More and more people are catching on to the horrors of the racing industry. After years of investigations, which have highlighted the cruelty of horse and greyhound racing again and again, it has become an issue that governments can no longer ignore or hide from. Several weeks ago, Minister Littleproud announced the allocation of $1.1 million towards establishing a national horse traceability scheme. This follows the recommendations of a Senate inquiry into horse traceability, which I initiated in 2019. The government needs to get on with this.

Australian Greens Animal Welfare spokesperson Senator Mehreen Faruqi has welcomed the announcement of $1.1 million for horse traceability but said this means little without a clear plan for implementation from the National Horse Traceability Working Group.

Senator Faruqi said:

“I’m very happy to see Minister Littleproud committing this money to move horse traceability forward. The federal government must provide leadership here and ensure the register gets off the ground.

The Greens have today launched a Horse Racing Transition Plan to shut down commercial horse racing in Australia. After years of exposes on the cruelty of the horse racing industry, seven horses having died at the last eight Melbourne Cup races, and ongoing concerns about the power and influence of the gambling industry, the Greens say it is beyond time to shut this industry down.

Opinion polling of 1,052 Australians commissioned by the Greens and conducted by Lonergan Research has found Australians are overwhelmingly concerned about animal welfare and supportive of key animal welfare policies ahead of the next federal election. Crucially, strong animal welfare policies can impact voting intention.

Quick statistics:

The Greens have introduced a bill to parliament that would ban the export of greyhounds from Australia for commercial purposes including breeding and racing.

The Customs Legislation Amendment (Commercial Greyhound Export and Import Prohibition) Bill 2021 comes following years of reports of horrific treatment of Australian dogs in greyhound racing across the world. The trade goes on: between 2016 and 2021, 1,313 dogs were exported from Australia.

Senator Mehreen Faruqi, Greens spokesperson for Animal Welfare, said:

Today, I want to talk about something we rarely hear about in this place: animals and their wellbeing. Australians love animals, yet so many of our animal welfare laws lag behind those of other similar nations. So many people have related to me stories of how their companion animals have been their saviours during the isolation of COVID-19 lockdowns. My ex-racing rescue greyhound, Cosmo, has been a loving companion to me and my husband during the pandemic as we have been separated from our children.

This is a report on the inquiry of impact of seismic testing on fisheries and the marine environment. The inquiry established by the Greens looked into the impact of seismic testing on fisheries and on the marine environment, with particular reference to the body of science and research into the use of seismic testing, the regulation of seismic testing in both Commonwealth and state waters, and the approach taken to seismic testing internationally.

Australian Greens Animal Welfare spokesperson Senator Mehreen Faruqi has forced the release of draft animal welfare standards for poultry through a Senate order for documents. The standards and guidelines include a phase out of battery cages for hens by 2036.

Senator Faruqi said:

“This is good news and a welcome step in the right direction but the transition should certainly happen faster.

Senator FARUQI (New South Wales) (15:38): I move:

That there be laid on the table by the Minister representing the Minister for Agriculture, Drought and Emergency Management, by no later than 7.20 pm on Tuesday, 22 June 2021, the latest version of the Australian Animal Welfare Standards and Guidelines for Poultry produced by the Independent Poultry Welfare Panel and/or the Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment.

I rise to take note of the document Australian Meat and Live-stock Industry Act 1997—Livestock mortalities during export by sea—report for the period 1 July to 31 December 2020. These latest numbers help to confirm that in 2020, despite it being the year in which so much of the global economy and global trade was disrupted, the brutality of the live export trade still went on. Nothing, it seems, will stop the Australian government from continuing to export sheep and cattle for profit.