Did you see ABC Four Corners expose some of the biggest names in Australian greyhound racing for horrific 'live baiting' cruelty?

Piglets, possums, rabbits and other defenseless animals were mercilessly used to 'blood' naturally gentle greyhounds - tied to lures, flung around racetracks and mauled to death. I will never forget the sound of their screaming.

Live baiting is cruel, it's cheating, and it's illegal. But until two small animal charities mounted hidden-camera investigations, it continued.

Right now, a Bill is in front of the Senate that would make those investigations a crime.

If these new laws were already in place, the brave people who uncovered this widespread cruelty could be fined enormous amounts of money, or even be thrown in jail, for collecting this undercover evidence. Talk about shooting the messenger! That's why they're called 'ag-gag' laws, because their aim is to 'gag' animal advocates.

South Australia's government recently knocked back similar laws, after a huge public response and a Change petition.

So why did these animal charities (Animals Australia & Animal Liberation QLD) feel they had to act? Because the RSPCA had said they needed video evidence of live baiting to start a case.

And greyhound industry authorities insist they didn't know that live baiting was happening. That's despite years of rumours, and even submissions to public inquiries apparently providing names and addresses of people allegedly torturing animals in this way.

Why would we punish those who expose animal cruelty?

In truly isolated cases of cruelty, it makes sense to hand over evidence straight away, and that almost always happens already. But demonstrating that animal cruelty is being perpetrated by more than just 'a few bad apples' means evidence needs to be collected over a period of time. However, apart from making this kind of investigation a crime, this new Bill would also require that evidence be immediately turned over to authorities, even if that means not stopping wider-scale abuse of animals.

If that had happened in the live baiting case, perhaps one or two greyhound trainers and staff would be facing the music. Instead of 70. And the industry would be able to simply brush it under the carpet as a 'one off'.

We already have trespass laws. We already have property and biosecurity laws. Why would we duplicate them?

Let's face reality: these new laws are not intended to increase animal welfare. They're intended to protect industries that use animals to make money - whatever the cost.

Please, Senators, criminalise cruelty ... not those who expose it.