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Canberra Today 27°/29° | Tuesday, March 19, 2024 | Digital Edition | Crossword & Sudoku

Plan to bring greyhound ban forward, says Parton

THE ACT government is planning on bringing forward its ban on greyhound racing by four months with the threat of imprisonment for non-compliance, according to the Canberra Liberals who say they have seen leaked Cabinet documents.

According to Opposition gaming and racing spokesman Mark Parton, people in the greyhound industry are devastated by this leaked decision.

“The Labor-Greens government has ridden its high-horse all over the livelihood of people in the industry and it is disgraceful.”

Mark Parton
He says although the government created a clear expectation of a ban on June 30, the leaked legislation reveals the government now plans to implement its greyhound ban in February.

The legislation also makes it an offence to race or trial a greyhound, with a penalty of one year imprisonment or more than $10,000 in fines, or both.

“Here we have a former Uniting Church minister and the Minister for Mental Health spearheading legislation designed to kill the livelihood of a group of people without a shred of evidence to justify the move,” says Parton.

“To make matters worse, the government now intends to compound the industry’s despair by speeding up that process and by threatening individuals with jail time if they do not comply.  

“Clearly there are individuals within the machinery of government who are so disgusted with this move that they could not continue in good conscience without at least leaking the information.

“The Labor-Greens Government is proud to facilitate illegal drug taking among teens; it is proud to defend the human rights of outlaw bikies who shoot up our suburbs but it will lock up a 70-year-old-man or slap him with a fine of more than $10,000 if he dares to throw a ball for his greyhound to chase, judging it to be a test of speed and therefore animal cruelty.” 

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Thank you,

Ian Meikle, editor

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