Strawberry tampering prompts harsh new penalties
News
Prime Minister Scott Morrison has announced urgent and harsh new criminal penalties for contaminating food as the ongoing strawberry needle crisis brings Australian farmers to their knees.
Morrison said the “idiot” who sabotaged the strawberries had risked the livelihoods of farmers and put fear in the hearts of parents across the country.
“This is a shocking and cowardly thing for this individual and others who have jumped onto the bandwagon here to have engaged in,” he told reporters in Canberra today.
Anyone found guilty of contaminating food would face a maximum of 15 years in jail, up from 10 years.
Get InDaily in your inbox. Daily. The best local news every workday at lunch time.
Thanks for signing up to the InDaily newsletter.
Additionally, anyone who piggy-backed on such a crisis by engaging in a reckless hoax would also face 10 years behind bars.
“It’s not a joke, it’s not funny, you are putting the livelihoods of hard-working Australians at risk. And you are scaring children,” Morrison said.
“If you do that sort of thing in this country we will come after you and we will throw the book at you. You are a coward and a grub.”
Morrison wants the laws to pass parliament by the time it rises on Thursday evening.
South Australia’s strawberry season doesn’t start until October.
– with AAP
Local News Matters
Media diversity is under threat in Australia – nowhere more so than in South Australia. The state needs more than one voice to guide it forward and you can help with a donation of any size to InDaily. Your contribution goes directly to helping our journalists uncover the facts. Please click below to help InDaily continue to uncover the facts.
Comments
Show comments Hide comments