Wednesday, 15 September 2021

 Mr MEDDICK (Western Victoria) (11:07): My question is for the Minister for Agriculture. My office received footage of a rabbit farm in eastern Victoria that demonstrated multiple breaches of the animal welfare laws and codes over a prolonged period of time. The owner-operator denied systemic cruelty despite video evidence to the contrary. There was one rabbit who had a disease that had consumed half his face. The code states that:

Ailing or injured rabbits must be treated promptly … If necessary, they should be humanely destroyed.

The owner-operator failed to humanely euthanise the buck, named Phil. ‘It was an oversight because of my attachment to him’, he claims. However, attachment to an animal is not a defence to cruelty or neglect. A vet who is an expert on rabbits determined the facial affliction would have caused Phil to suffer greatly. Using that logic, however, the owner-operator must have been deeply attached to the numerous rabbits with head tilt, broken and exposed bones and ulcerations and must have really loved the sick rabbits who were thrown in the bin atop their dead kin. This place is a noxious petri dish of systemic cruelty and potential spread of zoonotic disease. Appallingly the department of agriculture opened and closed the case within two days. Will the minister conduct a thorough review of the cursory investigation conducted by the department of agriculture?

The PRESIDENT: I should have ruled your question out, Mr Meddick, because you went over time, but I will allow it. But, please, as I said last time, check the clock.

 Ms TIERNEY (Western Victoria—Minister for Training and Skills, Minister for Higher Education) (11:09): I thank the member for his question, a question that raises a number of issues, not just one or two. But I will refer the matter to the minister.

 Mr MEDDICK (Western Victoria) (11:09): Thank you, President. My apologies for going over. I was trying to watch the clock but obviously failed there. My supplementary is: will the minister, upon her review, ensure proper enforcement of animal welfare laws, ensuring breaches are penalised in accordance with the government’s commitment to genuinely improving animal welfare?

 Ms TIERNEY (Western Victoria—Minister for Training and Skills, Minister for Higher Education) (11:09): Again, I thank Mr Meddick for his supplementary, and I will refer the matter to Minister Thomas.