A controversial piece of legislation is to be debated in the NSW Parliament on Tuesday. The Biosecurity Bill 2015 was introduced last week by Minister for Primary Industries Niall Blair, working in conjunction with federal Agriculture Minister Barnaby Joyce.

The bill's dull title belies its significance. For those who have been following the development of the proposed law, its more common name better encapsulates its intent – ag-gag.

The NSW Biosecurity Bill may well be bad news for animals.

Modelled on a popular, yet largely unsuccessful legislative initiative in the United States, ag-gag laws are intended to stop animal advocates investigating industrial-scale animal suffering and publicising their findings. The NSW legislation aims to do this by raising the penalties that can be levelled against animal advocates who go undercover to document animal suffering, whether in piggeries, battery chicken farms or the live export trade.

While the stated aim of the bill is to "protect" these industries by limiting the chance of activists unwittingly introducing biohazards, if passed, the law will have no impact on animal agriculture.