GRNZ Ramp Up Meeting Pursuit With Minister

THE boss of Greyhound Racing New Zealand (GRNZ) will continue with his attempts to secure a meeting with NZ Racing Minister Winston Peters as the fallout from the proposed ban of the industry intensifies.

On Monday night, Minister Peters, who also serves as NZ Deputy Prime Minister, sat down with respected journalist Mick Guerin to discuss his shock decision to close the industry from July, 2026.

During the interview, Minister Peters appeared to take umbrage that the industry might consider legal action in a bid to fight for its future, while saying "there is no pleasure in it" and that "sometimes decisions in politics are really difficult".

In an effort to justify the decision, Minister Peters referred to the industry's "level of injury and serious injury and the absence of material information, or no records of a dog going missing."

READ: ‘Absolute Anguish': The Faces Behind NZ Greyhound Ban

In response to the comments made during the interview, GRNZ boss Edward Rennell said he will continue with his relentless efforts to seek a meeting with Minister Peters to dispel much of the misinformation levelled on Monday night.

"It's been 609 days since GRNZ last had a meeting with the then Minister of Racing, Kieran McAnulty," Rennell said.

"We've had no engagement with the current Minister despite repeated requests. 

"After watching the Minister's comments last night it only highlights that much of the material, and the significant advancements the industry has made around traceability, euthanasia and rehoming, have not been taken into consideration with this decision.

"The most recent RIB reports highlight the progress the industry has made and continues to make but it has fallen on deaf ears.

"From a traceability standpoint, we have systems in place that detail the whereabouts of each and every greyhound. I know the other two codes do not have processes in place that are as strong.

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"And it's the same around euthanasia and our rehoming strategies.

"We'd love a constructive meeting face-to-face so that we can outline that work to the Minister and counter the misinformation that he has been given by others. If we can, I'm confident the Minister would view things differently." 

Despite Minister Peters' refusal to meet with industry officials, Rennell said conversations with the recently established Ministerial Advisory Committee (MAC) have been "constructive" and he continues to be buoyed by the resilience of the sport's participants.

"They continue to carry themselves well in the face of incredible uncertainty and have been brilliant," Rennell said.

In response to questions surrounding the potential for legal action, Rennell said: "Closure (of the industry) will require amendments to the racing industry act and we will put forward a spirited defence of our position through the select committee process."

When quizzed about the future of thoroughbred and harness racing in the wake of the proposed move to close greyhound racing, Minister Peters was rather pointed. 

"They (activists) know nothing about animals and nothing about horses," Peters said.

"Horses will race in the middle of the night, whether you like it or not. In every wild circumstance or free circumstance, a horse will go for a run."

The comments were similar to those Minister Peters said to a select committee last June in regards to greyhound racing, declaring that "dogs love racing", urging fellow MPs to "watch them in the wild".

“Three o'clock in the morning, everybody's quiet and they're out there having a race in the paddock."