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Biosecurity 2025: Proposals for a direction statement for biosecurity in New Zealand

Update – 22 November 2016

Biosecurity 2025 Direction Statement released

Minister for Primary Industries Nathan Guy launched the direction statement in Auckland.


Consultation background

Feedback was sought on proposals for a Biosecurity 2025 direction statement for New Zealand, to replace the existing biosecurity strategy – Tiakina Aotearoa: Protect New Zealand.

The direction statement will guide the biosecurity system for the next 10 years. We ran public meetings and hui around the country during August and September to support discussions and hear your thoughts.

Consultation ran from 26 July 2016 to 9 September 2016.

Consultation documents

Printed versions (hard copies) of the discussion document were available by emailing biosecurity2025@mpi.govt.nz

Video

Our biosecurity champions and others explain the importance of biosecurity and getting involved in the consultation.

[Upbeat music]

Ruud Kleinpaste, "Bugman": New Zealand is the bread basket of the world and we can grow anything. We can do it cheaply because we've got relatively few pests, few diseases. We've been isolated all this time; we're in the perfect condition to grow the best stuff. Any threat that is undermining this ability of ours to do this – [makes a cutting sound as he draws his hand across his throat] Got to get out. Can't get in.

Graeme Marshall, Chair, Biosecurity Ministerial Advisory Committee: One small incursion, one hint of something going wrong with biosecurity in New Zealand, and our reputation can be severely dented.

Janine Mayes, Chief Quarantine Officer, Border Clearance Services, MPI: Our income relies on us being able to export our primary industries. So if we don't have that any more, your lovely lifestyle will be reduced.

Kimberley Sell, Detector Dog Handler, Border Clearance Services, MPI: Talking to kids about biosecurity and why it's important for a small country like New Zealand to have biosecurity measures in place.

Alan Kirkpatrick, Rail and Road Services Supervisor, Port of Tauranga: It's for your exporters, it's for your importers, it's for your forest and bird people, it's for your farmers. It's basically for everyone. So it's just about being a good New Zealander. Every part of commerce can be affected.

Nadine Tunley, Chair, Pipfruit New Zealand: We're a 700 mil – coming up to 700 million dollar industry. All of the jobs that rely, through the packhouses, into the orchards, they're all the people that suffer.

Philip Hulme, Professor of plant biosecurity, Lincoln University: There's probably nowhere else in the world that takes it so seriously as New Zealand. We are entirely dependent on good agriculture production, and also on protecting our natural environment for tourism.

Bruce Wills, sheep and beef farmer, Northern Hawke's Bay: Very serious consequences if we don't get this right.

John Jones: Senior Quarantine Officer, Border Clearance Services, MPI: There are new problems evolving all the time; there's an insect called a [brown] marmorated stink bug.

Bruce Wills: Foot and mouth, heaven forbid.

Richard Calvert, National Biosecurity Capability Coordinator, AsureQuality: No one organisation can actually deliver what's going to be required in the worst case scenario. It's all about that New Zealand Inc if you know what I mean

Bruce Wills: We can't expect MPI to manage this. This is the special responsibility for all of us.

Barry O'Neil, Chief Executive, Kiwifruit Vine Health: We're learning off each other as to what we can and should do going forward. We've got skin in the game and we're committing to working to improve biosecurity.

Nadine Tunley: Every day New Zealanders should get involved in the importance of biosecurity because that's part of the learning.

Danielle King, Senior Quarantine Officer, Border Clearance Services, MPI: And that it's not just us, but it's a responsibility for all New Zealanders.

Barry O'Neil: If we don't participate in the finalisation of the strategy, we can't then complain that not enough is being done.

Ruud Kleinpaste: It's not just MPI's domain to look after biosecurity. There's DoC, the Ministry for the Environment, and don't forget the Regional Councils, the landowners, Māori, Iwi - everybody is part of this. This is a big picture for New Zealand; we've got to be on board with that, surely?

[Upbeat music.]

The Ministry for Primary Industries thanks Christchurch Airport, Port of Tauranga and everyone who has helped in the Biosecurity 2025 initiative.

[End transcript]


The proposals

The Biosecurity 2025 discussion document set out proposals for a biosecurity direction statement for New Zealand and included:

  • a Mission Statement and guiding principles 
  • 5 strategic directions, each designed to play a part in meeting the significant challenges facing New Zealand's biosecurity system in the years ahead 
  • some first steps – actions being proposed by the Ministry for Primary Industries that it could do – alone and with others – to start working towards the proposals
  • consultation questions to guide your feedback on the proposals.

Public meetings

Public consultation meetings and hui on proposals for the Biosecurity 2025 direction statement were held between 17 August and 2 September 2016.

Submissions

Submissions closed at 5pm on Friday 9 September 2016.

After the consultation

MPI considered all the feedback received from this consultation and submission process. The Biosecurity 2025 direction statement was released on 22 November 2016 by the Minister for Primary Industries. 

Stay informed

Submissions are public information

Any submission you make becomes public information. Anyone can ask for copies of all submissions under the Official Information Act 1982 (OIA). The OIA says we must make the information available unless we have a good reason for withholding it. You can find those grounds in sections 6 and 9 of the OIA. Tell us if you think there are grounds to withhold specific information in your submission. Reasons might include, it's commercially sensitive or it's personal information. However, any decision MPI makes to withhold information can be reviewed by the Ombudsman, who may require the information be released.