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Legislative Council - Fifty-Second Parliament, First Session (52-1)
2011-06-23 Daily Xml
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RITUAL SLAUGHTER

The Hon. T.A. FRANKS (15:01): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the minister representing the Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries a question about ritual slaughter.

Leave granted.

The Hon. T.A. FRANKS: The Four Corners program entitled 'A Bloody Business' saw an outpouring of community sentiment rarely seen in this country—hundreds of thousands of everyday Australians, all justifiably outraged, sickened and horrified by examples of cruelty. In response, the Australian government acted appropriately to immediately suspend the live export trade to Indonesia, citing the lack of pre-stunning as a major concern.

I am, therefore, shocked to see in today's Australian newspaper the Executive Director of Biosecurity SA, Mr Will Zacharin, quoted as confirming that nine South Australian slaughterhouses—

Members interjecting:

The Hon. T.A. FRANKS: When you are ready—three from Victoria, two from WA and one from New South Wales—and I repeat: nine in South Australia—are accredited to slaughter livestock without pre-stunning. The Australian standard for the hygienic production and transportation of meat and meat products for human consumption permits ritual slaughter, with clause 7.12(2) stating:

An animal that is stuck without first being stunned and is not rendered unconscious as part of its ritual slaughter is stunned without delay after it is stuck to ensure that it is rendered unconscious.

However, the RSPCA states that, in fact, ritual slaughter of sheep does not comply with this standard and they are forced to bleed out after they have had their throats cut. My questions are:

1. Can the minister advise whether these nine facilities in South Australia that have been given exemptions do, in fact, comply with the standard to stun the animals after they have been stuck and, if not, what action will be taken to rectify this?

2. Does the minister accept that allowing ritual slaughter to be conducted in South Australia undermines our national stance against animal cruelty and exposes Australians as hypocrites on the world stage?

3. Furthermore, given the fact that halal slaughtering widely accepts the practice of stunning animals prior to slaughter in any case, will the minister commit to accepting the recommendation from the RSPCA to end the practice of ritual slaughter in South Australia?

The Hon. G.E. GAGO (Minister for Regional Development, Minister for Public Sector Management, Minister for the Status of Women, Minister for Consumer Affairs, Minister for Government Enterprises, Minister for Gambling) (15:04): I thank the honourable member for her most important question. Indeed, I think that most of us in this chamber would have seen, if not the Four Corners program itself recently televised, excerpts of that, and I am sure we all agree that the treatment of cattle by the Indonesian abattoirs that were portrayed was deplorable. It was horrific and completely unacceptable. I know that I share the same horror as other members, when we were made aware of that.

I am advised that the federal Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries, the Hon. Joe Ludwig, has made an announcement in relation to suspending the export of live cattle to Indonesia. He has announced a full investigation of these practices, and he is saying that this investigation will be conducted into this issue using an independent reviewer, I understand, to investigate the whole supply chain of live cattle export to Indonesia, up to and including the point of slaughter.

I know that minister O'Brien has welcomed the investigation. I have also been advised that no cattle are exported from South Australia to ports in Indonesia, so that should provide some sense of assurance and form of relief to members. Obviously, in relation to the details of the questions that the honourable member has raised, I am happy to refer those to the minister in another place and bring back a response.

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