Senator Mehreen Faruqi, Australian Greens Deputy Leader and Spokesperson for Animal Welfare, has criticised efforts by the live sheep export industry to pressure Labor into backflipping on their election promise to ban live sheep exports, as reported today.
Senator Faruqi said:
"Labor went to the last two federal elections with a policy to end live sheep export, a measure that polling repeatedly shows is supported by a clear majority of people."
"The Government must stare down this brazen attempt by a cruel and brutal industry to bully it into backflipping on that promise."
"The industry's claims that it has reformed and can now be trusted is rubbish. Sheep continue to die in large numbers on live export ships and suffer oppressive heat stress."
"We know even the most basic transparency measures, such as independent observers, are not being followed, making a mockery of any of their animal welfare claims. The Government is being taken for a ride by this cruel industry.
"The industry is right on one thing though: Animal welfare campaigners won't stop at just the live sheep industry. Live animal export should be shut down entirely, as New Zealand is doing. It is simply incompatible with animal welfare."
