Western Australia's Attorney General says he went back to the drawing board on his long-awaited draft farm trespass legislation, following ABC 7.30's investigation into the horse racing industry.

Key points: WA's Attorney General John Quigley wants tougher penalties for farm intruders and extra powers for animal welfare inspectors to be able to enter premises at anytime

WA's Attorney General John Quigley wants tougher penalties for farm intruders and extra powers for animal welfare inspectors to be able to enter premises at anytime The RSPCA says proactive inspections were "long overdue" and would benefit farmers in the long run

The RSPCA says proactive inspections were "long overdue" and would benefit farmers in the long run Mr Quigley would not comment on when his farm bill would be unveiled

WA is one of four states that heeded calls from the National Farmer's Federation (NFF) to bolster its trespass laws amid escalating tensions between activists and farmers in 2019.

In January the NFF president, Fiona Simson, correctly predicted that the publication of an interactive map detailing the location and contact details of Australian farms would lead to an increase in face-to-face conflict between the two groups.

'Direct action' animal rights activism on farms has prompted a crackdown on trespass legislation. ( ABC News )

What ensued was a rollercoaster year of high-profile farm, feedlot and abattoir invasions, a protest that brought the Melbourne CBD to a standstill, promises by activists to double-down on their efforts — and a flurry of lawmaking at both the federal and state levels to stop them.

While Queensland's Labor Government and the NSW Liberals expedited shake-ups of their biosecurity laws to crack down on vigilantes, WA's Attorney General, John Quigley, has repeatedly been accused from across the political divide of dragging his heels after his own much-talked-about legislation failed to materialise.

"We did get it into an almost-concluded position to introduce it to Parliament, but then there were further exposes in the media, notably the 7.30 report, which showed gross cruelty to horses in a knackery, so we paused so that we could bring in a more balanced bill," Mr Quigley said.

"There is the need to balance laws against trespass with increased inspection regimes to protect animals from cruelty."

While Mr Quigley conceded he made a mistake by promising to introduce the laws by May this year, amending the state's criminal code was not to be taken lightly.

Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume. Watch Duration: 48 minutes 32 seconds 48 m The dark side of the horse racing industry ( Caro Meldrum-Hanna and Amy Donaldson )

Extra powers for animal welfare inspectors back on table

Mr Quigley said in addition to plans to introduce tougher penalties for intruders, including court based restraining orders, he wants to give animal welfare inspectors extra powers to legally enter commercial premises including abattoirs and knackeries.

"So inspectors from the Department [of Primary Industries and Regional Development] can enter from anytime … to see that there is no cruelty [towards] the animals," he said.

"At present [WA inspectors] can only enter a knackery, [for example], if they have a reasonable suspicion that cruelty is happening, but how can they have that if they haven't been inside. It's a catch 22.

"That silly circle has got to be broken by statutory force to allow inspectors to go in and that will obviate the need for trespassers to go in and take secret footage."

Since the beginning of the year politicians across Australia have been grappling over how to better protect farmers. ( ABC Rural: Lydia Burton )

It is not the first time the WA Government has proposed increased powers for animal welfare inspectors.

In 2017 the then newly elected Labor McGowan Government proposed sweeping changes to the state's animal welfare act to bring WA in line with other states, including the creation of a new class of inspector with greater powers to enter farms, stockyards and vehicles to check for welfare compliance.

The proposal to allow unfettered access to commercial premises, including family farms even if there was no suspicion of wrongdoing, was struck out after the Government accepted a parliamentary committee finding that the new "general inspectors" were unnecessary.

RSPCA welcomes 'balanced' approach

The RSPCA said while introducing a proactive inspection regime in WA was "long overdue", pairing farm trespass and animal welfare reforms would benefit farmers in the long run.

"The positive thing about this legislative proposal is certainly that it's not just [talking about] cracking down on activists," said senior policy officer Jed Goodfellow.

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"It's also actually addressing some of the underlying concerns … that the broader community has around animal cruelty at certain facilities like knackeries and abattoirs.

"[Then] the greater [the public's] confidence will be in the industry, and in the industries [associated] with these facilities as well.

"So it really should be welcomed by all stakeholders in this debate."

The RSPCA's Dr Goodfellow says addressing concerns about animal welfare will help keep the public on the side of farmers. ( Supplied: RSPCA )

Dr Goodfellow said conversations around farm trespass legislation in states like New South Wales had turned ugly, with laws being described as "draconian" by a civil liberties group, giving some the impression that the agricultural sector had something to hide.

"In isolation, increasing penalties for activists doesn't really go very far … it sends a message to the communities that these industries where the activists are seeking to oppose cruelty and wrongdoing are trying to stop transparency … they're shutting the gates so to speak," he said.

"Trespass is wrong, trespassers need to be held to account. They need to be prosecuted but at the same time Government can't ignore the legitimate concerns, the broader concerns community has, around animal welfare standards and the degree of compliance monitoring that takes place to ensure that those standards are being upheld.

"That's the really important point that the NSW Government seems to have forgotten in its response to these issues, so it's really positive to see that the WA Government is looking at a more balanced approach."

While Mr Quigley said he was working "conscientiously" to deliver his farm bill, he would not be drawn on when his legislation would be formally unveiled.

There are just six sitting days left in WA's Legislative Assembly before Parliament breaks until February.