Live Animal Export Ban to Remain as Government Rules Out Reinstatement

Dr John Hellstrom, once the Government's chief veterinarian officer and later chair of the country's National Animal Welfare Advisory Committee (NAWAC) for seven years, has long been an animal welfare advocate. He, along with various animal groups including the SPCA, organised the petition after the coalition Government promised to lift the ban on live exports put in place by the previous Labour government.

The main advocate for lifting the ban was ACT's Andrew Hoggard, who promised that new gold standards would be put in place to ensure the welfare of animals on ships. But in the end he had to reveal that there was no appetite in Cabinet for changing what is already in place.

Hellstrom says this latest decision by the National-led coalition is effectively the end of the road for the future of live exports of animals from NZ.

"The trade is now over and will not be reactivated. No one will have the appetite to start this all over again. How could National come back and say 'maybe there is a gold standard after all'."

Hellstrom believes there were many reasons for Cabinet not supporting the plan. He believes that there was not great enthusiasm within the National Party for the proposal in the first place and adds that animal welfare groups put pressure on MPs - especially in the Auckland region - and they in turn could see that reinstating the live trade could have 'consequences' for them in the November election.

The first sign that the proposal to reinstate the live trade was going nowhere, says Hellstrom, was the time it was taking to process the petition. He says other petitions were being processed; his one was referred to the Primary Production Select Committee but hearings were never held.

"I was pretty optimistic that the ongoing delays pointed to the fact that there was unease in government circles about the idea," he says.

Hellstrom says if the select committee held hearings, it was almost certain that animal welfare experts would have a field day rebutting the gold standards. He also claims that the NZ live animal export trade has declined from the halcyon days of the past and says there are just some small pickings in South East Asia, Vietnam and Indonesia.

"What is also rubbish is the claim that NZ was shipping its 'waste animals'. In fact, we were breeding special animals for the trade and animals that would not easily fit into the NZ farming system."