Andrew RT Davies has said any attempts to ban horseracing must be resisted, after the Welsh Government announced plans to ban greyhound racing earlier this year.
In February, the Welsh Government’s deputy First Minister said Wales would become the first UK nation to ban greyhound racing. The Countryside Alliance have said the ban could “open the gates to all sorts of other prohibitions” and speculated that it was a step towards banning other forms of racing, including horseracing.
Mr Davies visited Tim Vaughan Racing at Pant Wilkin Equestrian Centre in the Vale of Glamorgan, where horses are trained to run in Cheltenham, Newbury, Aintree, Sandown and other famous tracks. At Pant Wilkin, Davies saw training facilities where the horses were winding down for the end of the season.
Speaking at the Centre, the South Wales Central MS argued that horseracing must be protected from a potential ban, as he considered it to be part of British tradition, and pointed to the late Queen’s love for the sport as an example of this.
Queen Elizabeth II was an avid fan of horseracing, and owned many thoroughbred horses for use in racing. As of 2013, the Queen had won over 1,600 races.
In response to the plans for a ban on greyhound racing, the British Horseracing Authority, which is responsible for the governance and regulation of horseracing in Britain said horseracing was “a sporting, cultural and economic asset to the Welsh nation.”
Record-breaking horse trainer Mark Johnston said the greyhound racing ban should act as a “huge wake-up call” for horseracing, and added “horseracing cannot assume that this fate won’t happen to us.”
Animal Aid, one of the UK’s largest animal rights groups, has called for an end to National Hunt (jump) racing, claiming that the animals are seen by some as “money-making machines”.
This year, it was said that a third of British adults were expected to place some sort of bet on the Grand National at Aintree.
Speaking outside Pant Wilkin Stables, Andrew RT Davies MS, Senedd Member for South Wales Central and former Leader of the Welsh Conservatives, said:
“Horseracing is a fantastic British tradition, and we only need to look at Queen Elizabeth’s love for the sport and the huge interest in the Grand National among the public to see that.
“It is superbly regulated, and the vast, vast majority of trainers, jockeys and punters love and admire these animals, who receive incredible care and provide joy to so many people.
“So we have to resist any campaigns to ban this great sport, particularly now that the greyhound racing ban has allowed prohibitionists to get their foot in the door.
“It’s great to meet with Tim and his team to see the love and care that goes into the sport behind the scenes, and long may it continue here in Wales and right across Britain.”
ENDS