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Animal Justice Party
Apr. 13th, 2025 08:36 pmAnimal Justice Party
Website: https://www.animaljusticeparty.org/
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/animaljusticeparty.bsky.social
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AnimalJusticePartyAJP
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/animaljusticeparty/
(My review for the 2021 WA Election. My review for the 2022 Federal Election)
The party for vegan animal-lovers.
Animal Justice Party were founded in 2009. They have never held a federal seat, however they have MLCs in both the NSW and Victorian Legislative Councils, and have held seats on local councils. They are therefore a minor party who have actual electoral experience.
As a party, AJP have matured somewhat over the last decade and a half from the changes brought by having to reach policy decisions on a wider set of priorities than the party’s core values. While their core values remain intact (I will never get over the fact that anyone running for office must be a committed vegan, for instance), they’ve performed actual policy work, both in their areas of interest and collaboratively in the upper house. Understanding how to actually DO the work of politics is an important skillset, and valuable in minor parties.
Party Analysis
AJP’s policy platform for the federal election is largely based in their core issue and interest (animal rights) but also canvasses a bunch of progressive policy areas. They are not purely a single interest party and do have positions on a range of areas.
In terms of broader topics, AJP’s approach to the current cost of living situation is that they want to lower income taxes and the removal of payroll tax. To make up the difference they want a combination of getting big business to pay higher tax rates and higher taxes on resource extraction, particularly mining and gas. They also want a tax on pollution, which as we know is never controversial in Australia. They also have the most cautiously worded policy on negative gearing I have ever seen: "Gradually adjust Capital Gains Tax and Negative Gearing to create a fairer tax and housing system." Cmon. You can be a bit bolder than that; you’re being outflanked by Bill Shorten in 2019.
Also with respect to cost of living, in terms of the issue of housing, the AJP platform is firmly pro-densification. They want to advocate for more public housing, more flexible zoning laws to allow higher density and infill in all cities, smaller floorplan housing, and a vacant properties tax. They don’t like short stay rentals. Their stated aim is cheaper and more accessible housing for all.
Another social issue that is raised is domestic and family violence. AJP has a history advocating for better government support for this, particularly in terms of rehousing victims and support to leave with pets. This is a genuine danger with domestic and family violence: one of the biggest predictors of danger to humans is if the abusive person threatens, injures or kills the family pets, and a lot of shelters don’t allow people to bring pets with them. Their policy is a lot of support and extra funding for the existing programmes to try and prevent and address violence.
In terms of healthcare, as always the AJP’s central policy is actually Veticare - aka Medicare for pets and injured wildlife. It’s a policy that makes perfect sense in terms of AJP’s strong focus on animals. It both has extra money for vets and vet mental health as well as a focus on desexing and microchipping for pets.
The most interesting general environmental policies from the AJP this time are that they want to start a National Biodiversity Fund for the purpose of protecting endangered species, ending deforestation and habitat destruction, and supporting sustainable practices. This is a really interesting way to look at improving environmental outcomes. They’re also interested in legal personhood for natural land features rights: just like the landmark rulings allowing various rivers and mountains in NZ to own themselves (like Taranaki Maunga for instance), the AJP are suggesting that various river systems and the Great Barrier Reef should gain this protection, to give them specific rights that the country has to protect.
And then we have all the usual animal-based policies.
AJP want stronger animal protection laws and an overseeing independent body to hold all states and territories to a standard. AJP specifically point to the animal cruelty legislation they’ve succeeded in passing in NSW as something they want to see in all jurisdictions, and it’s a good demonstration of what smaller parties with a primary issue can accomplish when they have a seat at the table. AJP have been able to negotiate to get support behind a bunch of their core initiatives as well as being signatories for other progressive legislation.
They want to end live export (which is a live issue this election as the ALP have policies to implement this), phase out farming animals, transform the agricultural system to be plantbased only, and advocate for veganism. This is a standard part of their platform, where one of the points I’ve never seen addressed is the question that given Australia has some of the poorest, least nutrient-rich soils on the planet, and a lot of our farmland isn’t appropriate to grow crops with any serious yield (aka why it’s used for sheep and cattle farming), what are the plans to convert dry sheep farms to produce plants instead?
There is also my eternal sticking point in their platform: their advocacy against killing feral animals. I get their emotional buy-in, but also most non-lethal methods are clearly ineffective large scale at managing feral animal populations. You only have to look at the 2021 Kosciuszko National Park Wild Horse Heritage Management Plan for evidence of the significant difference in effect of various control methods. In the last 3 years, almost 9,000 brumbies were removed from the park. 6,000 of those were from aerial shooting since that was once again allowed in October 2023. 1,000 of the horses were rehomed. While rehoming is an implemented solution, it is far, far less effective. In a situation where the NSW government is desperately trying to reduce the brumby population to save the ecosystem, the overpopulation, and the animals starving to death, it is not enough to keep up with the herd increase.
Is this party trying to kill me?
No. the AJP don’t want to kill any animal, even humans.
Is this party trying to harm me?
No. The worst they want is for me to stop eating meat.
Conclusion:
The AJP are a minor party with an extremely specific main goal (protection of animals), but from years of political experience understand how to translate that goal into a wide selection of policies, and have advocacy positions on a range of socially progressive issues. Unlike a number of other minor parties, you can either get an answer or fairly easily predict what their MP’s position will be on a range of political issues, which provides a lot more confidence in terms of knowing how they’ll vote outside of their core issues.
