Joe Ludwig (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Manager of Government Business in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

Senator Back is correct when he identifies that the best thing we can do for industry is to get this industry up and running as quickly as possible, not one day later than it needs to be, but while ensuring that animal welfare outcomes are dealt with. Why? So that we have a sustainable industry for the longer term.

The alternative to that is the opposition's, who simply say that abattoirs are fine and therefore we should recommence the trade. This is the entire point: the industry would not have a safeguard against another incident occurring in two years or four years, which would put this industry again on the back foot. What is important to consider is that we do need to put in the supply chain assurance—that is, the tracking, the transparency and the independent auditing—so that we can safeguard animal welfare outcomes. That is the best form of assistance this industry could get. (Time expired)