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House of Assembly - Fifty-First Parliament, Second Session (51-2)
2007-10-24 Daily Xml
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RODEOS, REGULATIONS

The Hon. G.M. GUNN (Stuart) (11:31): I move:

That the regulation made under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1985 entitled Rodeos, made on 16 August 2007 and laid on the table of this house on 11 September 2006, be disallowed.

This regulation is another exercise of Sir Humphrey Appleby's South Australian division in making life difficult for the people of this state.

Ms Breuer: Back in 1971.

The SPEAKER: Order!

Ms Breuer: You've made the same speeches for the last 30 years.

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. G.M. GUNN: I can guarantee one thing to the member for Whyalla: I have been elected here 12 times, but you will not have that privilege.

Ms Breuer interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. G.M. GUNN: This particular document is a bureaucrat's paradise. It deals with the regulation of rodeos and states that only horses and cattle are to be used. If the people running the rodeos wanted to have a parade of camels or some of the participants wanted to have their dogs there, they would not be allowed to. The regulations refer to a permit to conduct a rodeo. I say to the minister: just give us one reason why people should have to have a permit. A few weeks ago I was very fortunate—

Mr Pisoni interjecting:

The Hon. G.M. GUNN: Just listen to this. A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of meeting the board that runs the Calgary Stampede. They had 1.2 million people attend that event. They had no permit from the Alberta provincial government, none from the federal government and none from the City of Calgary. They were appalled and amazed at this sort of nonsense when I showed them.

The Hon. S.W. Key: They're real cowboys.

The Hon. G.M. GUNN: Well, it is one of the biggest sporting events in the world. It attracts people from all over the world. They are not hindered and harassed in the way this government intends—

Ms Breuer: They support capital punishment over there.

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. G.M. GUNN: I suggest to the honourable member that she obviously is a friend of the bureaucrats. She wants to put controls on people and she wants to go along with all this nonsense which will mean that people will have to fill out forms. She is part of a program to make life so difficult that these people will have to shut up shop. That is all it is about. I challenge the member to read these regulations and see whether it is a good idea. I doubt that she has taken the trouble to do so. You have to have a permit. Listen to what it says:

(1) An application for a permit to a conduct a rodeo must be made at least 28 days before the day on which the proposed rodeo is to be held.

(2) The application must contain the name and address of—

(a) the designated permit holder; and

(b) the designated rodeo judge; and

(c) the designated veterinary surgeon; and

(d) the designated stock contractor,

and be signed by the designated permit holder.

We have already had the disgraceful action taken against one of the permit holders. It was disgraceful the way that person was prosecuted, and those responsible should be ashamed of themselves. The government should compensate him for the way in which he was treated by those malicious people involved in this sort of nonsense. These are volunteers at Carrieton and Spalding—they are doing some good, raising money for the Flying Doctor—and there is only a small band of them. I do not know whether members have ever been to a place like Carrieton a few days after Christmas, but it is a great evening event. For a little community like Carrieton, there are these regulations, which state:

General requirements for conducting rodeos

(1) A person must not conduct a rodeo at which there is not sufficient fencing.

Well, that is common sense. There are penalties involved, and you want to slug these people. It goes on to provide for `inspection by designated rodeo judge' and `regulation of the care of rodeo animals'. These people do not need this type of bureaucracy: the people who own the animals make a living from them , so they are going to look after them. Then a report must be made to the minister. Does the South Australian National Football League make a report to the minister about the conduct of the South Australian National Football League Grand Final? Of course they don't—and they would laugh at the government at such a suggestion. As the chap said to me at the Calgary Stampede, ‘We wouldn't put up with this nonsense. It is so stupid and so condescending.' It is a reflection on the attitude they have toward volunteers, particularly people living in isolated rural communities.

If you think you are going to get away with this without giving us a free kick in the goal square, you have another think coming to you, because I intend to make sure that people in rural South Australia clearly understand the vindictive nature of these regulations, the vindictive attitude of those malcontents who are trying to make life so difficult, and the foolish bureaucrats in question. The minister is so weak to go along with this. Where is the government? Why has the honourable minister at the table, who claims to be a conservative person, gone along with this sort of nonsense?

