Joel Fitzgibbon (Hunter, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That this bill be now read a second time.

I indicate to the House that I have allocated 50 per cent of my time to the member for Richmond, who will be supporting and seconding the bill.

Community concern about the live trade sector is not new.

Parliamentary reports responding to real and alleged breaches of animal welfare standards date back at least to the early 1980s.

In recent years the drumbeat has grown louder. In the 21st century, people have so much access to information. Undesirable events have never before been so easy to record and distribute. It is more difficult than ever before for those doing the wrong thing to hide breaches of animal welfare standards.

In 2011, an ABC Four Corners program screened terrible acts of animal cruelty in Indonesian abattoirs. The weight of community reaction left the then government with little choice but to suspend the live cattle trade until practices in those abattoirs could be changed and modernised.

It was an extraordinarily difficult time for producers and exporters alike. But what grew from it was the Export Supply Chain Assurance System (ESCAS), an internationally recognised animal welfare assurance guarantee.

It is doubtful the industry would ever have accepted ESCAS if it had not been for the suspension of the trade. There were those who argued the regulation and enforcement of animal welfare standards in other countries was not possible.

But ESCAS has been a great success story and a proud Labor achievement.

ESCAS has placed the live cattle trade on a sustainable footing. The sector continues to earn significant export income, create thousands of jobs along the supply chain, create price competition for cattle producers, and provide a market for those northern producers unable to grow cattle to slaughter weight.

The work of the former Labor government persuaded the live export sector of the need to build and maintain a social licence. That is, community support for the industry, its methods and behaviour.

Despite the success of ESCAS and associated efforts, by 2013 it became clear to me that more would need to be done to maintain community support and guarantee compliance with mandated animal welfare standards.

Further incidents in the trade had given weight to claims the regulator was not sufficiently independent and had become captured by the industry.

That's why in July 2013, a Labor government announced the appointment of an independent Inspector-General of Animal Welfare and Live Animal Exports. As minister at the time, I made an interim appointment pending enabling legislation.

Sadly, an election soon followed and the new coalition government chose to let the position lapse. It was a most regrettable decision and one driven entirely by political opportunism.

There can be no doubt the decision to abolish the inspector-general has cost the live export industry dearly. It sent a clear message to the industry that the new government would be more tolerant of animal abuse. That it saw no need for a further strengthening of the regulatory system.

The situation was exacerbated by the antics of then Minister Joyce, who encouraged and nurtured the wrong culture within both the industry and the regulator. A culture which in turn promoted a cavalier approach to animal welfare matters.

If the independent oversight of the regulator had continued, we may never have heard of the Awassi Express, and the live sheep sector may have had a future.

In introducing this private member's bill, I make an appeal to all members to back the re-establishment of an independent statutory officer to watch over the regulation of the live export sector.

His or her role will be to ensure correct animal welfare standards are maintained and when there is an alleged breach, the regulator fully and properly investigates the matter, comes to right conclusions and imposes appropriate sanctions.

There can be no argument against the re-establishment of the Inspector-General for Animal Welfare and Live Animal Exports.

Arguments it will result in more red tape for farmers are just silly and mischievous.

The inspector-general will have no reason to interact with producers in the red meat sector.

This proposition now enjoys, it's worth noting, the support of the live export industry. It now just needs the support of this parliament. A sustainably profitable agriculture sector needs a strong and sustainable animal welfare assurance system, and I commend the bill to the House.

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Is the motion seconded?

Justine Elliot (Richmond, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I second the motion, and I am pleased to speak on this private member's bill proposed by the shadow minister for agriculture, which will establish an Inspector-General of Animal Welfare and Live Animal Exports. The Inspector-General of Animal Welfare and Live Animal Exports Bill 2018 creates an independent statutory officer who will have oversight of the Commonwealth regulator in animal welfare matters.

