Meeting of the Parliament 29 January 2026 [Draft]
::We have rehearsed this on numerous occasions and went round the same question numerous times when I give evidence to the committee. We were looking at the broad principle of the bill as it was previously presented, not the one that we have before us.
Let us be clear: there are studies and veterinary reports that have found that, when dogs run into bends at high speed, they experience strong sideways forces that make them more likely to lose balance, collide with each other or hit the track barriers. An Australian report calculated that
“Approximately 80% of all Catastrophic and Major injuries were caused by congestion and incidents such as checking, collision, galloping”.
I provided a link to that report in my response to the Rural Affairs and Islands Committee’s stage 1 report.
The Scottish Animal Welfare Commission’s 2022 report on the welfare of greyhounds in racing concluded that oval track design is a key factor in injuries and deaths due to the combination of bends and the speeds at which racing dogs enter those bends, and that those risks cannot be fully mitigated. Similar concerns are echoed by animal welfare organisations and veterinary reviews, which point to thousands of recorded injuries and numerous fatalities internationally each year that are linked to the racing conditions.
Taken together, that evidence provides a solid animal welfare basis for demonstrating that greyhound racing as practised on oval tracks exposes dogs to a significant risk that cannot be eliminated by other measures.
As I already highlighted to the committee and to Mr Ruskell, we will seek some amendments to the bill and I very much look forward to working with Mr Ruskell on those amendments in the coming weeks. However, although we support the principles of the bill, we are mindful of the implications for the individuals and communities that are connected with greyhound racing in Scotland, particularly those that are involved in the Thornton track in Fife.
In recent years, the activity at Thornton has been on a small scale and largely informal. For many people who have continued to run their dogs there, it has been less about serious competition and more about companionship. It is a chance to meet friends and others with a shared interest, socialise and give their dogs a run on the track. I put it on record that I absolutely understand their disappointment. I do not doubt for a moment their dedication and their love for their dogs but, of course, I recognise that the bill will not prevent greyhound owners from meeting and socialising with others to exercise their dogs. They will commit an offence only if the dog is run on an oval track. Nonetheless, we must be cognisant of the social and community aspects and the bill’s impact on those people.
I commend Mark Ruskell for his commitment to bringing the welfare of greyhounds to the Parliament’s attention. He has been a staunch advocate for them and has identified and highlighted an inherent risk in racing on oval tracks.
I also thank the Rural Affairs and Islands Committee for its detailed scrutiny of the bill’s proposals and the preparation of its stage 1 report, which made some helpful recommendations.
We recognise that the bill addresses legitimate welfare concerns that, given the current minimal activity at Thornton, will affect only a small number of individuals and animals while preventing oval tracks from being set up for racing elsewhere in Scotland. I look forward to hearing the rest of the debate and to working closely with Mark Ruskell and the committee as the bill progresses.