Tuesday, 16 November 2021

Animal welfare

Mr MEDDICK (Western Victoria) (12:09): My question is for the Minister for Agriculture in the other place. Last week a devastating fire tore through a shed in Carisbrook. Most reports in the media mentioned that the shed could not be saved, with no mention of what, or rather who, was inside. Inside the shed were tens of thousands of gentle, docile hens. The Farm Transparency Project acted on a tip-off and attended the wreckage, but sadly not a single one was spared. Every single one of these hens, treated as an egg-laying machine, was engulfed in the flames and smoke. Will the minister be undertaking an inquiry into how this fire took place and if it could have been avoided?

Ms TIERNEY (Western Victoria—Minister for Training and Skills, Minister for Higher Education) (12:10): Thank you, Mr Meddick, for your question and your ongoing concern for animals. The matter will be referred to the Minister for Agriculture for a response.

Mr MEDDICK (Western Victoria) (12:10): Thank you, Minister. The hens in this shed were part of a barn-laid operation. While not confined to cages, it is still a form of factory farming. What is the government doing to address intensive farming, which is broadly opposed by the public?

Ms TIERNEY (Western Victoria—Minister for Training and Skills, Minister for Higher Education) (12:10): Mr Meddick, I am not quite sure whether the supplementary is connected to the substantive, but regardless, I am happy to refer the matter to Minister Mary-Anne Thomas.