This is an independent public documentation site to track the transparency and enforcement of animal welfare laws in Western Australia. It began with a single Freedom of Information request—and it continues as a shared memory and signal.
Submitted to DPIRD on 5 April 2025.
Sent in April 2025 to request answers and initiate accountability.
In response to DPIRD’s declaration that no inspection reports, summaries, or evaluations exist for Designated Inspector activity since 2022, a formal public statement was issued on 8 May 2025. This statement documents the structural absence of regulatory accountability and is being distributed to relevant agencies, parliamentarians, and the media.
Read: Structural Absence of Accountability in WA’s Animal Welfare EnforcementThis table shows the widening gap between legislative reform and public access to regulatory enforcement data.
| Year | Event | Stated Policy Outcome | Actual Information Availability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Animal Welfare Act enacted | Baseline statutory framework | DI activities not systematically reported |
| 2015 | Independent statutory review (Easton Review) | Called for consistent enforcement and transparency |
DPIRD accepts need for reform awa_review_2015.pdf |
| 2019 | Public confrontations between farmers and animal advocates | Government pledges stronger enforcement mechanisms | No DI data released |
| 2020 | Independent Review Panel report | Recommends DI training, auditing, oversight |
DPIRD accepts recommendations awa_review_final_2020.pdf |
| 2022 | Animal Welfare Advisory Committee (AWAC) re-established | Advises Minister on DI competence and systemic oversight |
No AWAC outputs published terms_of_reference_awac.pdf |
| 2023 | Animal Welfare and Trespass Legislation Amendment Act passed | Grants DIs right to enter high-risk facilities without consent |
No inspection records or outcomes published faq_animal_welfare_trespass_legislation_2023.pdf |
| 2023–2024 | DPIRD annual reports released | Contain detailed stats on bees, cotton, fruit flies, fisheries |
Zero mention of DI inspections or compliance dpird_annual_report_2023_24.pdf |
| 2025 | DPIRD states under FOI that no documents exist | Public learns that no system exists to track DI regulatory activity |
Institutional failure officially acknowledged foi_response_dpird_1may2025.pdf |
In 2023, unauthorised entry and filming in animal farming facilities became criminal offences in Western Australia — punishable by up to 12 months’ imprisonment or a $20,000 fine. As independent visibility is removed, designated inspectors (DIs) become the only legal presence allowed inside sites of systemic animal suffering. Their role is the last — and often fragile — institutional thread connecting these hidden lives to public conscience.
In a system that claims animals matter, enforcement must be visible. Without public data, we cannot trust the law is alive. This is not a campaign. It is memory. Witness. Accountability.
All linked documents are publicly available via the GitHub archive: