Myself and many other people in Queensland believe that the government should allow the keeping of domestic rabbits as pets. To completely outlaw the keeping of pet rabbits is not only unnecessary, it is also unfair. Keeping a pet rabbit is legal in every other state of Australia. In fact I don't believe this law exists anywhere else in the world. This law is not only a disadvantage to Queenslanders but to rabbit owners from other states of Australia. In a lot of cases people are faced with the decision to move to Queensland for work or family etc, they are then forced to make the heartbreaking decision to surrender their beloved pet which may have been a part of their family for many years. The governments argument that domestic rabbits will escape from their homes and breed with wild rabbits already present in the area and cause damage to farmer's livelihoods by causing destruction to the states vegetation is completely ridiculous. Not only is this a gross misunderstanding of domestic rabbits existence, it is completely unsupported by any scientific evidence. Domestic pet rabbits lack sufficient survival instincts, and have become so accustomed to humans and other animals that they simply could not survive long on their own. Domestic rabbits can be neutered like dogs and cats and if this was made mandatory then it would be impossible for them to breed with wild rabbits if they were to escape. The current law in Qld allows entertainers, clowns and research facilities to apply for a permit to keep rabbits provided they follow strict guidelines. I don't understand why the same rules can't apply to every person in Qld that wishes to own a pet rabbit. Rabbits make great family pets, just like a cat or dog and can be a great source of joy and happiness. I fully support the mandatory desexing, vaccinating, micro-chipping and registration of rabbits. Queenslanders have been reserved from owning a pet rabbit for far too long. It is time to move into line with the other states of a Australia and allow responsible pet owners of Qld the right to keep these beautiful animals as pets. I am admin for the Facebook page "Legalise pet rabbits in Qld" with a following of over 2500 people. We are all very frustrated that the Qld government refuses to listen to our argument and just keeps giving us the same responses that we have been given for many years. We recently submitted a petition with over 2000 signatures to the Agricultural minister and we believe no consideration or thought was even given. I plead with you to consider conducting some up to date research and give us a valid reason as to why this law needs to remain in place in Queensland. Western Australia changed this same law in there state back in the 80's after conducting research which showed no evidence of domestic rabbits causing any threat to the environment. From The Courier Mail article 'Queensland's rabbit ban is unlikely to be removed ' by Phil Hammond: "Domestic-type rabbits will not breed with feral rabbits. In 1998, for an experiment, the CSIRO released domestic rabbits with feral rabbits and 12 months later there were none left. "Two years after Western Australia decided to allow pet rabbits, they did an environmental impact study which concluded the impact was nil.