Surely, if people took the trouble to look at these regulations, they would know that this is just another encumbrance on volunteers and people in rural areas. I am appalled that this house would have sat idle and let these regulations come into being. It is a reflection upon those who are administering the affairs of the Department for Environment and Heritage that they should want to make life so difficult. The worst aspect of this is that, when they announced what they were doing, on the day of the budget estimates committee the minister indicated that she had spoken to the RSPCA. However, the government had not even had the courtesy to discuss these matters with the people running the rodeos before she issued her press release. It is all right for the Government Whip to throw her hands in the air and look dumbfounded; these are the facts.

Mrs GERAGHTY: On a point of order, Mr Speaker, I did not look dumbfounded; I was just amazed at the member's comments.

The SPEAKER: There is no point of order. The member for Torrens will take her seat. The member for Stuart.

The Hon. G.M. GUNN: Well, it is obvious that government members are fairly touchy about this subject to react so quickly. Obviously, they are not comfortable with having been dragged along kicking and screaming about this. The member for Giles has picnic race meetings in her electorate. Remember that some of the events they have there are going to come under this umbrella. In the future the honourable member hopes to represent Oodnadatta: what about the programs they have up at Oodnadatta? They will come under this umbrella. What about William Creek? People there raise money; it is a small, hard-working group of volunteers.

There is no need for this sort of nonsense. Common sense ought to apply, and we should have the minimum amount of bureaucracy affecting these things so that hard-working volunteers are not encumbered with unnecessary paperwork which takes time and effort. At the end of the day, if we are not careful, it will be so difficult that they will not want to be involved. I commend the motion to the house.

Mr VENNING (Schubert) (11:41): I rise briefly to support the member for Stuart and to congratulate him on his dedication to the cause in relation to the rodeo movement right across South Australia and, indeed, you could say, Australia. I am involved, of course, with the Marrabel Rodeo (or I was, when it was in my electorate) and, in earlier days, in Spalding and Crystal Brook—when they had one. All I can say is that, over the years, there have been very few incidents that would concern people in relation to cruelty to animals.

The member for Stuart has gone to a lot of trouble to bring information to this house. In fact, he has travelled all over the world researching this subject. The information he brings to the house is valuable and ought to be listened to and considered by the government because, after all, he has taken that interest and he represents these people. I have not heard from anybody from the government side campaigning against what the member for Stuart is trying to do. Indeed, I do not believe that the RSPCA and the Cruelty to Animals Act have been raised with me or with anybody else. It is just a matter that has crept up on us in this house.

I was very much aware of what happened at Marrabel (I think 12 to 18 months ago) when a person or persons were interfering with the activities on the day. All I can say, for those who do not know, is that there are always registered veterinarians present at these functions—always. You can be assured that the horses that are used are professional rodeo horses and know exactly what to expect, and very few of them have any discomfort or any marks of injury. Occasionally it does happen, particularly with the leg roping of calves, but that can also happen when cattle are yarded on farms. It can happen there, too; there is no difference at all.

People on the rodeo grounds are very experienced in the handling of stock, sheepdogs and cattle dogs. Yes; I agree that if electric prodders are used I certainly would have some concern, but in some instances you have to be cruel to be kind. I have used a cattle prodder on the farm over the years, particularly with pigs and cows, just to move them through, rather than them getting excited in the bail, jumping over the side and injuring themselves. Rather than belting them with a stick, a quick zap with a prodder can certainly remind them where you want them to go.

Again, I want to pay a very high tribute to the volunteers who raise a lot of money for our various communities through the rodeo associations and those people who put their names up, and particularly the officials at the Marrabel Rodeo, who personally took the brunt for the activity that was taken against them by the RSPCA. When individual people are singled out and named in a public arena purely because they are public officers of a rodeo but they have done nothing wrong, I think it is despicable. It is not fair; it is just blatantly not fair. These people know who they are and, again, I pay tribute to them for the work that they do to raise money and for the entertainment they provide because—

The Hon. G.M. Gunn: We will be naming those other people in the parliament and moving to censure the bureaucrats next time it happens.

