❓ Question regarding the Dog Amendment (Stop Puppy Farming) Bill 2021, focusing on its impact on those exploiting dogs and identifying opposition. The Minister's answer defends the legislation against perceived undermining attempts by the opposition.
AnsweredQoN 454Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
DOG AMENDMENT (STOP PUPPY FARMING) BILL 2021
454. Ms L.L. BAKER to the Minister for Local Government:
My
question—unsurprisingly!—is to the Minister for Local
Government. I refer to the McGowan Labor government's commitment
to stopping the cruel and inhumane treatment of dogs through a combination of
strategies and our legislation to stop puppy farming, which passed through this
house yesterday. Can the minister remind the house what this legislation will
mean for people who choose to exploit dogs for their own commercial gain; and,
is the minister aware of anyone in this house or around the place who is still
opposed to this legislation?
454. Ms L.L. BAKER to the Minister for Local Government:
My
question—unsurprisingly!—is to the Minister for Local
Government. I refer to the McGowan Labor government's commitment
to stopping the cruel and inhumane treatment of dogs through a combination of
strategies and our legislation to stop puppy farming, which passed through this
house yesterday. Can the minister remind the house what this legislation will
mean for people who choose to exploit dogs for their own commercial gain; and,
is the minister aware of anyone in this house or around the place who is still
opposed to this legislation?
AnswerView source ↗
I want to thank the member for her
question. I think it is obvious and everyone knows in this house that the
member for Maylands has been an incredible
advocate, who worked with the former Minister for Local Government to d eliver this legislation. We took it as an election
commitment in 2017. We brought it back as a commitment in 2021, and yesterday,
it passed. It will tackle the cruel practice of puppy farms using a very
comprehensive system of regulation.
Unfortunately, the member is right;
there are those who wish to undermine this great legislation. I note that the
opposition spokesperson, Hon James Hayward, took to the radio this morning to
start the fear campaign. He said two things.
''We'll be stuck with a very rigid compliance regime that will
mean everybody's rates will have to go up to cover the cost''—scare
number one. He also said, ''We're not going to oppose the
legislation. The government's had
good support for it � We will certainly propose some amendments''. Let
us be clear. Number one is that we are creating a central registration
system that will make it easier to register and gain approvals. That will
assist local government. But what is also clear is that members of the
opposition want to gut the legislation. They say they support it, but, in fact,
they do not. They will gut the legislation, create enormous exemptions and not
allow for effective regulations. It should not be surprising that Hon James Hayward
and the other members do not understand dog welfare.
Dr D.J. Honey interjected.
Mr
J.N. CAREY : Thank you, member for
Cottesloe. I give the member some great credit. It is very clear from the
matter of public interest debate last night that he understands dog breeds and
dog welfare very well. He referred to the member for Kimberley as being a ''chi-chuana''!
Apparently, that is a new breed that I am not aware of. I understand that the member for Cottesloe knows of other
breeds that we are not at all aware of: the ''hard-border collier'',
the ''shiatsu'' and the ''bich-and-fries''! What we
are seeing from the member for Cottesloe is a ''congo'' line of
gaffes —
Several members interjected.
Mr J.N. CAREY : Conga, Congo!
Several members interjected.
Mr J.N. CAREY : I will never
live that one down!
Today, the member for Cottesloe
referred to ''James Carey, the housing minister''. I do want to
say that he is my long-lost brother. He is
actually a ''chi-chuana'' breeder in the south west! I understand
that the Liberal Party has hired some young Liberal gun to do its social
media and to keep making constant attacks, but perhaps the Leader of the
Liberal Party might get his party to actually invest in policy development,
rather than dirt units and social media attacks.
We are genuinely trying to make a better Western Australia. This legislation
will ensure effective regulations and protect all those beautiful dogs,
including the ''chi-chuanas''!
question. I think it is obvious and everyone knows in this house that the
member for Maylands has been an incredible
advocate, who worked with the former Minister for Local Government to d eliver this legislation. We took it as an election
commitment in 2017. We brought it back as a commitment in 2021, and yesterday,
it passed. It will tackle the cruel practice of puppy farms using a very
comprehensive system of regulation.
Unfortunately, the member is right;
there are those who wish to undermine this great legislation. I note that the
opposition spokesperson, Hon James Hayward, took to the radio this morning to
start the fear campaign. He said two things.
''We'll be stuck with a very rigid compliance regime that will
mean everybody's rates will have to go up to cover the cost''—scare
number one. He also said, ''We're not going to oppose the
legislation. The government's had
good support for it � We will certainly propose some amendments''. Let
us be clear. Number one is that we are creating a central registration
system that will make it easier to register and gain approvals. That will
assist local government. But what is also clear is that members of the
opposition want to gut the legislation. They say they support it, but, in fact,
they do not. They will gut the legislation, create enormous exemptions and not
allow for effective regulations. It should not be surprising that Hon James Hayward
and the other members do not understand dog welfare.
Dr D.J. Honey interjected.
Mr
J.N. CAREY : Thank you, member for
Cottesloe. I give the member some great credit. It is very clear from the
matter of public interest debate last night that he understands dog breeds and
dog welfare very well. He referred to the member for Kimberley as being a ''chi-chuana''!
Apparently, that is a new breed that I am not aware of. I understand that the member for Cottesloe knows of other
breeds that we are not at all aware of: the ''hard-border collier'',
the ''shiatsu'' and the ''bich-and-fries''! What we
are seeing from the member for Cottesloe is a ''congo'' line of
gaffes —
Several members interjected.
Mr J.N. CAREY : Conga, Congo!
Several members interjected.
Mr J.N. CAREY : I will never
live that one down!
Today, the member for Cottesloe
referred to ''James Carey, the housing minister''. I do want to
say that he is my long-lost brother. He is
actually a ''chi-chuana'' breeder in the south west! I understand
that the Liberal Party has hired some young Liberal gun to do its social
media and to keep making constant attacks, but perhaps the Leader of the
Liberal Party might get his party to actually invest in policy development,
rather than dirt units and social media attacks.
We are genuinely trying to make a better Western Australia. This legislation
will ensure effective regulations and protect all those beautiful dogs,
including the ''chi-chuanas''!
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.