Website: https://www.animaljusticeparty.org/
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/animaljusticeparty.bsky.social
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AnimalJusticePartyAJP
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/animaljusticeparty/
(My review for the 2021 WA Election. My review for the 2022 Federal Election)
The party for vegan animal-lovers.
Animal Justice Party were founded in 2009. They have never held a federal seat, however they have MLCs in both the NSW and Victorian Legislative Councils, and have held seats on local councils. They are therefore a minor party who have actual electoral experience.
As a party, AJP have matured somewhat over the last decade and a half from the changes brought by having to reach policy decisions on a wider set of priorities than the party’s core values. While their core values remain intact (I will never get over the fact that anyone running for office must be a committed vegan, for instance), they’ve performed actual policy work, both in their areas of interest and collaboratively in the upper house. Understanding how to actually DO the work of politics is an important skillset, and valuable in minor parties.
Party Analysis
AJP’s policy platform for the federal election is largely based in their core issue and interest (animal rights) but also canvasses a bunch of progressive policy areas. They are not purely a single interest party and do have positions on a range of areas.
In terms of broader topics, AJP’s approach to the current cost of living situation is that they want to lower income taxes and the removal of payroll tax. To make up the difference they want a combination of getting big business to pay higher tax rates and higher taxes on resource extraction, particularly mining and gas. They also want a tax on pollution, which as we know is never controversial in Australia. They also have the most cautiously worded policy on negative gearing I have ever seen: "Gradually adjust Capital Gains Tax and Negative Gearing to create a fairer tax and housing system." Cmon. You can be a bit bolder than that; you’re being outflanked by Bill Shorten in 2019.
Also with respect to cost of living, in terms of the issue of housing, the AJP platform is firmly pro-densification. They want to advocate for more public housing, more flexible zoning laws to allow higher density and infill in all cities, smaller floorplan housing, and a vacant properties tax. They don’t like short stay rentals. Their stated aim is cheaper and more accessible housing for all.
Another social issue that is raised is domestic and family violence. AJP has a history advocating for better government support for this, particularly in terms of rehousing victims and support to leave with pets. This is a genuine danger with domestic and family violence: one of the biggest predictors of danger to humans is if the abusive person threatens, injures or kills the family pets, and a lot of shelters don’t allow people to bring pets with them. Their policy is a lot of support and extra funding for the existing programmes to try and prevent and address violence.
In terms of healthcare, as always the AJP’s central policy is actually Veticare - aka Medicare for pets and injured wildlife. It’s a policy that makes perfect sense in terms of AJP’s strong focus on animals. It both has extra money for vets and vet mental health as well as a focus on desexing and microchipping for pets.
The most interesting general environmental policies from the AJP this time are that they want to start a National Biodiversity Fund for the purpose of protecting endangered species, ending deforestation and habitat destruction, and supporting sustainable practices. This is a really interesting way to look at improving environmental outcomes. They’re also interested in legal personhood for natural land features rights: just like the landmark rulings allowing various rivers and mountains in NZ to own themselves (like Taranaki Maunga for instance), the AJP are suggesting that various river systems and the Great Barrier Reef should gain this protection, to give them specific rights that the country has to protect.
And then we have all the usual animal-based policies.
AJP want stronger animal protection laws and an overseeing independent body to hold all states and territories to a standard. AJP specifically point to the animal cruelty legislation they’ve succeeded in passing in NSW as something they want to see in all jurisdictions, and it’s a good demonstration of what smaller parties with a primary issue can accomplish when they have a seat at the table. AJP have been able to negotiate to get support behind a bunch of their core initiatives as well as being signatories for other progressive legislation.
They want to end live export (which is a live issue this election as the ALP have policies to implement this), phase out farming animals, transform the agricultural system to be plantbased only, and advocate for veganism. This is a standard part of their platform, where one of the points I’ve never seen addressed is the question that given Australia has some of the poorest, least nutrient-rich soils on the planet, and a lot of our farmland isn’t appropriate to grow crops with any serious yield (aka why it’s used for sheep and cattle farming), what are the plans to convert dry sheep farms to produce plants instead?
There is also my eternal sticking point in their platform: their advocacy against killing feral animals. I get their emotional buy-in, but also most non-lethal methods are clearly ineffective large scale at managing feral animal populations. You only have to look at the 2021 Kosciuszko National Park Wild Horse Heritage Management Plan for evidence of the significant difference in effect of various control methods. In the last 3 years, almost 9,000 brumbies were removed from the park. 6,000 of those were from aerial shooting since that was once again allowed in October 2023. 1,000 of the horses were rehomed. While rehoming is an implemented solution, it is far, far less effective. In a situation where the NSW government is desperately trying to reduce the brumby population to save the ecosystem, the overpopulation, and the animals starving to death, it is not enough to keep up with the herd increase.
Is this party trying to kill me?
No. the AJP don’t want to kill any animal, even humans.
Is this party trying to harm me?
No. The worst they want is for me to stop eating meat.
Conclusion:
The AJP are a minor party with an extremely specific main goal (protection of animals), but from years of political experience understand how to translate that goal into a wide selection of policies, and have advocacy positions on a range of socially progressive issues. Unlike a number of other minor parties, you can either get an answer or fairly easily predict what their MP’s position will be on a range of political issues, which provides a lot more confidence in terms of knowing how they’ll vote outside of their core issues.
