Greyhound racing ban bill to be introduced in late April
In late April MSPs will have their first opportunity to consider Mark Ruskell’s Member’s Bill to ban greyhound racing.
The bill has received crossparty support allowing it to progress to this stage, but it is yet to secure the support of the Scottish Government.
This week the Welsh Government announced that it would ban the cruel gambling-led entertainment “as soon as practically possible.”
According to the RSPCA, there are only 9 countries in the world that still allow commercial greyhound racing, including all 4 UK nations.
Data from 2023 showed that 109 greyhounds died trackside in the UK, an increase on the number for 2022. A further 4,238 greyhounds were injured during racing in 2023.
Mr Ruskell said:
“The way that a country treats its animals tells us a lot about its values.
“Greyhound racing is cruel. There is no excuse for forcing these gentle dogs to run around a course at 40mph and putting them at risk of injury or death.
“Scotland has made some important steps to ban some of the cruel practices and blood sports that were once considered acceptable. But now we are looking increasingly isolated in allowing this gambling-led spectacle to continue.
“With Wales leading the change in the UK, we need to make sure that Scotland doesn’t fall behind.
“April is not far away, and I will continue to work with animal welfare groups and MSPs from all parties to ensure that we build the biggest possible support for my bill.
“I hope that the Scottish Government will get on board and do its bit for animal welfare by supporting the call and ending greyhound racing for good.”