Mr VENNING: I agree with Mr Gunn that they should be named in the parliament. I commend these people. They have contacted me about the frustration of being publicly named purely because they are public persons representing the association. I do not think is fair and, really, it flies in the face of a fair go.

Finally, I want to commend and sincerely thank the rodeo movement for the money it raised for the Royal Flying Doctor Service and all these other very worthwhile charities, not to mention the money raised in the small communities. Even the local hotel at Marrabel does extremely well on rodeo days. If it were not for these types of events, there would not be a hotel at Marrabel, because there would be very little trade. Those big events keep that hotel there; they are a most important part of the community; indeed, without them there probably would not be a Marrabel community.

All the volunteers work by carting the stock and the fodder, and they prepare the grounds. All this work is done by volunteers. The fuel used to cart the stock is all donated. We should not sit here and be judgmental about these people purely because some goody-two-shoes from the RSPCA—some malcontent—says, 'This is cruel.' In the end, we will not be able to eat meat!

The Hon. G.M. Gunn: Next time they put her in the trough they should put detergent with it.

Mr VENNING: I heard the comment from the member for Stuart. I will not necessarily agree with that one, sir—in relation to the malcontent in the trough. I want to pay tribute to my colleague the member for Stuart. If there is a stoush in this place and I have to pick a combatant to go with me, give me the member for Stuart every time—not only in this place but outside! Members can enter this debate and all have a say, but you have to admit that the Hon. Graham Gunn, the member for Stuart, flies against the political swing.

Labor thought it would have the seat at the last election—well, it did not get it. It is with issues such as these that the fearless activity of the member for Stuart gets him re-elected. So let it be a lesson to all of us: go in to bat for people whom this system squeezes or ignores and you will get your reward. As members would know, the member for Stuart is a survivor in a very marginal seat. Labor will not win the seat for as long as he occupies it, because he is who he is. I commend the member for Stuart for what he is doing for the rodeos. I support him and I support this issue, and I hope that the house will, too.

Ms BREUER (Giles) (11:47): I want to speak briefly on this matter, because I admire the member for Stuart's passion. When it comes to new legislation or regulations, he repeats the same speech and manages to adapt it very well. I wish I had the ability to do that. I do actually support rodeos. Certainly, in my part of the state, rodeos are an important part of the culture and a way of life. I certainly appreciate the amount of money that rodeos have raised. I also appreciate the work of the volunteers involved, and the amount of work that has to be done prior to the day: it is a very important part of each event. I would hate to see rodeos banned. I certainly do not agree with the stand of the 'no rodeo' people who emerged at the last election. I thought that some of the material that was produced by them was emotional; indeed, some of it was ridiculous and way over the top. I had a number of run-ins with the people involved in that and certainly do not support anything they say.

However, I do support some regulations and legislation applying to rodeos. I think we have to be very careful. As the member for Stuart pointed out, it is a long way out there and things could happen if we did not have certain regulations. I am quite comfortable with the regulations that have been introduced, because I always believe that if you are doing nothing wrong then you have nothing to worry about, whatever is legislated, whether it involve speeding fines or murder penalties. If you are not doing anything wrong then do not worry about it. When people complain to me about restrictions that come in regarding speed limits, road rules, etc., I say, 'Well, if you're not doing it wrong, what's your problem?' It is the same with this matter. I cannot see that there is an issue there. If people are behaving responsibly and the animals are well looked after, then what is the issue with having some regulations behind it?

People have to write reports; I am sorry about that, as I know it is a chore, but that is the way of the world nowadays. You cannot get anything for nothing; you must produce material. If you want a grant of some sort, you have to write a submission, you have to report on issues and on a whole number of things. That is the way of the world. So, I do not think that any of these regulations will upset too many people if it is necessary for them to write a report. If they are doing the right thing, it will not be an issue for them.

