Animal Activists
Mr PERRETT (Gympie—LNP) (2.12 pm): Queensland farmers are under attack and they are
being let down by this incompetent Labor government. As animal activists and extremists plaster
farmers’ personal details, including their locations, on the Aussie Farms website—the same website
that encourages members of the public to trespass onto our farms and terrorise farmers and their
families for just doing their job and running their businesses—this government sits back and does
nothing. As a serial animal activist who illegally trespassed at a piggery and a neighbouring chicken
farm on the Sunshine Coast was handed a $200 fine with no conviction recorded, this government does
nothing.
In December last year, a gang of about 30 animal activists stormed the Mount Cotton Golden
Cockerel facility, shutting down and compromising production standards. Their ignorant actions actually
caused a number of birds to die in the process and cost more than $50,000 in business losses. Again,
this government did nothing. Earlier this week an animal extremist in Western Australia used the Aussie
Farms website to find a piggery to trespass and then proceeded to live stream a video straight onto
social media. How long will it be before we get copycat activities like this in Queensland?
Our farmers are under siege and this Labor government and its agriculture minister are missing
in action. The agriculture minister could amend the biosecurity regulations to include penalties for
individuals who illegally enter farms, risking biosecurity contamination, regardless of the trespasser’s
intent, so what is stopping him? The minister should listen to farmer organisations that have called for
stronger trespass laws to protect their members.
Why is it that this incompetent minister is silent? Why is Labor silent when it comes to protecting
our farmers from extremists? Is it that this Labor government is captive to the very animal extremists
that are terrorising our farmers? Is it captive to the many out-of-touch groups who could not care less
about rural and regional Queenslanders? Queensland farmers deserve a minister ready to go in to bat
for them, not just someone who will kowtow to Labor’s inner-city animal activists. They clearly do not
have one in this minister. It is time our farmers were given the protections they deserve from these
animal extremists.
Queensland should be leading the way in standing up for our farmers, not missing in action. It is
completely unacceptable to see animal extremists terrorising hardworking Queensland farmers while
the minister lacks the fortitude to do what is needed to protect them. It is time to strengthen our
biosecurity regulations to protect our farmers and their businesses from malicious animal extremists. It
is time to strengthen and fix our trespass laws to ensure they actually work and offer a deterrent to
these thugs. Only the Liberal National Party stands up for Queensland farmers by protecting them from
animal activists.