LegaSea asks Kiwis to oppose proposed changes to Fisheries Act

LegaSea is asking Kiwis to make their submissions to oppose Minister for Oceans and Fisheries Shane Jones' proposed changes to the Fisheries Actthat threaten to privatise New Zealand's fisheries. If given effect, the changes will reduce public access to fishing for food and cause environmental damage that may be irreversible.

The proposal applies to both inshore and deepwater fisheries and will provide a platform which will enable the privatisation of New Zealand's fish into the hands of around 1,300 quota owners.

There are concerns that the proposed changes will:

Weaken environmental protections

• The proposals seek to allow commercial fishers to carry forward any uncaught catch entitlements to the following year.  More intensive fishing the following year could jeopardise an already depleted fish population.
• The proposals will remove the Minister’s statutory duty to reduce maximum catch limits in depleted fisheries by legitimising shelving of Annual Catch Entitlement (ACE), a voluntary catch reduction by commercial fishers.
• Together these changes increase the risks of environmental damage and biodiversity loss that may be irreversible

Reduce monitoring

• The proposal allows commercial fishers to switch off onboard monitoring cameras at times, offering an unmonitored window when fish can be discarded without scrutiny. 
• Restrict public access to footage under the Official Information Act, reducing transparency and eroding public confidence in management.  
• A 2024 Ministry for Primary Industries report revealed a 46% increase in reported fish being tossed overboard after cameras went live on a portion of the commercial vessels, proving their effectiveness at incentivising reporting. 

Increase wastage

• The proposal seeks to allow for more fish to be thrown overboard so more valuable fish can be caught and kept, resulting in more fishing effort and degradation.
• Since the introduction of onboard monitoring cameras, reports of kingfish discards rose 950%, and snapper over 1000%. Interactions with dolphins, seabirds, and other protected species are on the rise - albatross reports alone were up by 370%. 
• The 2016 Heron Report quotes the Ministry of Primary Industries, Director of Fisheries Management, Dave Turner, who made it clear in 2014 that discards were "the single biggest issue we face in our wild stock fisheries".

Lock out the public

• Authorising Management Procedures as a legislative tool will allow the Minister to set catch limits for up to 5 years at a time - with only one potential chance for public consultation before the Management procedure is implemented.
• In the past 20 years, public input has been the only voice advocating for conservative decision making, highlighting that excessive catch limits, destructive fishing techniques and land based runoff are threatening sustainability. 

Jeopardise sustainability 

• Catch reductions can be delayed due to the impacts the cuts might have on commercial fishers. This incentivises overfishing of a depleted fish stock. 
• There is no reliable independent data to inform management. The long-term catch limits will be determined using unvalidated, self-reported data from the fishing Industry. This data can be skewed to maintain existing catch limits.

Submissions are now open, and LegaSea is urging people to send a submission directly to Fisheries NZ, your local MP and the Minister for Oceans and Fisheries. Submissions close at 5pm on Friday 11th April 2025.

Click here to fill in your submission and have your say on the proposed changes to the Fisheries Act.