers' money, Rennell said there are “significant” costs involved in operating large-scale kennels.
Rennell’s plan to oppose the ban has also seen new safety initiatives introduced as part of efforts to further reduce injury rates.
This includes limiting the number of dogs that race on circular tracks to seven dogs, increasing sprints on the Wanganui straight track [straight tracks are safer than ones with bends], and having one-on-one talks with trainers whose dogs are injured regularly.
Rennell did not think it was too late to make changes to improve welfare standards.
Attempts to reverse ban labelled ‘desperate’
Emma Brodie from Safe says plans by the greyhound industry to reverse a ban on the sport are "desperate". NZME Video Stills / Carson Bluck
Emma Brodie from the animal welfare charity Safe has called moves to try to stop the proposed ban “desperate”.
She said it showed the industry was fixated on its own interests, rather than focusing on the dogs.
“The focus should not be on salvaging an industry that’s consistently failed to prioritise and improve animal welfare, but on how we can ensure a smooth transition for greyhounds into safe, loving homes,” she told the Herald.
Two former racing industry greyhounds, Angelina and Henry, were adopted after Winston Peters announced plans to ban the sport in December.
Safe regularly monitored official greyhound injury statistics on GRNZ’s website and denied it used the data irresponsibly, or that it spreads “misinformation” as asserted by the industry.
“All the data that we publish, we source from Greyhound Racing New Zealand directly.”
She said data showed ongoing problems.
“In the two months since the ban was announced, 164 dogs have been injured, 40 have suffered broken bones, and three dogs have lost their lives,” she said.
Rennell said context is important and only around seven dogs suffer “significant” injuries for every 1000 dogs that race.
The greyhound industry has faced multiple critical reviews, and was first put on notice it faced closure in 2021 by Labour’s then Racing Minister, Grant Robertson.
In 2023 it was again warned it was on thin ice after a review by the Racing Integrity Board (RIB) was released which outlined options for industry closure.
The RIB noted at the time that injuries had been a “longstanding concern” and injury reduction strategies had failed to improve outcomes.
Brodie argued last-ditch attempts to introduce initiatives to reduce injuries were years too late.
“They’ve had more than a decade to prioritise and implement animal welfare improvements and they have failed. Any new animal welfare measures are just too little too late,” she said.
New Zealand is among only five areas where greyhound racing is still legal and practised. Australia, Britain and Ireland still allow greyhound racing.
The United States has two operational racing tracks. The sport is still legal in Mexico and Vietnam but there are no functional tracks for dog racing.
Wales recently became the first country in Britain to outlaw the sport, but Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy has said there were no plans to widen the ban across the UK.
Brodie of Safe said New Zealand had moved on from the sport and efforts by the local industry to justify its continuation were doomed.
“This decision [the proposed ban] reflects both public sentiment and political consensus that greyhound racing is no longer acceptable.”
Rennell concluded his memo to trainers by saying GRNZ’s board was united in the move to challenge the ban.
“It is a long road ahead, but GRNZ is up for the fight.”
Michael Morrah is a senior investigative reporter/team leader at the Herald. He won the best coverage of a major news event at the 2024 Voyager NZ Media Awards and has twice been named reporter of the year. He has been a broadcast journalist for 20 years and joined the Herald’svideo team in July 2024.
