The NSW greyhound industry will be given "one final chance" by the Baird government under a new regime being touted as "the strictest regulations that exist anywhere in the country".
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Premier Mike Baird declared "I got it wrong" while confirming he would back down on his original promise to close down the industry from July next year.
Instead, Mr Baird said the industry would need to sign up to mandatory life bans and increased jail terms for live baiting and registering greyhounds for their entire lives.
A new independent regulator will be headed by former Labor premier Morris Iemma. There will be more resources for enforcement and prosecution and animal welfare.
"I got it wrong, we got it wrong, the cabinet got it wrong and the government got it wrong," Mr Baird said.
Mr Baird said he knew a lot of people will be disappointed by the back down but said "we are listening".
Greyhound racing ban backdown confirmed after cabinet meeting
The Baird government has confirmed a backdown of its ban on greyhound racing in NSW following a sustained campaign of media and industry pressure.
The dramatic backflip comes despite Premier Mike Baird's repeated claims that the decision was final and a matter of principle and it was "locked in" that the industry would be shutdown on July 1, 2017.
Mr Baird announced the ban earlier this year following a special commission of inquiry report that found 68,000 greyhounds had been euthanised in the past 12 years because they could not, or were too slow, to race.
But he has faced immense pressure from the Opposition, media outlets and the industry since the announcement, with expectations of a large swing against the government at the November 12 Orange byelection. Read on
