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Livestock Exports: Regulatory Framework for Animal Welfare Assurance – Regulation Impact Statement and Post-implementation Review – Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry

On 21 October 2011, the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry announced the future of regulation in Australia’s livestock export industry as part of the Government’s response to the Independent Review of Australia’s Livestock Export Trade (The Farmer Review). Reforms will be implemented to supply chains on both a domestic and international level to ensure Australian livestock exported for slaughter are treated at or above internationally accepted animal welfare standards. The new framework will be phased in and will be implemented in stages with 75 per cent of trade covered by February and all trade covered by the end of 2012. RIS’s were  required for both the ban of live exports to Indonesia and the issuing of revised export control orders to re-open the trade of live cattle to Indonesia but were not prepared. A post-implementation review was therefore required within one to two years from the implementation of the decision; however, in this case, the requirements have been met by producing a combined RIS and PIR at this point in time. The Regulation Impact Statement and Post-implementation Review were assessed as adequate by the Office of Best Practice Regulation.