Sophie Scamps (Mackellar, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

Like the vast majority of Australians, I'm an animal lover. As a child I regularly holidayed with my family on our property near Trunkey Creek, where I learned to herd the sheep, drag them out for shearing and sort the wool. I helped them lamb and I rode our half-wild horses around the property. We went to agricultural shows and rodeos, and we regularly cared for poddy goats and lambs. Mum bred pedigree dogs that were showered with the love of a young family. But for a country which loves animals and which has relied on animals in so many ways over the centuries—for transport, food, fibre, sport, work on farms, assistance in dealing with disabilities and companionship—there are far too many ways in which Australia mistreats them. The Australian Alliance for Animals recently stated:

The reality is, our laws, standards, and regulatory systems on the whole, are failing animals. This is because within the current governance system there are conflicts of interests among those in power, inconsistencies across states and territories, loopholes in laws, and standards that ignore science and community expectations.

Let me talk about the widespread cruelty of one industry as an example, the greyhound racing industry. In 2017, following a damning investigation, the multibillion dollar Australian greyhound racing industry vowed to clean up its act. The investigation had exposed the preventable deaths of as many as 17,000 young dogs each year. Sadly, despite a short-lived ban, a former chief veterinarian has again revealed that widespread abuse continues in this industry, with dogs being raced at 'barbaric' rates, euthanised without cause or left to rot in metal cages when they can no longer compete. Then there are the puppy farms. As the RSPCA describes, breeding dogs may be kept in overcrowded conditions or extreme confinement, with some never let out of cages. They may live in constant fear or stress, are never socialised and do not receive basic care such as exercise, grooming, vaccinations or the veterinary care they may need.

There's not time today to discuss in detail the many other examples of animal cruelty being permitted to continue in Australia, including live animal export. State and territory governments have quite simply failed to do enough. So it is to be commended that the federal Labor government has committed to releasing a new Australian animal welfare strategy. Australia had such a strategy in the past, but in 2014, as Prime Minister, Tony Abbott withdrew funding and disbanded the animal welfare unit within the federal agriculture department—just another example of another backward step. It's pleasing to see this government take up the issue in its first term, albeit at a slow pace. The August 2024 report from the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry simply provides an overview of a first tranche of consultation designed to inform the renewal of the animal welfare strategy. It shows that there is much to do.

My electorate of Mackellar certainly expects action on this issue. Since being elected, around 2½ years ago, I've received hundreds of emails from constituents expressing profound concern about animal welfare. They have expressed their horror in relation to everything from live animal export to greyhound racing, from puppy farms to horseracing—particularly topical given that the race that stops the nation is on tomorrow. And so I urge the government to act with alacrity to reintroduce an animal welfare strategy. As the member for Clark is advocating in this place today, an important part of this strategy must be the establishment of an independent office for animal welfare. Such an independent body is critical to minimise the influence of vested interests, such as the gambling industry, on decisions. Even in today's paper, it was reported that in the past decade over $2.7 million in donations from the gambling industry have been made towards major political parties—Liberal, Labor and the Nationals. Donations from the biggest companies involved in horse betting to the major parties increased from $66,000 in 2013 to $488,000 in 2022-23, an increase of over 600 per cent. This is precisely why it's essential that an independent office of animal welfare be established. (Time expired)

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