Mary Fisher (SA, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

Thank you and congratulations, Mr Deputy President. I rise to take note of answers given by Senator Ludwig today and to commiserate with Senator Furner on the crocodile tears that he has shed and that his colleagues are shedding as to the state of the cattle industry in Australia. Crocodile tears are all they are. This is a government that has been cowed into submission. It has been cowed into suspending our live cattle trade with Indonesia—cowed into a blanket suspension that is all pain for no gain. It is all pain for Indonesian cattle, which continue to be slaughtered daily in Indonesian abattoirs. It is all pain for the Indonesians themselves, who have a government that is clearly miffed.

The Australian Labor Party are trying to suggest that they are working with the Indonesian government. The Indonesian government are clearly miffed at the lack of consultation prior to the blanket banning of trade with their country. They are so clearly miffed that they have today announced that there will be no more import licences for three months. It is all pain and no gain. What about Australian cattle? As my colleague Senator Back has mentioned, Bos indicus cattle coming down from the north to the south aren't gonna put on any condition if they are trucked south. And every time you handle cattle—every time you handle any animal—you risk stressing them? What about the carbon miles in transporting cattle from the north down to the south or to the west?

As for the compensation that has recently been announced by the government to the industry of $30 million plus some $5 million plus some Centrelink payments—please! How offensive. And what a waste, because the only reason the government is even having to contemplate making those payments is that it is in the process of trashing our live export trade and, in particular, our cattle trade to Indonesia. What a waste, and how offensive. All that the industry wants is its trade back up to those abattoirs in Indonesia which we know treat our cattle humanely. So whose bidding is the Australian Labor Party really doing? Is it the bidding of the Australian Greens? How low will this government stoop? Will it support the Australian Greens' bill to ban live exports, writ large? Is that how low this Australian government will go? Alternatively, will it stoop so low as to adopt the policy of the New South Wales Greens, who in May 2010, according to their website—I am sure Senator Rhiannon can talk more about this—considered it environ­mentally essential to decrease production of animals for food and other products? Australian Labor Party, do you know about this? Is this how low you are going to stoop? The Labor Party may be in government, but they know that the Greens are in power.

What is Senator Brown's position on the New South Wales Greens' policy? Has he had a discussion with Senator Rhiannon about it yet? While we are at it, how extensively do the Greens consult with their constituents and their supporters? For my part, in this Parliament House today is my aunt, once an Independent senator—and a very good Independent senator, although quite some political policies apart from me—for Western Australia, Jo Vallentine. Former Senator Vallentine is here. Is it for me being sworn in? No. I wish she were here to support me, but she is here to support the nine Greens senators sworn in today, which I find a bit tragic. But former Senator Vallentine and I grew up in the same farm­house in Western Australia. I cannot believe that former Senator Vallentine, as a stalwart of the Greens, would really support decreasing production of animals for food and other animal products. (Time expired)

Question agreed to.