Two Illawarra Labor MPs used a marathon debate in the NSW Parliament on Tuesday night to voice their opposition to the Baird government’s shutdown of the greyhound racing industry.
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However, the politicians’ concerns about the “knee-jerk reaction” to “ban an entire industry with the stroke of a fountain pen” meant little when the Greyhound Racing Prohibition Bill 2016 passed in the early hours of Wednesday.
The in-favour verdict came after almost 12 hours of debate, which saw several Nationals MPs break ranks to publicly oppose the ban and Opposition leader Luke Foley speak against it for more than two hours.
Illawarra Labor MPs Anna Watson and Ryan Park also spoke in opposition of the bill, which will see the sport banned and an administrator appointed to wind up the industry by July next year.
Mr Park, the Keira MP and Labor’s Illawarra spokesman, told the Parliament he grew up in Dapto, a suburb that was “arguably the world's most famous greyhound racing destination”.
“An area that is famous for the Dapto Dogs on a Thursday night,” he said.
The industry’s knockout blow came after a Special Commission of Inquiry found “overwhelming evidence” of systemic animal cruelty, including mass killings and live baiting.
“No-one doubts the report of the commission of inquiry was damning. But no-one shuts down an industry via a post on social media,” Mr Park said of Premier Mike Baird’s closure plan announcement on Facebook.
“What sort of individual refuses to listen to people about the impact that this ban will have on regional and rural communities? That person is a premier who is simply out of touch.”
Ms Watson, the Member for Shellharbour, described the bill as a “social media creation” and “click bait for Facebook likes and Twitter retweets”.
“It uses the coercive powers of the state to ban an entire industry with the stroke of a fountain pen,” she said.
Ms Watson told Parliament there were 44 small businesses and 15 charity/community groups associated with the Dapto Dogs – based in her electorate – that would be directly affected by the ban.
The bill was supported 48 votes to 35. Three Nationals MP - Kevin Humphries (Barwon), Katrina Hodgkinson (Cootamundra) and Chris Gulaptis (Clarence) - crossed the floor to vote against it.
Former Liberal MP for East Hills Glenn Brookes, who currently sits on the cross bench as an independent, also voted against the bill.
Debate ended shortly after 3.40am Wednesday, with the bill passing by 49-30 on its third reading, after amendments were considered.
Mr Baird said the decision to shutdown the greyhound industry had been “very difficult”.
“I am pleased the Parliament has strongly supported the Government's decision, because it is the right one, even though it has been a difficult one,” said Premier Mike Baird.
“The bill is the direct consequence of the Special Commission, which found compelling evidence of systemic animal cruelty in greyhound racing and concluded there was a culture of cover-up that gave no comfort to those who hoped it could be reformed.”
But Mr Foley said Mr Baird was “breaking the hearts of thousands of good men and women across the state”.
“Let's throw the book at the bad people in the industry with life bans and prison sentences for those found guilty of animal cruelty but let's not destroy an entire industry and way of life,” he said.
"Regional and rural NSW has been let down by a National Party which has done little more than act as a lickspittle for a North Shore Liberal Premier.
“There are thousands of good and honest people in the greyhound industry that will have their livelihoods destroyed by this Liberal-National Government.”