19 May 2005
Hon Jim Sutton - Minister for Biosecurity
Government boosts biosecurity again
Biosecurity funding has been boosted again, Biosecurity Minister Jim Sutton said today.
Mr Sutton said that the Labour-Progressive Government had boosted baseline biosecurity funding – covering everything
except incursions – every year.
"We are committed to ensuring the best possible biosecurity system for New Zealand and our actions in the past six years
demonstrate that.
"We’ve introduced a $200 instant fine for biosecurity breaches at airports, something previous governments were too
scared to do. We put in the extra money for soft-tissue x-ray machines and detector dog teams to make sure screening of
air passengers and crews was 100 per cent. We ensured that all sea containers were screened.
"All this has been done while still enabling trade and tourism to flow at ever-increasing rates."
This year’s budget includes new funding of:
- $227,000 a year to pay for two extra dog handlers and an inspector to ensure that all courier mail is screened for
potential biosecurity breaches;
- $889,000 a year for post-border pest detection in high-risk sites, improving the number and quality of detections by
targeting the most probable pathways for establishment and spread;
- $1.11 million a year to continue and maintain the new organism enforcement capability;
- $450,000 a year for the next two financial years to ensure New Zealand meets World Organisation for Animal Health
guidelines for BSE surveillance, including increased notification incentives to farmers and payments to veterinarians
and for laboratory tests.
There is also new funding for the purchase of the National Centre for Disease Investigation at Wallaceville. Other
government agencies intend to increase their involvement at the Upper Hutt site, which will become a National Centre of
Biosecurity Excellence.
New Zealand's access to world-class plant genetic material will be enhanced by funding for new post-entry quarantine
facilities for industry at MAF’s National Plant Pest Reference Laboratory in Auckland.
"This budget ensures that our primary industries will be able to maintain their high levels of productivity and develop
new areas of opportunity and growth," Mr Sutton said.
ENDS