Senator Mehreen Faruqi, Australian Greens Deputy Leader and Spokesperson for Animal Welfare, has written to Lexus, Penfolds, Kennedy and Furphy urging them to follow Myer’s lead and end their sponsorship of the Melbourne Cup Carnival.
Her letter cites an independent poll of 1,005 Australians conducted between May 31 and June 5 2023 by Lonergan Research which found that almost two thirds of Australians believe racing animals like horses and greyhounds for gambling and entertainment is cruel (64%). This figure has been steadily increasing – 59% in 2022 and 55% in 2021. A methodology statement is available below.
Senator Faruqi said:
“There’s a clear choice for Cup sponsors: move with the times or leave yourself stranded as one of the last few championing a barbaric industry with a business model of gambling fuelled animal cruelty.
“Businesses who sponsor horse racing have blood on their hands.
“Corporate money fuels the deaths and injuries of countless horses and contributes to other horrible sides of racing carnivals, like problem gambling and spikes in domestic violence.
“Horse racing is plain vile. It’s high time that luxury brands realise there’s nothing luxurious about sponsoring animal cruelty.
“The Melbourne Cup is a grotesque festival of animal cruelty, consumerism, alcoholism and gambling. It belongs in the dustbin of history.
“The evidence shows that the tide of public opinion is fast turning, with a clear and steadily increasing majority of people believing that racing animals for gambling and entertainment is cruel.”
Lonergan Research Methodology Statement:
The research was commissioned by The Office of Senator Mehreen Faruqi (Australian Greens) and conducted by Lonergan Research in accordance with the ISO 20252 standard, and in compliance with the Australian Polling Council Quality Mark standards (www.australianpollingcouncil.com). Lonergan Research surveyed 1,005 Australians 18+ between May 31 and June 5 2023. After interviewing, data was weighted to the latest population estimates sourced from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
