Angry farmers have told a parliamentary inquiry into the banning of live sheep exports that such a ban would kill some small towns.
The inquiry sat in regional Western Australia on Friday to hear from farmers, shearers, transporters and other concerned parties who oppose the Albanese government’s plan to ban such exports by 2028.
Outside the hearing farm utes lined up for kilometres as farmers and farming industry workers attended in force to show their deep concern over the proposed ban.
During an at times heated debate at the hearing those who would be directly affected by the ban repeatedly asked for it to be reversed, concerned it will ring the death knell for regional towns.
“People will leave, schools will close, police stations will disappear, this is devastating to regional southwest, Western Australia,” WA Farmer’s John Hassell told the inquiry.
It was told that confidence had been “zapped from the industry” because of the decision to stop live sheep exports.
MPs from the federal agriculture committee travelled to the Muresk Institute near Northam about 90 minutes east of Perth for the hearing.
Outside the inquiry, social media posts from opponents of the ban showed utes lined up for three kilometres, as many hundreds of farmers descended on the area.
Questions from the committee chair Meryl Swanson about how farming organisations were helping members to transition out of live sheep exports were met with anger.
“They are not dumb country hicks that live in a vacuum,” WA Farmer’s Steve McGuire fired back.
“They tell us what to do, we don’t tell them.”
“What the federal government is asking us to do is put all our eggs in the abattoir basket,” the sheep producer said.
Darren Spencer from the WA Shearing Industry Association described the $107 million transition package as “insulting.”
The shearing boss warned the policy will kill parts of rural Australia and his call for the ban to be reversed was met with applause from the audience.
“It doesn’t take a lot to kill a small town, and make no mistake that’s exactly what this policy and bill will do,” Mr Spencer told the hearing.
Ben Sutherland from the Livestock and Rural Transport Association of Western Australia said his association had received a high number of calls from distressed members.
“Their mental wellbeing is made worse by the fact that this decision has not been justified or well supported by evidence,” Mr Sutherland said.
The ban, which was prompted by animal welfare concerns, is due to come into force in May 2028, but would still allow for live sheep to be exported by air and cattle to be exported by sea.
The inquiry has heard earlier that mortality rates on live sheep export ships had dropped significantly since 2017, when more than 2000 sheep died from heat stress while on a ship from Australia to the Middle East.
Exporters told the inquiry that voyage mortality rates for sheep were about 80 per cent lower than a decade ago.