Planned changes include raising fines for passengers bringing in undeclared high-risk goods
Submissions to a recently completed public consultation relating to proposed amendments to the Biosecurity Act showed wide public support for the government’s work to strengthen New Zealand’s biosecurity protections, said Andrew Hoggard, New Zealand’s biosecurity minister.
“It is vital this legislation is fit for purpose to manage increasing pressures from trade, travel, online purchasing, and climate change,” Hoggard said in the government’s news release.
The consultation of the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) lasted from 19 September to 13 December last year and received 137 submissions, according to the news release. These submissions showed an understanding of the importance of improving the biosecurity system, Hoggard said.
“I am very pleased with the level of engagement,” Hoggard said in the news release. “The submissions were high quality.”
The news release said that proposed amendments include increasing the fines for passengers with undeclared high-risk goods, making importing requirements more flexible, and sharing the cost for biosecurity responses more fairly.
“The need for further engagement with Government Industry Agreement (GIA) partners, iwi and Treaty partners, regional councils, importers, aviation and maritime sector bodies, and other interest groups to refine policy recommendations was received loud and clear,” Hoggard said in the news release.
The MPI plans to consult some more with submitters to improve the proposals and to give its final policy recommendations later this year, the news release said.
The MPI’s website has a report summarising the submissions for the Biosecurity Act’s proposed amendments. Overall, the MPI observed in its report that many submissions on various proposals supported its objective to make the legislation clearer and more flexible.
Submitters suggested that their final thoughts on the proposal would depend on the implementation, the report said. Submitters wanted to have detailed information on what the proposals would mean for them in practice and wanted to discuss the proposals more with the MPI to better understand them or to collaborate on possible amendments, the report added.
The report noted that a general consensus supported proposed enhancements and expansions to infringement offences, including by creating an infringement penalty for travellers with high-risk goods, by allowing regional councils to establish infringement offences in regional pest management plans, and by amending offences relating to breaches of controlled area notices.
Meanwhile, a general consensus opposed legislative intervention for cost shares in the GIA and the total or partial removal of consequential losses from compensation eligibility, the MPI’s report said.
