Page 3305 - Week 09 - Wednesday, 21 August 2019
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Crime—criminal trespass offences
MR WALL (Brindabella) (5.08): I move:
That this Assembly:
(1) notes:
(a) the ACT is home to a number of animal related businesses, including primary production, wildlife parks, as well as research facilities such as the CSIRO;
(b) recent protests around Australia co-ordinated by vegans opposed to all forms of livestock production;
(c) that up to 100 people at a time have stormed onto family farms, the addresses of which have been published online, with the intention of intimidating, threatening and bullying the owners;
(d) that these groups oppose many forms of animal related business and research, including wildlife parks;
(e) the ACT has already experienced agricultural attacks when, in 2011, Greenpeace protesters destroyed genetically modified wheat designed to increase nutrition and bowel health developed by the CSIRO;
(f) that any potential protests targeting wildlife parks pose a significant biosecurity and quarantine risk to the ACT and the broader Australian community;
(g) the Commonwealth Government’s call for states and territories to strengthen penalties and enforcement of criminal trespass offences for such events if they are carried out in the ACT; and
(h) that the NSW Government has passed legislation, creating a new offence for those causing a biosecurity risk by trespassing on a farm that incurs on the spot fines of $1 000 increasing to $220 000 for breaching farm biosecurity plans; and
(2) calls on the ACT Government to:
(a) commit to developing legislation to strengthen criminal trespass offences in line with the financial penalties recently implemented in NSW;
(b) ensure legislation in the ACT offers protection to all forms of animal related businesses, including primary production, wildlife parks and research facilities; and
(c) condemn such offences and commit to actively deterring protests that illegally interfere with the conduct of a business.
I am pleased to have the opportunity to bring this motion to the Assembly today, taking what the opposition sees as prudent steps in light of extreme activism that has been occurring in other jurisdictions.
Animal activism is not new, but the kind of extreme animal activism that is destroying businesses and posing real threats to our biosecurity at the present time takes so-called activism to a brand-new level. The vandalism and criminal activity that goes with this
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