The legislation cancels an upcoming ban on farrowing crates. Photo: 123rf.com
The government's law changes to pig farming have passed through Parliament under urgency.
The legislation cancels an upcoming ban on farrowing crates, which keep mother pigs confined to avoid them accidentally crushing piglets.
Instead of a ban, it gives farmers another 10 years to get used to slightly tougher restrictions than the status quo.
The government said the changes give the sector a more realistic timeframe to change their processes.
The SPCA is among the bill's critics, saying it was not consulted on the design of the legislation - and its alignment with what the industry wants shows almost brazen regulatory capture.
The urgent debate on the bill - which included the second reading, the Committee of the Whole House stage, and the third reading - began with a handful of speeches on Wednesday night and picking up on Thursday morning, finally concluding about 4pm.
The legislation passed with the governing parties in support and all opposition MPs opposed.
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