Thursday, 19 March 2026

 Aiv PUGLIELLI (North-Eastern Metropolitan) (09:48): In 2025 almost half a million ducks were killed in Victoria during the hunting season, with over 100,000 left wounded. This is wildlife slaughter, and it is approved and supported by our Labor government. A couple of years ago an inquiry of this Parliament recommended that duck hunting be banned in our state, but the Premier and the Labor government chose to ignore this recommendation, so the killing continues. Six out of eight native duck species are in significant long-term decline. Our waterbirds are losing their habitat. They are under pressure from climate change. They are at risk from extreme weather events. The last thing that they need is to have hunters coming into their homes each year to hunt and kill them for fun. The Greens have never supported duck hunting. We will not ignore the precarious state of our native birds. We will not bow to the hunting lobby. We want to see our native ducks and quails protected and allowed to live in their natural habitats, safe from hunters. End duck hunting now. It should not have a place in our state, and it is one of those things that future generations will look back on saying, ‘Who on earth allowed this to continue?’