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Greyhound racing should be banned in Wales, a regional Senedd Member has said.
Plaid Cymru’s Peredur Owen Griffiths, who represents the South Wales East region, raised the issue in the Senedd last week.
What is a regional Senedd Member?
Wales is divided into 40 constituencies for Senedd elections. Each consituency elects one Senedd Member through a first past the post system.
Hefin David represents the Caerphilly constituency, Rhianon Passmore represents Islwyn and Dawn Bowden represents Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney.
Then, Wales is split into five regions, each region being represented by four Senedd Members. This means there are 20 regional Senedd Members, and 60 Senedd Members in total.
The three constituencies within Caerphilly County Borough form part of the South Wales East region.
Regional members are elected using a proportional representation system, where members are selected from a list of candidates submitted by each party.
These are the current regional Senedd Members for South Wales East:
- Natasha Asghar (Welsh Conservatives)
- Delyth Jewell (Plaid Cymru)
- Laura Anne Jones (Welsh Conservatives)
- Peredur Owen Griffiths (Plaid Cymru)
What area does South Wales East cover?
The South Wales East region includes the following constituencies:
- Blaenau Gwent
- Caerphilly
- Islwyn
- Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney
- Monmouth
- Newport East
- Newport West
- Torfaen
It comes after Valley Greyhounds, which is based in Ystrad Mynach, applied to become the only licenced greyhound track in Wales, which could mean more races held there each week.
It said the licence would ensure the dogs were better cared for – something disputed by south Wales-based dog charity Hope Rescue.
A petition set up by the charity, calling for greyhound racing to be outlawed in Wales, has so far gathered more than 26,000 signatures.
The racing track, which is near Ysbyty Ystrad Fawr, is independently owned and is not associated with the Greyhound Board of Great Britain.
Speaking in the Senedd, Mr Owen Griffiths said: “In my region, there exists the last remaining greyhound racing track in Wales.
“This track is also independent, meaning it is not subject to any regulation or licensing requirements.
“There is no requirement for a veterinary presence or welfare oversight in place, as it stands.”
He continued: “Hope Rescue say that, in the last four years, they have taken in 200 greyhounds from this track – 40 of these sustained injuries.
“They fear this will increase when the track is due to become licensed later this year.”
Mr Owen Griffiths added: “There are only eight countries left in the world where greyhound racing is still allowed. Is it not time for us to follow suit and ban this activity on the grounds of animal welfare?”
Responding to Mr Owen Griffiths, the Welsh Government’s Rural Affairs Minister, Lesley Griffiths, said she was “looking very closely” at the matter but said evidence and consultations would need to be looked at – something she admitted would “take a little while”.
Speaking to the BBC, Valley Greyhounds manager Malcolm Tams said: “In the last 17 years, there has been massive changes in the way people look after the greyhounds and the way they’re treated.
“It’s gone forward and it’s going to go forward further over the next two to three years.”
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