Consultation Process
Now Closed
This online engagement was hosted on YourSAy from 3 September 2019 to 4 October 2019. Below is a record of the engagement.
Have your say on the proposed changes to the trespassing laws aimed at protecting our state's farmers and food producers.
What’s being decided?
We have reviewed our state's trespassing laws to ensure they adequately protect farmers and food producers from protestors and animal rights activists who cause damage to farming businesses.
While our state has encountered low levels of organised protest activity compared with other states, strengthening the laws and creating stronger deterrents isContinue reading
Consultation Process
Now Closed
This online engagement was hosted on YourSAy from 3 September 2019 to 4 October 2019. Below is a record of the engagement.
Have your say on the proposed changes to the trespassing laws aimed at protecting our state's farmers and food producers.
What’s being decided?
We have reviewed our state's trespassing laws to ensure they adequately protect farmers and food producers from protestors and animal rights activists who cause damage to farming businesses.
While our state has encountered low levels of organised protest activity compared with other states, strengthening the laws and creating stronger deterrents is crucial to protecting our farming community.
We are now proposing reform contained in a draft Summary Offences Amendment Bill focussed on:
- creating a new offence specifically for farm trespassing
- increasing penalties for existing farm-related offences.
South Australia has a rich and dynamic agricultural and food production industry, and these measures aim to better protect farmers and other food processing businesses.
The proposed changes are aimed at ensuring farmers have adequate legal protections as well as bringing us in line with other states around Australia.
Get involved
To have your say, review the proposed changes and read through the draft Bill and:
- join the online discussion
How can your input influence the decision?
We want to hear your feedback on the proposed changes to trespassing laws to ensure they strike the right balance in the community between people’s right to protest and free speech and the need to ensure adequate legal protections for this important part of our economy.
Your feedback will ultimately inform the Bill to be introduced into Parliament.
What are the next steps?
Your feedback will be reviewed and considered for the final draft of the Bill. The Bill will then be introduced to Parliament for consideration later this year.
A copy of the final Bill will be published on this site once it has been introduced to Parliament.
Closing date: 5pm, Friday 4 October 2019
Background
Now Closed
This online engagement was hosted on YourSAy from 3 September 2019 to 4 October 2019. Below is a record of the engagement.
Why do we need these laws?
Recently in other states, animal rights activitsts have escalated their protest activities by trespassing on farming properties - attempting to highlight potential animal cruelty, and in some cases, removing animals from properties and causing additional damage.
While South Australia has encountered low levels of organised protest activity compared with other states, strengthening the laws and creating stronger deterrents is crucial to protect the farming community.
Our agricultural and food production industry is one of the largest contributors to South Australia's economy and it's important there are adequate legal protections for these businesses.
Currently, South Australia's trespassing provisions relate to any premises and don't adequately cover additional biosecurity and food contamination risks likely to occur on farms.
Amending our legislation will also bring us in line with other states around the country. In June, Attorneys-General from across Australia met in Adelaide and agreed to address this in their own jurisdictions.
