Page 4093 - Week 11 - Wednesday, 16 Sept 2009
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Banning these cages is also a move that is in line with the views of the majority of Canberrans, proven by recent surveys showing that 83 per cent of ACT residents believe that battery-cage farming is cruel. That is why new battery cages have been banned since 2003 in the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Austria, Spain, Belgium, Denmark, Sweden, Italy, Ireland, Germany, Luxemburg, the Netherlands, Portugal and Greece. From 2012, none of these countries will have laying hens in battery cages at all.
Mr Coe: They are all states with large cities in them.
MS BRESNAN: California, which I believe is a state, also voted last year to phase out battery cages by 2015.
The other parties have failed to take this simple action to end battery-cage farming in the territory. They have taken a weak and defeatist attitude. The government is unwilling to lead even when leadership is clearly what we need to end cage-egg production. With its relatively small industry, the territory is in the best position to lead in Australia but the government has made arguments to defend its inaction which are not credible and which are, in some cases, fanciful.
With no real reasons not to take action on this issue, it is clear that foremost in the government’s mind, and I would have to say the Liberal Party’s mind, is opposing initiatives of the Greens. The government’s reaction to this still is opposition for opposition’s sake. We saw the same reaction with the hot-water bill when the government simply wanted to silence something because it was led by the Greens. The government does not want to give any kudos to the Greens by supporting its legislation or initiatives. It is shameful that this political approach gets priority over action that will make a real difference to the community.
The main reason I have heard from those opposing the bill is that, if we passed it, Pace would just pack up and skip over the border. This is a very weak argument indeed. Would Parkwood really close its massive farm at West Macgregor and move across the border? It is very unlikely to happen. It ignores the reality of the situation. Parkwood is using it as a threat and this is being used as an excuse.
We should think about whether Pace would really risk all that cost and inconvenience to re-establish a large business somewhere else when there is clearly a huge market trend away from cage eggs here and worldwide. Parkwood would likely see the writing on the wall. There are many incentives to stay in the territory and convert, including the cheap lease offered by the government and the fact that all government agencies in the ACT are big purchasers and are now committed to buying non-cage eggs.
The fact that Pace is unlikely to move is why we believe there would not be any problems with lost jobs. This is another reason I have heard for voting against the Greens bill: that jobs will be lost at Parkwood. We do not support the argument that jobs will be lost. Parkwood would be a much bigger and better employer if it converted its outmoded cage systems to a barn or free-range system. Barn and free-range systems create many more jobs.
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