The scandal that’s left a pall over Wentworth Park’s future

An audacious bid by the NSW greyhound racing industry to maintain its control of Wentworth Park could be derailed by allegations of serious animal welfare violations, with internal government documents revealing the claims may affect its suitability to hold a lease over the site.

Greyhound Racing NSW, the corporate body that regulates the industry in NSW, has been lobbying Labor ministers to overturn a decision made by the former Coalition government to move racing from the Glebe track when the existing lease ends in 2027 and turn it into public green space.

Greyhound racing at Wentworth Park is under threat. Credit: Louise Kennerley

Late last year GRNSW presented NSW Lands Minister Steve Kamper with a proposal for racing to continue at Wentworth Park while increasing public access by removing fences and opening the site for events such as concerts and markets.

Lodged alongside the Sydney Roosters NRL club, the St Andrew’s Cathedral School and other current tenants, it recommended GRNSW be appointed manager of the Crown Lands site as part of an entity that included other tenants.

The government has yet to decide on the proposal and has asked GRNSW to lodge a more formal business case, which GRNSW said it was finalising. However, Kamper drew the ire of Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore earlier this year after he left the possibility open for racing to continue at the site.

But GRNSW’s plans may be scuppered by a string of serious allegations of animal cruelty made against the greyhound industry by its own former chief veterinarian Alex Brittan. The document, published in July, described the treatment of racing greyhounds in NSW as “barbaric” and described the sport as an “unsustainable morass of exploitation and suffering”.

The government appointed former Law Enforcement Conduct Commission executive Lea Drake to run an independent inquiry into GRNSW after the document was made public.

That inquiry may now have implications for Wentworth Park. A document prepared by Crown Lands NSW and seen by the Herald states Drake’s findings could impact whether GRNSW would be suitable to manage the site because of “fit and proper” criteria for site managers.

“The terms of reference for the inquiry relate to animal welfare, procurement, recruitment, conflicts of interest, reporting, racecourse and track safety and GRNSW’s response to complaints, culture and conduct,” the document states. “The outcomes of the inquiry could have bearing on GRNSW’s acceptability as a proponent to hold a Crown Lease.”

A spokesman for Kamper said that while the government had “ruled nothing in or out for Wentworth Park when the current licence expires in 2027”, the findings of the Drake inquiry “will be considered as part of this”.

“We need to make sure we are making the most of all parts of the Blackwattle Bay and Wentworth Park precinct,” he said.

“We are aiming to deliver 1500 homes on the old Sydney Fish Markets site in Blackwattle Bay. The new Bank Street Park under the ANZAC bridge will deliver 1.1 hectares of open space, and the new Sydney Fish Markets is set to become the latest tourist attraction on Sydney Harbour.”

Animal Justice Party MP Emma Hurst said she had “no doubt” the Drake inquiry would find GRNSW was “unfit” to hold a Crown lease if “done properly”.

“Surely, the NSW government shouldn’t be considering appointing the greyhound racing industry as Crown Land managers of this site given their history,” she said.

“We shouldn’t be moving towards industry capture, especially with an industry synonymous with instances of animal cruelty.”

NSW Animal Justice MP Emma Hurst has urged the government not to continue greyhound racing at the inner-city Wentworth Park track beyond 2027.Credit: Kate Geraghty

The document from Crown Lands was contained in a trove released to parliament earlier this month. Among them was a briefing prepared by the NSW Department of Planning which warned the inner-city suburbs surrounding Wentworth Park including Pyrmont and Blackwattle Bay would be less able to handle the massive housing growth slated to take place in coming years.

The briefing warned the industry’s proposal was “inconsistent” with existing plans to return Wentworth Park to the community and would “reduce its capacity to support future population growth in Ultimo-Pyrmont, Blackwattle Bay and Glebe”.

“While some of the initiatives put forward by GRNSW would improve public access to the greyhound track land, under GRNSW’s proposal large parts of the site would continue to be occupied by the grandstand, racing track and associated buildings, infrastructure and car parking,” it stated.

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