Bill Shorten (Maribyrnong, Australian Labor Party, Parliamentary Secretary for Disabilities and Children's Services) Share this | Hansard source

The bills before the parliament today—the Horse Disease Response Levy Bill 2008, the Horse Disease Response Levy Collection Bill 2008 and the Horse Disease Response Levy (Consequential Amendments) Bill 2008will enable the horse industry to be better prepared for exotic disease outbreaks, such as the equine influenza emergency which occurred last year. Australia’s fourth largest industry was knocked hard by equine influenza and it simply cannot remain vulnerable to another disaster or to the response which the previous government delivered last time. The legislation will give the industry certainty for resourcing and responding to emergency horse disease outbreaks, ensuring that it will enjoy the same arrangements as other leading livestock industries in responding to and eradicating disease. It will help the industry fund its obligations under the provisions of the Emergency Animal Disease Response Agreement, the EADRA.

The peak horse industry representative bodies—the Australian Horse Industry Council, Harness Racing Australia and the Australian Racing Board—support the passage of these bills. These bodies are the only representative bodies of the horse industry that are eligible to become signatories to the EADRA. The EADRA, which commenced in 2002, is an important part of our national emergency animal disease preparedness and response infrastructure. The Australian government and all state and territory governments are signatories to this agreement, as are a number of the livestock industries, but not the horse industry. Similar arrangements apply to plant industries.

This legislation gives effect to a submission made to the former government in late 2006 by the Australian Horse Industry Council on behalf of the three peak industry bodies. The legislation will help the horse industry to have confidence in becoming a formal signatory to the EADRA and joining other major livestock industries that are parties to it. All have arrangements in place to meet their obligations under the EADRA in the event of an animal disease emergency. In most cases, this is a levy—if I can assist the member for Canning—set at a zero rate by regulation.

At the time of the outbreak of equine influenza, the horse sector and all those who depend upon it were left dangerously exposed because the sector was not a signatory to the agreement. One must ask: why did the previous government let this situation arise? But perhaps we should not be surprised, given its consistent neglect in many other areas that required the making of important decisions. Indeed, the minister responsible under the previous government certainly has had more success in his racing career and securing his post-parliamentary future than, indeed, in preventing the outbreak of equine influenza. Just over one year has elapsed and nothing seems to have changed in relation to those opposite. There is the same neglect, the same delay and the same ‘we don’t know enough about it’ attitude which gave us the equine influenza in the first place. Here we are trying to pass bills which offer certainty and protection to Australia’s arguably fourth largest industry, and yet again we get the same ‘wait-watchers’ diet of inaction by the opposition.

All sectors of an industry benefit from the eradication of an emergency pest or disease through lower ongoing disease management costs. A pony club horse is as susceptible to the disease as a thoroughbred is. A levy on horse registration is no different in principle to the wine industry’s levies where a grape is levied the same amount whether it is destined for the Penfolds Grange to grace the table of the Liberal Party or for the modest $10 bottle for the battler.

See this speech in context