So, what are you going to do?
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5:22 pm, June 25th, 2009 - 8 comments
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Over at the Labour MPs’ blog, Red Alert, Brendon Burns has written a piece criticising Agriculture Minister David Carter on the welfare of pigs in sow crates.
But while it’s good to see Labour, or at least a Labour MP, finally take a stand on the sow crate issue (God knows the Tories won’t), I have to agree with Anita in the comments where she asks:
I know it’s churlish to say ‘Labour was in power for the last nine years’, but this is one issue where it’s totally justified. This issue has been well known for decades, it was appalling the whole time, the governments’ inaction has been sickening the whole time.
It’s great you’ve arrived on this one, but what are you actually going to do?
Exactly. As I said in a recent post, it wouldn’t hurt for Labour to take a stand on principle here. And that means more than simply criticising the Nats for political gain, it means fronting up with a commitment to end the suffering of intensively farmed pigs.
Until then, I don’t see how they can expect anyone to take them seriously on this issue.
8 comments on “So, what are you going to do? ”
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I agree here. Labour should actually have had the guts to do something rather than belatedly join a ‘band wagon’ now…
So the question is – what is Labour actually going to do??
Mr Burns is a fat pork chop.
Thanks for that Eddie 🙂
As I just commented on Red Alert, great to hear Labour saying SOMETHING on the issue. The question is, when are they actually going to form a policy?
For example, is Labour actually opposed to sow crates, and would they move to ban them if in government? How about farrowing crates? Fattening pens? Should we be farming pigs outside instead of intensively confining them their whole lives?
Until they do have a policy they have no credibility on the issue.
I agree Eddie. The Greens have been a lone voice on this for many years – on the basis of principle.
I doubt many (if any) Labour or National MPs actually approve of the conditions that pigs endure in sow crates – although Roger Douglas does, because he’s been there.
But the Nat-Labs think it better to turn a blind eye, just in case they upset the powerful farming lobby.
Well, here’s an idea. Why don’t the Nats and the Labs both agree to endorse the Green position on this issue? Politically isolate the factory farmers – give them no room to move.
There is nothing to lose politically for any of the three largest parties if we are all singing from the same songsheet – the one that promotes animal welfare.
.
This is a subject that causes me, from time to time, to despair at New Zealanders. If there was a popular response to the premeditated cruelty to pigs, the problem would disappear in a matter of months. The simple withholding of individual consumer expenditure on pork would see those brands practising corporate sadism upon simple beasts vanish from the shelves. But no. It doesn’t happen because your average kiwi consumer actually doesn’t give one flying fuck about the tragedy of a porcine’s fate – they’ve got too much else on their plate.
Meanwhile, the politicians roll out the drama so as to feed pap to the media while some other shenanigans occur. John Campbell was led astray last time and, in 2009, I reckon the Greens got played by the activists – the careful drip feeding of celebrity clips, break-in cam, pics, soundbites and, finally, actual facts, was brilliant.
Excellent to see Crosby/Textor hasn’t got the market on feeding the chooks.