Strangers showing up on your property or in your home is a horrifying thought. For Ontario farmers, that fear is a story all too real for them and their families. Every day in this province, farmers live in fear that trespassers will enter their property and cause unknown harm to them, their families, their farm animals and their livelihood.
Our government is proposing legislation that will offer the opportunity to improve the protection for Ontario farmers and their families.
We recognize people have the right to participate in legal protests; our government will always support that right. However, that right has never included trespassing on private property, harassing farmers, or putting our province’s food supply at risk.
Our proposed legislation, if passed, would better protect farmers, their animals, livestock transporters, and the integrity of our food supply. At least 80 municipalities and towns have passed or supported council resolutions that call on the government to strengthen protections of these targeted operations.
On-farm animal abuse is a rare occurrence in Ontario. Our farmers care deeply about the animals they raise, and our province has laws to protect those animals. Our government has zero tolerance towards animal abuse, and we agree there is no place for it in Ontario.
That’s why our government recently passed tough new legislation, the Provincial Animal Services Welfare (PAWS) Act, to protect animals everywhere in Ontario. PAWS now gives Ontario the toughest penalties in Canada for convicted offenders who abused animals.
Anyone who suspects abuse of animals is required to notify the authorities and can do so by calling 1-833-9ANIMAL. Our province is hiring 100 animal welfare inspectors by the end of this year, some of them specialized in livestock and horses. These are the people best suited to protect the welfare of farm animals in Ontario when abuse is suspected.
It is our government’s responsibility to protect farmers, agri-food businesses, farm animals, and our food supply from the risk of trespass activities. Our proposed Act is intended to keep Ontario’s farmers and their families safe on their property and to ensure the food we all enjoy is safe to consume.
THE ABOVE IS A STATEMENT FROM MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE, FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS ERNIE HARDEMAN.
