Sharkie calls for conscience vote on live-ex

Earlier this month she introduced the Animal Export Legislation Amendment (Ending Long-haul Live Sheep Exports) Bill 2018, based on a bill put forward by Liberal Sussan Ley, into federal parliament.

Ms Sharkie said there was already conscience votes allowed on other issues and she believed this was another topic that deserved that treatment.

She said her bill was driven by a recognition the live export industry to the Middle East was in decline.

“It’s partly because of technology in the Middle East and a change in the kind of product they are looking for,” she said.

“Long-haul live sheep exports account for only 6 per cent of our sheep and lamb off-take, and is supported predominantly by rapidly unwinding subsidies from Middle Eastern governments.

“Ninety-nine per cent of consumers in the Gulf have refrigeration and every Middle Eastern country accepts Australian halal slaughter.”

Related reading: Live sheep trade hangs by a micron

Live exports a live issue in parliament’s final week

Ms Sharkie said there was also a call coming from sheep producers.

“I’ve got local farmers saying it is probably time to transition out of the industry,” she said.

“We need to open our eyes and get ahead of the curve.

“My Bill should not be perceived as a threat, but as the impetus and opportunity to develop a supporting package of measures that help that 6pc transition away from long-haul live sheep export, and to support jobs, farmers, and humanely regulated abattoirs in Australia.”

Ms Sharkie said there was more opportunities growing on-shore for the chilled meat market, while it would also create more regional jobs by providing more diversity in processors.

“We only have a handful of processors across the nation but if you went back 20 years ago, we had that diversity with a number of places you could sell your lambs,” she said.

 “I’d much rather we were value-adding in Australia.”

She said the government should signal to the industry that within five years live export would be phased out, while also investing in new opportunities, such as providing low-interest loans similar to those used in the automotive industry.

“In Normanville they are desperate to get the closed meatworks up and running again,” she said.

She said the Normanville site would only require about $6 million in low-interest funding to be operational.

“The opportunities for reinvigorated and Australian standard abattoirs in my own electorate of Mayo, such as the current potential in Normanville, can be mirrored in WA and elsewhere,” she said.

Ms Sharkie said this bill was purely focused on the long-haul live sheep export, which had the highest mortality rates, and not on other live export trades, such as cattle.

She said the cattle industry’s shorter voyages into Asia had lower mortality, while there was also a lag behind the Middle East in refrigeration techniques for these destinations.

Ms Sharkie said the sheep live export market was also hurting Australia’s international reputation as a producer of quality sheep, with many sheep losing condition while travelling such long distances in hot weather.

“There are images of Australian lamb getting off ships and people think that’s what we do,” she said.