Department of Agriculture and Fisheries
OrganisationReferenced in 8 bills
Racing Integrity Amendment Bill 2022
This bill reforms how decisions by racing stewards are reviewed in Queensland. It creates a new independent Racing Appeals Panel to hear appeals faster than the current system, limits further appeals to serious cases only, and authorises publication of stewards' reports online to improve transparency.
Agriculture and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2019
This bill makes wide-ranging changes to Queensland's agricultural, biosecurity and animal welfare laws. Most notably, it doubles penalties for farm trespass, introduces biosecurity management plans that visitors must follow, and gives animal welfare inspectors new powers to help abandoned animals.
Queensland Food Farmers’ Commissioner Bill 2024
This bill establishes the Queensland Food Farmers' Commissioner, an independent statutory office to support farmers in their dealings with major supermarkets. The Commissioner will help improve price transparency, address power imbalances between supermarkets and their suppliers, and provide farmers with a safe avenue to raise concerns about unfair treatment.
Agriculture and Fisheries and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2023
This bill makes major reforms to dangerous dog laws, commercial fishing monitoring, and biosecurity emergency powers. It bans restricted dog breeds like pit bulls, requires cameras or observers on commercial fishing boats to protect the Great Barrier Reef, and extends the duration of biosecurity emergency orders to better respond to disease outbreaks.
Hospital Foundations Bill 2018
This bill modernises the governance of Queensland's 13 hospital foundations and allows industrial hemp to be grown for food products. It replaces the outdated 1982 legislation governing hospital foundations with modern rules that better reflect how these charitable bodies actually operate, while also enabling Queensland farmers to grow low-THC hemp for the food market following a national decision to permit hemp seed foods.
Nature Conservation (Special Wildlife Reserves) and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2018
This bill creates 'special wildlife reserves' - a new type of protected area for private land that provides the same level of protection as national parks. Landholders voluntarily enter perpetual agreements with the government to protect their land from mining, forestry and other incompatible uses, while retaining ownership. The bill also extends Great Barrier Reef environmental protections to activities crossing into Commonwealth waters.
Health and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2018
This bill reforms several health-related regulatory frameworks in Queensland. It repeals the state's medicinal cannabis approval system (which duplicated Commonwealth processes), establishes a register to track occupational dust lung diseases like coal workers' pneumoconiosis, empowers health authorities to require public notices about pollution events, and ensures freehold retirement village residents receive timely payment when they leave.
Animal Care and Protection Amendment Bill 2022
This bill updates Queensland's animal welfare laws following a comprehensive review of the 20-year-old Animal Care and Protection Act. It bans inhumane practices like prong collars and horse firing, introduces tougher penalties for serious animal neglect, requires dogs to be secured when transported on vehicle trays, and implements recommendations to better track retired racehorses and improve RSPCA inspector oversight.