I think that the member for Stuart is over the top here. I appreciate that he has been to Calgary and seen the biggest rodeo in the world. That sounds like a wonderful study trip and well worth it for the member for Stuart. I cannot say that I have ever considered doing something like that; however, we all have different views on the world. I think that, if I went on a trip overseas, I could find more important things to do than look at what happens in Calgary. However, he has brought back some knowledge to us, and that is important.

I support the regulations. I cannot support the member for Stuart's motion. I admire what is happening out there in our communities and I appreciate the work they do, but I still believe that you must have some controls and standards. We can look at some of the farming practices of the past. We have now changed some of those, and some were very dodgy in their day. At the time, people believed they were fine, but we have come a long way since then and now realise that perhaps the way things were handled was not quite correct. I support what is happening, and I certainly do not support the member for Stuart's motion.

Mr GRIFFITHS (Goyder) (11:51): I support the member for Stuart in his motion, and I thank him very much for the information he has imparted to us in our party room about the important role rodeos play. I am not a big rodeo person but, from 1993 to 1998, I was lucky enough to live in Orroroo, very close to Carrieton, which has a fantastic community event each year between Christmas and new year—the Carrieton Rodeo. I know the people in Carrieton quite well, even though I have been gone from there for nearly 10 years. In the time I lived in that community it was really obvious to me that, although the town itself had only 50 people who lived in it, and probably about 300 people who lived in what was defined as the old council district, they all had a passion for their community.

They saw that, in order for them to ensure that they had some form of future in services provided in their town, the greatest opportunity was to hold the rodeo, because all the profit from it went back into the community. It kept the garage alive, it kept the shop going and it made a big difference to the hotel. It was not just the fact that a few people might work there at the time of the rodeo; everybody of every age demographic—no matter how old or young you were—you were doing something. You were on the gate, you were cooking the barbecues, or you were running the bar. It really demonstrated to me that small communities are the ones who work the absolute best, and there is no doubt about that.

Carrieton itself does not necessarily have a lot to offer, other than its personality and the people who live there. However, it does very well in Tidy Towns competitions. I used to think that Ross Swayne, who was the Tidy Towns judge, must have been a love child of Carrieton, because he voted for it so often. It really demonstrates that they want to make sure that they have a future. Each year, something like $50,000 or so was retained by that group, and money was made available to the tennis club and the cricket club (whom I had the pleasure of playing against quite often; they are very sociable and hospitable when you play there). It takes a while to get home when you go to a game at Carrieton, as it is normally dark and a bit dangerous because you have to run through kangaroo-infested territory. It is a great place.

I know also that there is a need for a review to ensure the safety of all participants in rodeos, be they the riders or the animals. From what I understand, the intention to increase the weight to 200 kilograms is wrong. Our advice is that it should be what it was before, that is, 100 kilograms. I support the member in his motion. My first exposure to the Hon. Mr Gunn was when I was lucky enough to be the district clerk in the Orroroo council area, and he was the local member. He would drop in and talk to me about a lot of different things, and it was very clear to me that he had a passion for the whole of the community he served, and Stuart is an enormous electorate. He does not look after just one community, he looks after all of them. To him, it is symptomatic of what occurs in that northern part of the state.

These people do it tough for a lot of different reasons. They need some support. They, and all of us on this side, see rodeos as an important opportunity for them still to be proud of themselves after some very serious financial issues over the years, with drought, grasshoppers, locusts and floods at the wrong time of the year. They need something to pin their hopes on, and the rodeo is part of that. I would hate to see any regulation that affects the ability of that community or, indeed, all communities across South Australia that run rodeos very successfully, to ensure that they have a chance to be there in the future. I commend the motion, and I hope that the house supports it.

