Ahead of next week's Melbourne Cup the Victorian Greens have introduced a motion to parliament calling on the Government to ban horse whipping.
As recent media reports have revealed, thousands of horses are currently being killed in knackeries and abattoirs and being subjected to extreme cruelty.
The Greens motion calls on the Government to:
- Ban the whipping of horses
- Implement a public horse traceability scheme so horses leaving the race industry can be tracked for their whole lives
- Introduce breeding caps and give all horses a dignified retirement
- Mandate that all funds provided to Victorian horse racing from the Government is spent on animal welfare
- Support a national Royal Commission into the racing industry
When Greens MP Tim Read asked the Government why it still allows the whipping of racehorses during question time this week, the Minister for Racing deflected by saying it was a federal issue and that it was inconceivable that one state could ban the whip until the whole country had.
Leader of the Victorian Greens, Samantha Ratnam, said it was time for the Government to wake up to the reality of animal cruelty and lead the way in Victoria by introducing legislation to ban the whip.
She added that the Government's close relationship with the racing industry was a cause for concern and a roadblock to protecting horses across the state.
As stated by Samantha Ratnam MLC, Leader of the Victorian Greens:
"We know the racing industry has a history of cruelty to animals and yet the Labor Government want to absolve themselves of any guilt by pretending they have no power to stop it.
"And it seems they have every reason to look the other way - while horses are being subjected to terrible harm, our Government continues to enjoy a cosy and mutually beneficial relationship with the industry.
"It's 2019 - the use of the whip in horse racing is an outdated and unnecessary form of animal cruelty and should be banned in Victoria."
