Hounded down: Will Mike Baird reverse the greyhound ban?

TALK around government is about the prospects of a reversal of the greyhound racing ban by the Baird government: a climbdown, says Andrew Clennell.

• LEGAL CHALLENGE LAUNCHED AGAINST DOG BAN

THE talk in recent days around government has been about the prospects of a reversal of the greyhound racing ban by the Baird government — an embarrassing climbdown. And the talk is understandable given the fact the issue has split both major government parties and is causing so much distraction for the Baird government that the government cannot get any oxygen to celebrate any of its good work.

The feeling is that after a disastrous Orange by-election result, providing it happens, the government could go for such a climbdown and say they have listened.

If Deputy Premier Troy Grant resigns or is dumped after such a result, there will be even more reason to do so — a backflip could be inevitable anyway because a new Nationals leader will no doubt be demanding Mike Baird overturn the ban.

Even if Grant survives, he, like Baird, can simply say he has listened to the community and wants to change tack on the issue.

Premier Mike Baird holds photo of puppy as he answers questions from the Opposition on the greyhound ban during Question Time / Picture: Cameron Richardson

The climbdown could go something like this:

● A CRACK squad of regulators to oversee the industry and stop live baiting and ­unnecessary wastage and make sure dogs are treated humanely;

● A SET of targets to be met over two years or three years or 18 months; and

● IF they are not met, the ­industry faces a ban.

The problem for Baird, if he introduces such measures, is he would have to legislate to do it.

In other words, having gone through the grief of ­legislating a ban for 2017, and having three Nationals cross the floor (two of whom were then dumped as parliamentary secretaries), Baird would have to put the whole thing through again to the howls of the animal liberationists.

But, frankly, the animal liberationists are never going to vote for the government anyway.

So how would this play? Would it risk becoming like Kevin Rudd dumping the Emissions Trading Scheme, a decision which led to him looking like he stood for nothing, having said it was the “greatest moral challenge of our time”.

It is potentially dangerous, no question.

It could make Baird look like he is another stand-for-nothing politician.

But, on the other hand, the way he mismanaged the thing in the first place means he may have little other choice if he wants to get his government on track.

Baird, like John Howard, has established himself as a conviction politician.

Taking the unpopular sale of poles and wires to the election cemented that.

But, remember, John Howard used to backflip.

The key to it, for Howard, was that he used to reverse only halfway back, not all the way.

So he introduced a GST but, after disastrous state election results and a by-election defeat in the Queensland seat of Ryan, stopped businesses having to fill out BAS forms.

He rolled back WorkChoices slightly through the introduction of a no-disadvantage test.

Such is the state of the government at the moment that there is even scuttlebutt that Transport Minister Andrew Constance has given a guarantee to 2GB broadcaster Alan Jones that should he become premier he would overturn the greyhound ban. Constance declined to deny this yesterday.

The greyhounds issue is getting so damaging for the government.

But what is most damaging is almost not the issue ­itself, but the divisions it has created.

Talk of ministers openly bagging the approach of the Premier and his office, talk of secret meetings of ministers and MPs to sort out what to do about it.

It has that air of Iemma government 2008 electricity privatisation about it.

But despite all of the ­malcontents congregating around Macquarie St, as one MP said to me: “Mike Baird on his f ... ing worst day is better than any of those other contenders (like Andrew Constance and Stuart Ayres) on their best day.”

Hard to disagree.

Yesterday, in the ­Coalition party room, MPs were happy to have the opportunity to discuss the Callinan report on lockout laws ahead of any cabinet decision.

If only they had done that on the greyhounds.