Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 7 February 2006
309 Mr. Wall asked the Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism the number of cases reported to his Department of illegal use of substances in the greyhound industry by Bord Na gCon in each of the past five years; the action taken if such reports were received; the results of the action; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4002/06]
View answer313 Mr. Wall asked the Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism the number of cases of illegal use of substances in the greyhound industry reported by Bord no gCon to his Department since his Department had responsibility for the industry included in its brief; the action taken if such reports were received; the results of the action taken; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4001/06]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 309 and 313 together.
Bord na gCon is the statutory body responsible for the control and development of the greyhound industry in Ireland. The Greyhound Industry Act 1958, as amended, confers on Bord na gCon wide powers to regulate all aspects of greyhound racing, including integrity management and anti-doping controls.
The following table sets out information provided to my Department by Bord na gCon about the number of anti-doping tests carried out in the five year period 2000 to 2004. A report on the 2005 testing programme is awaited.
|
Year |
2000 |
2001 |
2002 |
2003 |
2004 |
|
No. of Samples |
991 |
2,154 |
2,309 |
3,437 |
5,160 |
|
No. of Positive Tests |
14 |
23 |
43 |
79 |
95 |
|
% Positive |
1.4% |
1.1% |
1.9% |
2.3% |
1.8% |
Bord na gCon's annual control committee report, which is available on its website, includes details of the number of samples tested at Bord na gCon licensed tracks in 2004, the number of positive tests, meetings of the control committee, fines and prize money forfeiture, positive test substances, and publication cases. Individual decisions taken by the control committee are not subject to review by me.
