Source: New Zealand Government
Feedback is being sought on proposed changes to the Fisheries Act which Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones says are the most significant reforms in the sector for decades.
“The Coalition Government is committed to the success of the fishing industry, which generates around $1.6 billion in exports each year and employs 9000 people directly. The proposed changes, which I flagged in September last year, will remove unnecessary regulations that impede productivity and the potential of the sector. It is through changes in industries like this that New Zealand is going to fight its way back to economic prosperity,” Mr Jones says.
The proposals in the consultation document released today, set out options to strengthen, streamline, and add to the tools available to set sustainable catch limits, improve privacy protections for fishers on vessels with onboard cameras, and more effectively deal with fish discarded under the Quota Management System.
The proposals were developed following a seafood industry forum established last year.
“Sustainability will always be the bottom line for fisheries management, and there’s an opportunity to lift export revenue by improving productivity and efficiency, rather than catch volume,” Mr Jones says.
“These proposals make the most of improvements to data collection to drive an effective and efficient fisheries system, while continuing to ensure healthy sustainable fisheries.
“They recognise the need to cut red tape from decision-making processes and improve responsiveness, efficiency and certainty. They include a range of options that would be applied to set sustainable catch limits while accounting for the strength of information available, the characteristics of the fish stock, and environmental and socio-economic factors.”
The rollout of cameras has provided more and better-quality information about the fishery but consideration must be given to protecting the privacy of Kiwis going about their work at sea.
“This includes enhancing protections for on-board camera footage, amending the scope of where monitoring is not practical or necessary, and clarifying when cameras must be used,” Mr Jones says.
“Finally, the proposals set out ways the rules around discards can be made more practical and workable for fishers where there is monitoring by onboard cameras or fisheries observers.
“I encourage anyone with an interest to read through the proposals and provide feedback.”
The consultation document and other details, including how to make a submission, can be found on MPI’s website.
Submissions close at 5pm on 28 March 2025.
