Cassy O'Connor MP | Greens Leader
A large and growing number of Australians are choosing to say ‘Nup to the Cup’ again this Melbourne Cup Day. Like the Greens, they are making a conscious choice not to celebrate a cruel industry.
As tireless advocates for animal welfare, we too will be saying ‘Nup to the Cup’.
Horse racing is a multi-million dollar industry that breeds animals for profit, and then tosses most of them away when they're not making money. It’s an industry, subsidized by taxpayers, that is losing its social licence, just like the greyhound racing industry, because of the animals that are killed in its name.
Tasmanians are more and more aware of the cruelty at the heart of both the racing industries. Beautiful horses and dogs are being bred and raised for profit, and then being disposed of, often in the most callous way, if they don’t make the grade.
We know that horses from the Tasmanian horse racing industry are being shipped to abattoirs interstate because they passed their use by date, and they're too expensive to feed.
Anyone who has ever looked into the beautiful, intelligent face of a thoroughbred or greyhound know these animals deserve more. They deserve much better than being fed into an industry that treats them as disposable once they're no longer turning a profit.
Increasingly, Tasmanians recognize that horse and greyhound racing are cruel industries, and want no part of celebrating them. We are proudly standing with them, standing up for animal welfare and saying ‘Nup to the Cup’ today.