Social Democrats TD, Holly Cairns has criticised the government for handing over nearly €17 million to cruel greyhound racing, while “small farmers and coastal and island communities are screaming out for funding”.
In a Dail Eireann speech on “Climate Action and Low Carbon Development” on Wednesday, the Cork South West TD noted that “this controversial, loss-making industry is funded with public money”. She referred to “last year’s ‘RTÉ Investigates’ programme [which] found that the industry is ‘breeding animals to kill them’.”
Questioning the government’s priorities, she pointed out that “greyhound racing is set to commence ahead of vital services like breast and cervical cancer screening”.
“Why is this deeply problematic industry held in such higher esteem by this Government?” she asked.
Since 2001, the Irish Greyhound Board has received more than a quarter of a billion euros of taxpayers’ money via the Horse and Greyhound Racing Fund. This includes another massive €16.8 million grant for 2020. There is growing pressure on the government to end the funding, with a RED C opinion poll showing that a two-thirds majority want the grants stopped.
ACTION ALERT
Contact Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe and tell them to stop handing over millions of euros every year to horse and greyhound racing and instead redirect the money into the health bodies, sports clubs, homeless charities, animal rescue centres and environmental groups crying out for support.
An Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar
Government Buildings,
Upper Merrion St, Dublin 2
Telephone: +353 (0)1-6194020
Email: taoiseach@taoiseach.gov.ie; leo.varadkar@oireachtas.ie; finegael@finegael.ie
Tweet to: @LeoVaradkar
Leave a comment on Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/LeoVaradkar
Paschal Donohoe TD
Minister for Finance
Email: paschal.donohoe@oireachtas.ie; minister@per.gov.ie
Phone: +353 (0)1 6045810
Leave a comment on Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/PaschalDonohoe/
Tweet to @Paschald
Contact Fine Gael, Fianna Fail and Labour Party TDs and urge them to vote against any further funding for cruel greyhound racing
Fine Gael TDs
JohnPaul.Phelan@oireachtas.ie,Heather.Humphreys@oireachtas.ie,joe.carey@oireachtas.ie,david.stanton@oir.ie,colm.burke@oireachtas.ie,michael.creed@oireachtas.ie,Simon.Coveney@oireachtas.ie,joe.mchugh@oireachtas.ie,richard.bruton@oireachtas.ie,Eoghan.Murphy@oireachtas.ie,Paschal.Donohoe@oireachtas.ie,Alan.Farrell@oireachtas.ie,emer.higgins@oireachtas.ie,neale.richmond@oireachtas.ie,josepha.madigan@oireachtas.ie,colm.brophy@oireachtas.ie,leo.varadkar@oireachtas.ie,jennifer.carrollmacneill@oireachtas.ie,Ciaran.Cannon@oireachtas.ie,hildegarde.naughton@oireachtas.ie,Brendan.Griffin@oireachtas.ie,bernard.durkan@oireachtas.ie,Martin.Heydon@oireachtas.ie,charles.flanagan@oireachtas.ie,kieran.odonnell@oireachtas.ie,Patrick.O'Donovan@oireachtas.ie,peter.burke@oireachtas.ie,fergus.odowd@oireachtas.ie,alan.dillon@oireachtas.ie,michael.ring@oireachtas.ie,helen.mcentee@oireachtas.ie,damien.english@oireachtas.ie,frank.feighan@oireachtas.ie,paul.kehoe@oireachtas.ie,Simon.Harris@oireachtas.ie
Fianna Fail TDs
john.mcguinness@oireachtas.ie,niamh.smyth@oireachtas.ie,brendan.smith@oireachtas.ie,aindrias.moynihan@oireachtas.ie,michael.moynihan.td@oireachtas.ie,micheal.martin@oireachtas.ie,michael.mcgrath@oireachtas.ie,Charlie.McConalogue@oireachtas.ie,sean.haughey@oireachtas.ie,jim.ocallaghan@oireachtas.ie,darragh.obrien@oireachtas.ie,jack@jackchambers.ie,anne.rabbitte@oireachtas.ie,eamon.ocuiv@oireachtas.ie,james.lawless@oireachtas.ie,sean.ofearghail@oireachtas.ie,sean.fleming@oireachtas.ie,barry.cowen@oireachtas.ie,willie.odea@oireachtas.ie,niall.collins@oireachtas.ie,Robert.Troy@oireachtas.ie,dara.calleary@oireachtas.ie,thomas.byrne@oireachtas.ie,marc.macsharry@oireachtas.ie,jackie.cahill@oireachtas.ie,mary.butler@oireachtas.ie,james.browne@oireachtas.ie,jennifer.murnaneoconnor@oireachtas.ie,cathal.crowe@oireachtas.ie,james.oconnor@oireachtas.ie,padraig.osullivan@oireachtas.ie,christopher.osullivan@oireachtas.ie,paul.mcauliffe@oireachtas.ie,john.lahart@oireachtas.ie,cormac@cormacdevlin.ie,normafoley1@eircom.net,joe.flaherty@oireachtas.ie,Stephen.Donnelly@oireachtas.ie
Labour Party TDs
sean.sherlock@oireachtas.ie,aodhan.oriordain@oireachtas.ie,duncan.smith@oireachtas.ie,gerald.nash@oireachtas.ie,Alan.Kelly@oireachtas.ie,brendan.howlin@oireachtas.ie
Please sign and share petitions
Stop supporting the cruel greyhound industry
https://www.change.org/p/stop-supporting-the-cruel-greyhound-industry
GAA: Stop club fundraisers at greyhound tracks
https://www.change.org/p/gaa-stop-club-fundraisers-at-greyhound-tracks
Tell Gain Pet Nutrition to Stop Sponsoring Greyhound Racing
https://www.change.org/p/jimtracy-glanbia-ie-tell-gain-pet-nutrition-to-stop-sponsoring-greyhound-racing
SEE ALSO:
A RED C opinion poll shows that two out of every three Irish adults agree that the government should stop funding greyhound racing. https://www.facebook.com/banbloodsports/posts/2443708225744721
Greyhound injuries and deaths at Irish greyhound tracks
https://banbloodsports.wordpress.com/2019/03/27/greyhound-injuries-and-deaths-at-irish-greyhound-tracks/
Watch “RTE Investigates: Greyhounds Running For Their Lives” on the RTE Player https://www.rte.ie/player/movie/rt%C3%A9-investigates-greyhounds-running-for-their-lives/104051751967 or on Youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZYTb2qBjlMM
IRISH GOVERNMENT GRANTS TO GREYHOUND RACING
2001 €11,777,583
2002 €13,613,163
2003 €12,837,200
2004 €13,382,800
2005 €13,670,000
2006 €14,012,000
2007 €14,572,000
2008 €15,257,000
2009 €13,625,600
2010 €11,852,800
2011 €11,460,000
2012 €11,258,000
2013 €11,004,000
2014 €10,844,000
2015 €13,600,000
2016 €14,800,000
2017 €16,000,000
2018 €16,000,000
2019 €16,800,000
2020 €16,800,000
Total: €273 Million (€0.273 Billion)
Source: Department of Agriculture
Please support our campaign with a donation
https://www.paypal.me/banbloodsports