In government in 2013, Labor appointed an interim Inspector-General of Animal Welfare and Live Animal Exports. Unfortunately, the then new coalition government did not proceed with the legislation necessary to make the position permanent. That was the wrong decision, which has proven to be devastating for animal protection. The Turnbull government has, shamefully, been consistent in its opposition to the appointment of an inspector-general. Like the Inspector-General of Biosecurity, an Inspector-General of Animal Welfare and Live Animal Exports will deliver the robust regulatory oversight which the community is demanding and that the Productivity Commission has backed. These actions are needed, along with a suite of measures.

We've made it clear that a Shorten Labor government will, at the first opportunity, put an end to the northern summer live sheep trade. The evidence on this is very clear, and the community sentiment is very clear too. The northern summer live sheep trade is just not possible, because it is cruel and it is extremely harmful for those animals.

We've stated that, during the necessary transition period, we'll put regulations in place that will ensure the highest standards, proper oversight and appropriate sanctions for breaches, including the establishment of the inspector-general as an independent statutory position. The inspector-general will be responsible for advising on the protection of animals in all Commonwealth-regulated activities and will report directly to the minister on issues like live animal exports, animal welfare standards and other required guidelines.

The inspector will also work with the states and territories to establish an independent office of animal welfare to oversee animal protection and welfare activities nationally. This re-establishment of state and territory cooperation on animal welfare matters—abolished by the Abbott-Turnbull government—will ensure a consistent national approach and continuous monitoring.

In government, Labor will conduct a thorough review of the Exporter Supply Chain Assurance System to ensure that it works as effectively and efficiently as possible. This plays a very critical role in reassuring Australia's agricultural producers, their customers and the broader community that animal welfare is being protected at every stage.

Overall, in government, Labor will provide more transparency and accountability around the live export trade. For a long time, Labor has been calling for these changes—as have many in the community. Like everyone in this House, I have received thousands of items of correspondence over the years about the live export trade. This is an issue that the other side just cannot ignore.

It took the horrifying Awassi Express incident to get any response at all from the Turnbull government—a response that did nothing to fix the systemic issues with the long-haul sheep trade, because this is a government beset by party division, whose own members threaten to cross the floor on this issue. They've now withdrawn even their very small, token measures. It's clear the Prime Minister is not willing to deal with the abuses that have occurred on his watch. This is a truly heartless approach, and it is a stain on Australia's reputation as a world-class food exporter of clean green food of the highest quality.

The long-haul sheep trade has been in decline for two decades. It has been consistently mired in criticism, reviews and suspensions. The Awassi Express incident has made it blatantly clear: the regulation isn't working. The current system is cruel. You simply cannot pack 50,000 or 60,000 sheep onto a boat for four weeks and then sail them through some of the hottest and most humid climates in the world and expect animal welfare expectations to be upheld. That is the reality.

Labor's proposed five-year transition period will give the industry time to adjust to the changes. It'll be a transition to something better. In contrast to all of that, all we see from the Turnbull government is inaction. In fact, they failed to even list their bill to increase penalties for breaches of the animal welfare standards in the live animal sector. The government has withdrawn the Export Legislation Amendment (Live-stock) Bill 2018 in this sitting week, and they did that following our announcement to move amendments to the bill which, if successful, would have put an immediate stop to the Northern Hemisphere summer live sheep trade and phased out the trade within five years. Yet the government has withdrawn that.

Following the McCarthy review, the government did spruik the fact there were going to be increased penalties as a key response to ongoing breaches of animal welfare standards, yet they have done nothing—just those token efforts—and they've now withdrawn the bill. But Labor stands ready. We stand ready to support increased penalties. We have made that very clear. But what is also very clear is that the evidence is clear. The science is clear and the community sentiment is overwhelmingly clear time and time again: the northern summer live sheep trade must end. And Labor has made that very clear.

The community wants action on this matter. It's time the government started listening to the community and the concerns that they have, and I call on them to support this private members' bill. Currently, the system is cruel. It is unfair, and the government members must listen and support this private members' bill.

Debate adjourned.