Caring for all animals that call Aotearoa home.
The Green Party will keep animals safe from cruelty and suffering.
Animals should live a happy, comfortable life free from suffering.
Unfortunately, the Luxon Government has let big industry players write our animal welfare laws, putting corporate greed ahead of the wellbeing of animals.
Thousands of farmed animals are suffering unnecessarily because the standards that are meant to protect their safety aren’t being upheld. Cruel and harmful practices are allowed to continue.
The Green Party will protect animals from practices that put profit ahead of their welfare. We have been the parliamentary champion for animal welfare for decades.
In recent years, we have fought for and protected the ban on live exports at sea and won the end to greyhound racing. We have been the leading parliamentary voice against mud farming, cruel imports and the caging of mother pigs.
The Green Party will transform our animal welfare protections to make Aotearoa a place where all animals are treated with care and respect.
We will prioritise ethical treatment so that all animals can live a good life no matter where they live — on farms, in our homes or in the wild.
Our plan
- Create a new Commissioner for Animals to independently monitor and advocate for the rights of animals, and an independent ministry.
- Resource the National Animal Welfare Advisory Committee to ensure all animal welfare codes genuinely comply with the Animal Welfare Act, and introduce stronger codes for farmed animals.
- Phase out harmful activities including debeaking of hens, intensive winter grazing, factory farming, octopus farming, farrowing crates and rodeo.
- Require that imported products meet the animal welfare standards of Aotearoa, including for cosmetics.
- Introduce consistent, clear and enforceable standards for manufacturing claims about animal welfare and ingredients (such as ‘free range’, ‘cruelty free’ and ‘vegan’).
- Retain the ban on live exports of farmed animals by sea and extend the ban to include live exports of farmed animals by air and wild-caught animals such as endangered tuna longfin eels.