Adam Bandt of the Australian Greens, spoke for the second time on the Bill he introduced to end live exports immediately. He writes:
Since the Bill was introduced in June, there has been continued pressure on the Government to cease the cruel practices associated with the live export of cattle and sheep…
While there will be a period of adjustment for those involved in the cattle industry, the transition to an on-shore industry, meeting the highest of standards, should not be delayed. The announcement of financial support to farmers, and for the necessary infrastructure, makes delay even more unnecessary. We must act immediately to end decades of poor practice.
The second reading is the next stage in the Parliamentary process for Private Members’ Bills. The third and final stage is a vote and this will occur in the next Parliamentary session.
Adam Bandt Federal Member for Melbourne
After worrying news of the resumption of live exports reached us on July 6, we received this from his office:
Many of you have written to Adam Bandt again today disappointed that the federal government has reinstated live exports.
Adam and Senator Siewert, The Greens spokesperson on the issue, have been addressing the media this week and I am sending through The Greens’ media release for your information.
“The Australian Greens have condemned the Federal Government’s decision to resume the exports of live cattle toIndonesia.
“The Minister has given no guarantee that animals must be stunned prior to slaughter. Stunning must be a non-negotiable aspect of live trade,” Australian Greens Senator Rachel Siewert said.
“Anything short of stunning before slaughter is not acceptable and constitutes a failure from the Federal Government,” said Senator Siewert.
“OIE guidelines do not require stunning before slaughter of cattle.
“Without stunning, cattle can exhibit indicators of possible consciousness for up to 2 minutes after the throat is cut, leading to a slow and pain death.
“The welfare standards which are acceptable to the Australian public and farmers cannot be guaranteed in overseas markets.
“Adam Bandt and I will persist with the Australian Greens legislation to permanently ban live exports,” Senator Siewert concluded.
Rose Iser Community Liaison Officer, Office of Adam Bandt MP
Once again, QCA, in concert with the Anglican Society for the Welfare of Animals, Catholic Concern for Animals and the Unitarian Animal Welfare Society, has written to the Australian authorities to oppose this disturbing move.
News from the organisation GetUp:
Bad news first: sadly, the international standards the Government has announced do not mandate stunning of animals before slaughter.
Now the good news: the Government has also committed to supply chain assurance, which means that each animal exported will be tagged so they can be tracked from the farm to the abattoir. That’s important because it means cattle producers can now choose to send their cattle only to abattoirs that stun animals before killing.
That also means we have an opportunity. Some major cattle exporters have already flagged that they will only export to abattoirs with stunning facilities. If we can convince all the exporters to do the same, we can ensure that no Australian cattle are exported to facilities that don’t stun animals.
Writing to cattle exporters – the template letter can be adapted for all of us to send: