Michael McCormack (Riverina, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Today in Australia's north, farmers will start shooting cattle. Tonight in Indonesia, children will go to bed hungry. It is a national disgrace that this government will not resume the live cattle export trade to those abattoirs which comply with Australian killing standards. Waiting to board ships there are Australian cattle which could be sent to Australian-owned feedlots in Indon­esia and killed according to international animal welfare standards. However, the issue has been put into the Labor government's ever-growing delay basket. The Labor government says they want to trace these animals and that that is the important issue. Well, they will be able to trace them all the way to the pits where these dead animals will be dumped. Meanwhile, people go hungry.

Labor's refusal to do anything positive about this issue beggars belief and will cost this country jobs and millions of dollars. This has caused a diplomatic debacle which will have long-term repercussions. Labor's way is to turn it into a welfare issue by offering a $30 million compensation pack­age. What is needed is the immediate resumption of trade to those abattoirs which comply with Australian standards—that is, killing by stunning. Last week, I attended the Tumbarumba branch of the New South Wales Farmers Association annual meeting at Tooma where members expressed their disgust at the knee-jerk reaction to ban the trade. Many other local beef producers have also told me they cannot understand why the Gillard government will not listen to reason. Rest assured, I will continue to lobby for the immediate resumption of the trade to abattoirs which comply with our animal welfare standards. (Time expired)