Animal Welfare in Australia: Politics and policy

Description

Animal welfare has attracted attention in Australia in recent decades, yet the policy-making process remains poorly understood. Peter Chen explores the history of animal welfare in Australia, examines public opinion and media coverage of key issues, and comprehensively maps the policy domain. He shows how policy is made and implemented, and how diverse social, ethical and economic interests interact to produce a complex and unpredictable political climate.

Peter John Chen is a senior lecturer in politics and public policy at the University of Sydney.

'This book will be an instant classic among animal studies scholars in Australia.' -- Siobhan O'Sullivan * Knowing Animals * 'Hugely informative book is an excellent analysis of the factors that have influenced these changes, from the perspective of a political scientist who has, in the course of his research, developed a deep understanding of the animal protection movement ... Being able to view events from a range of perspectives inevitably leads to better decision-making, and this book provides an excellent means for those involved in animal welfare policy to do just that.' -- Bidda Jones * Animal Welfare * '[The book's] approach provides a unique glimpse into both the ministerial decision-making process as well as opinions from within the animal industry - perspectives that are rarely canvased thoroughly in animal welfare texts.' -- Jordan Sosnowski * Journal of Animal Ethics * 'Peter Chen's book is the first of its kind, and a riveting read for anyone who is interested, intrigued, perplexed or passionate about animal welfare.' -- Anne Boxhall * The Hobart Mercury * 'This book contributes to the development of a theoretical context of the politics of truth about our relationship with non-human animals by encouraging a deeper level of reflection on the way in which our fragmented policy framework is established and administered. It is not written from an 'activist' perspective, as are most publications in this genre.' -- Jackson Walkden-Brown * Alternative Law Journal * 'The scope of this book is impressive. Thorough to a fault, it is no doubt the book for policy scholars interested in animal welfare in Australia. It will be on the reading list for my own interest group and lobbying class, and I suspect it will be on many an Australian public policy reading lists.' -- Darren Halpin * Australasian Parliamentary Review *