O'Connor DamienANIMAL WELFARE AMENDMENT BILLSecond ReadingHon DAMIEN O'CONNOR (Minister of Agriculture): I present a legislative statement on the Animal Welfare Amendment Bill.ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Jacqui Dean): That legislative statement is published under the authority of the House and can be found on the Parliament website.Hon DAMIEN O'CONNOR: I move That the Animal Welfare Amendment Bill be now read a second time.The bill amends the Animal Welfare Act 1999 to end the export of livestock by sea and shows the Government's commitment to upholding New Zealand's reputation for high standards of animal welfare. This year our food and fibre sector is forecast to hit a record export revenue of over $50 billion demonstrating its value to New Zealand as we recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. Keeping our eyes on our future economic security it's vital we stay ahead of the curve in a world where animal welfare is under more and more scrutiny.The bill was referred to the Primary Production Committee in October 2021 and was reported back to this House in April 2022. The committee received and considered 637 submissions and heard oral evidence from 33 of these submitters. We sincerely thank the members of the Primary Production Committee for their consideration of the bill in the package but we also acknowledge the valuable input from both written and oral submitters and the considerable support the bill received from the public. The committee was split in their views and were unable to agree on whether they believed this bill should pass. Both National and ACT expressed differing views in which they believed that a focus should be made on regulatory improvement. However we already have a world-leading regulatory system for the export of livestock and no improvement would have been enough to protect the welfare of these animals and to protect New Zealand's reputation and there's plenty of evidence that I have here to prove that.At the heart of our decision is upholding New Zealand's reputation for high standards of animal welfare. The Government started a review of the livestock export trade in 2019 in response to concerns the trade could be a risk to New Zealand's reputation. The objective of the review was to provide New Zealanders an opportunity to reflect on how we can improve the welfare of livestock being exported. The review consulted on several options including both regulatory improvement and a complete ban on the trade. The Cabinet paper and decisions around the future of livestock exports was delayed due to the Government's response to COVID-19 but not long after we initiated the review there was the tragic sinking of the Gulf Livestock 1 in September 2020. This was the seventh livestock ship to have sunk since 2009 globally. Beyond the devastating loss of life—and I want to acknowledge the families of those New Zealanders who lost their lives—the sinking highlighted the concerns and the risks the trade poses to animal welfare. Since January 2019 27 of the 50 voyages to have left New Zealand have been in non-purpose-built converted vessels. Travelling for long lengths of time on any vessel let alone ones that are not purpose built for transporting livestock creates conditions that are not suitable for livestock welfare. Any recurrence of negative animal welfare incidents like this has the potential to inflict lasting damage to New Zealand's reputation and trade—no matter how hard we set animal welfare standards for the voyages and everyone's best efforts on those boats.On 14 April 2021 I announced the Government's decision to ban the export of cattle deer goats and sheep by ship with a transition period of two years. We acknowledge the economic benefits some farmers have and still get from the trade but support for it is not universal at all. There are different opinions on its long-term value and how it impacts on New Zealand's commitment to animal welfare. A key question to answer is whether the activity aligns with the international consumers' image of Aotearoa New Zealand. We have seen an increase in recent years with the direct value of New Zealand's livestock export trade increasing to $261 million for the year ending December 2020 following the $84 million income from 2019. There was a rapid lift in the value of the trade. It's hard to estimate the total number of farmers who use the trade as that can be dependent on conditions and on farm decisions from year to year. This is a fluctuating trade and the economic benefit is not consistent. It amounts to only around 0.2 percent of our primary sector revenue since 2015. New Zealand's $50 billion in primary sector exports which rely in large part on New Zealand's good name and reputation should not be put at risk for this relatively small trade.I acknowledge that those involved in the trade have made improvements over recent years but the voyage times and the journey through the tropics to the Northern Hemisphere markets will always impose animal welfare challenges. Despite the best efforts of industry and the Ministry for Primary Industries as well as any regulatory measures that we could put in place as long as the trade continues the risk to animal welfare will remain. We've also seen an increase in consumer focus on perceptions of animal welfare in a number of markets such as the United States the EU and the UK. With these market-led insights in mind recurrent negative animal welfare incidents and reports could inflict lasting damage to New Zealand's reputation.I acknowledge that demand for livestock exports by sea has increased in recent years. However as noted already they still only amount to approximately 0.2 percent of our primary sector export revenue since 2015. The Government has set—and you know it's been debated and criticised by many out there—a two-year transition period for the trade which will end on 30 April 2023 next year. This allows stakeholders and our trading partners time to adopt alternative options and gives those farmers and others involved in the trade enough time to change their business models. We recognise the importance of our relationships with international partners and are committed to working with them to boost trade through other means. The decision to ban livestock exports by sea has been discussed with our trading partners. They are aware of why we have come to this decision. I am informed that most of the other affected parties—exporters farmers trading partners and importers—are aware of the ban and understand the intent of the transition period.During the transition period we are continuing with improvements being made to the trade. Following the tragic loss of the Gulf Livestock 1 and an independent Heron review a series of recommendations were implemented immediately and longer-term improvements will continue to be implemented as part of the livestock export continuous improvement work programme. But nonetheless risks with long-distance travel by livestock through the tropics with the consequential heat stress and risks associated with travel through the high seas mean we must act to protect New Zealand's reputation on animal welfare. Our commitment to high animal welfare standards has already shown its value in animal welfare discussions in free-trade agreement negotiations with the United Kingdom. They were adamant that we had to have and maintain high animal welfare standards. The same expectation is there for the European Union when we're negotiating with them—as we are at the moment. New Zealand needs to stay at the forefront to maintain its reputation as an exporter with high standards of animal welfare.Making this change to the Animal Welfare Act 1999 will prohibit the live exports of cattle deer goats and sheep by ship from 30 April 2023. In doing so we reinforce and build on New Zealand's reputation as a safe and ethical producer of high-quality products from animal management. There are numerous images and I know that submissions were made to the select committee that showed the conditions that are often present on these long voyages of up to three weeks. I spoke directly and rang around before I made this decision with people who had been on many of these voyages and reported directly from where the animals were landed and we saw some of those images from Sri Lanka. It is absolutely essential that if we're to get premiums for our products in international markets we maintain the highest standards of animal welfare and that we do not continue with the live exports of animals by ship because of the inherent risks to animal welfare and our reputation.