Kiwi greyhounds expected to be sent to Qld ahead of NZ racing ban

New Zealand passed legislation to end greyhound racing in 2024. (Supplied: Greyhound Racing Victoria ) Dozens of greyhounds are expected to be flown into Queensland from New Zealand ahead of a ban on racing set to take place from August. A Greens senator has raised concerns the animals will continue to be used for racing in Australia. More than 1,500 dogs will need rehoming in New Zealand once the racing industry is officially banned on August 1, a government spokesperson says. Link copiedShareShare articleUp to 70 greyhounds are expected to be flown from New Zealand to Queensland next month ahead of a ban on racing in their home country, with the Australian government admitting it has no power to stop them being used for the sport once they arrive. A hearing of the Senate Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport Legislation Committee last week heard the charter flight was expected to travel from Christchurch to Queensland in July. New Zealand announced it 2024 it would ban greyhound racing from August 1 this year, due to animal welfare concerns. Over 1,500 dogs will need to be rehomed in New Zealand, a spokesperson for NZ Deputy Prime Minister and Racing Minister Winston Peters told the ABC. A transition agency has been set up in the country to help aid owners with rehoming — as well as provide retraining and deployment support for industry workers. New South Wales Greens Senator Mehreen Faruqi told the Senate hearing last week details of the planned flight emerged through a leaked message from a private greyhound racing group. "With the message explicitly asking participants to please keep this information confidential," Ms Faruqi said. She said the move appeared "to be kind of a deliberate attempt to avoid" New Zealand's new Greyhound Transition Agency. She said she was concerned the animals would be sent to Australia to continue racing. Australian Greens Senator Mehreen Faruqi raised concerns about the imporation of the dogs. (AAP: Lukas Coch) "If they survive, they will become the responsibility of Australians to rehome," she said. "And you would know we're already in a rehoming crisis." Greyhound racing is currently legal across most Australian jurisdictions, including Queensland. The Australian Capital Territory banned the sport in 2018, while the Tasmanian Government is attempting to legislate a ban from 2029. A spokesperson for Mr Peters told the ABC there was nothing in his country's legislation that prevented the export of dogs for racing or breeding before July 30. "Greyhound racing remains legal until August 1, and the sport remains under the control of Greyhound Racing New Zealand (GRNZ)," the spokesperson said. New Zealand’s Deputy PM Winston Peters says the sport is under the control of Greyhound Racing New Zealand until August 1. (AAP: Mick Tsikas) "We have not had conversations with Australian counterparts as the actions of trainers/breeders and GRNZ are legal under the current regulatory framework." They said the decision to ban the sport was announced in 2024 due to a failure of the industry to improve dog safety statistics. "Three separate reviews over the past decade outlined significant concerns regarding animal welfare," the spokesperson said. "Despite progress made by the greyhound racing industry in recent years, the percentage of dogs being injured remained persistently high. More than 1,500 greyhounds will need to be rehomed in New Zealand once the industry ban comes into effect in August. (ABC News: Scout Wallen) "A decision was made on the basis of no evidence of further improvement of animal welfare, to wind down the industry." Coalition for the Protection of Greyhounds president Amy MacMahon, the former Greens MP for South Brisbane in the Queensland Parliament, said she believed the New Zealand greyhound racing industry was "clearly trying to bypass their incoming ban". "They will keep getting raced, injured and killed," she said. "How many of these greyhounds will end up dead or injured at The Q, one of the most unsafe tracks in the country? "These New Zealand greyhounds should be going to safe, loving homes, not being raced to death in Queensland." Greyhound racing will be banned in New Zealand from August. (ABC News: Scout Wallen) Brant Smith, a senior biosecurity executive within the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, told the senate inquiry last week the government had been working directly with the New Zealand Ministry for Primary Industries on the import. He said they would be brought in under "companion animal" protocols. Brant Smith says the government has no control over how the dogs are used after they arrive in Australia. (Supplied) "As to how they are then used, that's not something that we have control over thereafter because they're being imported as companion animals like other animals … and this is not unusual," he said. Mr Smith told the hearing this meant the dogs could be used for racing or be rehomed. "We only im

Kiwi greyhounds expected to be sent to Qld ahead of NZ racing ban

Key takeaways

More in international