Mr RAU (Enfield) (11:55): I have a very brief contribution to make on this subject. I think that, probably, the two members in this chamber who have the most information about this are the members for Stuart and Giles. I think that their points do not become improved in any way by being repeated by me. I am concerned as a person who has great respect for the member for Stuart that what we have seen today is the beginning of a campaign launched by the member for Schubert to compel the member for Stuart to run yet again at the next election. I think that the member for Stuart, if he wishes to do so—and I emphasise that I am not wishing to judge this; it is a matter entirely for him—and if he wishes to enjoy the fruits of his many years here and relax with his family and everything, he should not be persuaded by the member for Schubert to come back here again. I think the member for Schubert is actually drafting him. That is the way that I understood his speech.

Whilst I understood what the member for Schubert was saying, and I understand that he is a formidable campaigner, I think that the member for Schubert should be kind enough to the member for Stuart to let him make up his own mind about these important matters. The member for Stuart does have people who wish to see more of him at home, and I think that he should be given that opportunity if he wishes to take it.

Mrs GERAGHTY (Torrens) (11:56): Everyone in our community expects all animals to be treated humanely, whether they are domestic animals—dogs, cats and birds, and what have you—

The Hon. G.M. Gunn interjecting:

Mrs GERAGHTY: We probably will not go there. It is an important issue—

Mr Venning interjecting:

Mrs GERAGHTY: That is true; there are issues about cats. My understanding is that this move has been supported by the rodeo clubs. I think minister Gago—

The Hon. G.M. Gunn interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! The member for Stuart will have his opportunity.

Mrs GERAGHTY: I think that minister Gago has been somewhat maligned in here. My understanding is that it was at her request that the near final draft (I think that is what it was called) of the regulations was sent to the people who were at the Marabel meeting who had left their names and addresses for future contact. Those people were actually aware of what the regulations may look like and were given an opportunity to comment. I will also put on the record some facts.

As far as I am aware—and I am sure that this is quite accurate—senior officers of the RSPCA were extensively consulted in the development of the proposed regulations, and the rodeo industry was consulted at a meeting in July 2007. Those clubs and the Australian Professional Rodeo Association attended that meeting, along with officers of the Department for Environment and Heritage and the RSPCA. Minor changes were made to the regulations as a result of the issues that were raised by those people at the meeting. I think it is unfair to say that there was no consultation at all because, clearly, there was.

Mr WILLIAMS (MacKillop) (11:59): The regulations that are before us presuppose that the people involved in rodeos are people who do not actually work and live with these animals in their daily lives, and are the people who in some way want to harm and hurt animals. The people who are involved in rodeos are, in fact—

The Hon. J.M. Rankine interjecting:

Mr WILLIAMS: This presupposes that people's default position would be to do something wrong to these animals; I am arguing that the default position of these people is actually to love and look after these animals. These are the very people who work with these sorts of animals on a daily basis. This nonsense that the member for Stuart often rails against is because there are groups within our communities who want to see us stop doing anything associated with animals. In the first instance they want us to stop eating animals.

Well, as I always say, if humans were not meant to eat animals we would not have these teeth in our head known as canines, because they are principally there so that we can tear flesh—the member for Goyder has the idea. We are inherently designed to eat other animals, but there are a number of people in our community who want us to refrain from eating animals, and this is part of the process upon which they are intent. They want to stop every activity. This is not about cruelty to animals; this is about changing the society we live in, that is what it is about.

As I said, people involved with rodeos are people who work with animals on a daily basis. They mainly come out of the cattle industry, and on a large number of pastoral properties across northern South Australia the horse is still the main piece of machinery used on the property to do the daily work of mustering and moving stock, checking waterholes and things. These people work with these animals every day, and they know what would happen if they injured one of them. The animals are not only their friend, they are absolutely essential to their survival in their place of work and they do whatever they can to look after the animals.

The regulations are principled on something that is totally wrong and totally flawed, and that is the first instance where I think they get it wrong. What they are designed to do is to make the running of a rodeo as difficult as possible. This is an incremental movement, and we will see more and more regulations; it will be an incremental shift to try to make it impossible for someone to run a rodeo in the future. That is why the member for Stuart says that we should draw a line in the sand and stop this nonsense. There are plenty of powers in existing legislation to bring people to justice if they are doing the wrong thing.

Debate adjourned.

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