Bennison rebukes Irranca-Davies in strong letter over possible ban
VALLEY promoter and GBGB board member Katie Bennison has written an open letter to Huw Irranca-Davies MS over the Prohibition of Greyhound Racing (Wales) Bill he recently presented to the Senedd.
Bennison takes the Deputy First Minister to task on a number of subjects including his non-acceptance to date to accept an invitation to attend racing at Valley and, particularly, what she calls the "misrepresentation" of support for the ban and "misleading use" of injury data.
Moving on to the Bill itself, Bennison says it "has been rushed, [is] unfair and politically motivated" citing the lack of discussion of social and economic impacts and greyhound racing being held to an "impossible" standard in terms of welfare.
If enacted, the Bill would make it an offence in Wales to operate a stadium or similar venue for greyhound racing, or to be involved in organising greyhound racing.
The ban would be phased in between 2027 and 2030. However, a number of leading industry stakeholders, including SIS, have financially backed the GBGB's decision to seek a Judicial Review into the announcement of a potential ban.
Jonathan Kay