Kerry O'Brien (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Primary Industries, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to Senator Abetz, the Minister representing the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry. I refer the minister to a letter from the Australian Racing Board to former minister for agriculture Mr Truss dated 24 September 2004. Can the minister confirm that in this letter the board raises serious concerns about the quarantine risk of using private vets to inspect imported horses? Is it true that Mr Truss assured the Australian Racing Board that all imported horses would be under the direct control of an AQIS vet? Can the minister now confirm that, despite this assurance, a number of horses that entered Australia through Melbourne airport after January 2005 were only checked by private practitioners employed by the importer, with no supervising AQIS vets present?

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We are talking here about an industry that is worth about $3.6 billion to the Australian economy and has about 10,000 commercial horses involved in it. It is a very important employer for rural and regional areas in particular. Everybody knows that we have had an outbreak of equine influenza in this country. Everybody also should know that we have acted very expeditiously in this regard and appointed Mr Callinan to oversee an inquiry into it. I suggest to Senator O’Brien that he take a deep breath and wait and see what that report indicates. If Senator O’Brien has all the answers and knows exactly how equine influenza got into Australia and knows all those responsible, can I suggest to him that he give the benefit of his evidence to the Callinan inquiry. That is the issue.

In relation to the Victorian racing industry, I do know that they have made representations to the government that some of our quarantine restrictions have, in fact, been a bit too tough from time to time.

Glenn Sterle (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

So they should be!

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Are you supporting them or aren’t you, Senator Sterle? They should be tough. I fully agree with you, Senator Sterle. That same industry body that your frontbencher seeks to quote has been critical. If Senator O’Brien were honest with the Senate, if my memory serves me correctly I think that letter related to foot-and-mouth disease and was not in relation to the particularities of equine influenza. I stand to be corrected in the supplementary question in relation to that, but I do not think I will be. So is it a serious issue? Of course it is. We have put—

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Have a crack at the question.

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The ongoing arrogance of the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate ought to be silenced. He is a non-stop interjector with all the hubris that I thought his leader was telling him not to show. The reality is that this is an important issue. We have acted expeditiously.

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

No, you haven’t.

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Evans interjects again and says, ‘No, you haven’t.’ Can I tell you something, Senator Evans? Those people in government—like the state Labor government in Victoria, the state Labor government in New South Wales and the state government in Queensland—have been cooperating with us and have been praising the cooperation of the Australian government. You see, we as a Liberal-National government are able to cooperate with state Labor governments in the national interest and not play cheap politics, unlike those on the other side. I suggest to the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate, who, if he is so interested in the topic, should have asked the question himself and not left it to the hapless Senator O’Brien: if he were genuinely interested, he would be talking to the relevant ministers in the state Labor governments, who are fully supportive of the approach that we are taking and supportive of our $110 million package to boot.

Kerry O'Brien (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Primary Industries, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I ask a supplementary question, Mr President. The only foot in mouth was Senator Abetz’s, of course. I will quote from the letter of September 2004 from the Australian Racing Board, which states:

If equine influenza gained entry into Australia, it would close down racing and other horse events for several months with catastrophic economic consequences.

Hear that? It goes on:

A quarantine breakdown is the only way Australia will be exposed to this exotic disease.

So is it true that Mr Truss assured the ARB that all imported horses would be under the direct control of an AQIS vet? Is it true that a number of horses were not inspected under the control of an AQIS vet from January 2005? Aren’t members of the horse and racing community now suffering because of the government’s failure—

Robert Ray (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Robert Ray interjecting—

Ian Macdonald (Queensland, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Ian Macdonald interjecting—

Alan Ferguson (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! Resume your seat, Senator O’Brien. Senator Ray and Senator Macdonald, come to order. I call Senator O’Brien again.

Kerry O'Brien (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Primary Industries, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Aren’t members of the horse and racing community now suffering because of the government’s failure to listen to these prophetic warnings three years ago? How could the government have been so incompetent—

Alan Ferguson (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Your time has expired, Senator O’Brien.

Kerry O'Brien (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Primary Industries, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I raise a point of order, Mr President. You asked me to resume my seat. Did that come out of my time?

Alan Ferguson (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It came out of your time.

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The sorts of interjections that the people of Australia were able to witness from the Labor Party whilst the Labor Party senator was seeking to ask a question shows that they do not take this matter seriously and with the degree of concern that those involved in the racing industry would want them to take in relation to this matter. Regarding the letter, I am sure that the heading on the letter does say that it is, in fact, in relation to foot-and-mouth, and it is interesting that Senator O’Brien was not able to contradict that.

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Chris Evans interjecting—

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, Senator Evans is continuing, yet again—I can hardly hear myself. This is the sort of arrogance that the Australian people will see.

Alan Ferguson (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! Senator Abetz, resume your seat. We will not continue until the Senate comes to order.

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Mr President. Isn’t it nice when the Labor Party actually stop to listen? If they were to stop to listen, they would listen to their own state Labor ministers in relation to this matter. (Time expired)

Alan Ferguson (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Before I call Senator Boswell, I would like to make a correction. Senator O’Brien, the time did not come out of your question. The clock was stopped while I was asking the Senate to come to order.