Annual Report for the Year Ended 30 June 2001

• Our Vision
• Chief Executive's Overview
• Key Achievements
• 2000/2001 Financial Performance
• References

Ministry of Fisheries
Annual Report for the year ended 30 June 2001

Minister of Fisheries

Pursuant to Section 39 of the Public Finance Act 1989, I have the honour to present to you my Annual Report on the operations of the Ministry of Fisheries for the year ended 30 June 2001.

W R Tuck
Chief Executive
Ministry of Fisheries

Our Vision

The Ministry's vision for fisheries to the year 2010 includes:

• the Crown working with Maori to achieve sustainable fisheries
• a healthy aquatic ecosystem in which fishing contributes to the social, economic and cultural well-being of New Zealanders and their communities, without limiting options for future generations and, in particular:
• customary Maori fisheries contributing to the cultural health and well-being of iwi and hapu
• high quality recreational fisheries contributing to the social and economic well-being of the nation
• an internationally competitive fishing industry making a significant contribution to our economy
• people with rights to harvest fisheries having responsibility, and being held accountable, for the management of those rights, within environmental limits and standards set by Government
• fisheries stakeholders recognising and respecting each other’s rights, responsibilities and interests, and constructively resolving issues among themselves
• public support for the way fisheries are managed; voluntary compliance with the fisheries laws that underpin sustainable fisheries.

Chief Executive's Overview

The Ministry of Fisheries is at the centre of a sector in which complex issues in fisheries management and marine biosecurity receive considerable attention from the general public, Tangata whenua and stakeholders, who often hold differing views. The sector we operate in has seen considerable change over The last 15 years and this is expected to continue in the foreseeable future.

Our Ministers’ desired outcomes are to enhance the value and enjoyment of New Zealand’s fisheries for all New Zealanders and to manage the risks to our marine environment from marine biosecurity risks. The Ministry’s key goals to contribute to these outcomes are:

• a greater environmental focus for marine management
• a greater involvement for iwi/tangata whenua and stakeholders.

Against this strategic context, the 2000/ 01 financial year was another very successful year for the Ministry of Fisheries as is detailed in the Key Achievements Section of the report, which I commend to you for your reading.

During the year, the large bulk of our resources was again directed at our ongoing fisheries management responsibilities. These include, for example, our management of:

• research planning, sustainability and cost recovery rounds
• the customary and other regulations
• contracts for registry services, customary services and research services
• our own compliance services.

Fisheries management decision-making must be supported by good quality information. Our science-based fisheries management regime has resulted in New Zealand’s fisheries being widely regarded as among the most sustainably managed in the world.

New Zealand also has a large number of unique species vulnerable to invasive organisms. The Ministry continues to develop processes to improve our knowledge of existing species and to build a marine biosecurity system based on a robust risk assessment.

It was also a year in which, in relation to matters of strategic priority, we progressed a number of important key initiatives. In broad terms these revolve around:

• the implementation of the balance of the Fisheries Act 1996 from 1 October 2001 requiring the delivery of new registry and related services and the implementation of the new civil compliance regime
• various policy initiatives in collaboration with other Government departments and with tangata whenua and stakeholders to improve the existing management framework.

During the year we invested in improving our organisational capability, making decisions on the future organisation design and starting the process of implementation.

Fisheries management and marine biosecurity risk management is about people as much as it is about fish. It is about people who want to catch fish for a living; people who want to minimise the impacts of fishing; people for whom fishing is a recreational pastime; and those for whom fisheries has a spiritual and a cultural dimension. It is about protecting our vulnerable endemic species from the careless introduction of marine invaders.

Our success depends on our ability to work together within the Ministry as well as with people outside the Ministry as we make our contribution to Ministers’ desired outcomes.

To all Ministry staff I thank you again for your contribution to our success in 2000/01. We have continued to work closely with colleagues from other Government agencies, in particular the Department of Conservation, the Ministry for the Environment, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Te Puni Kokiri, the New Zealand Police, New Zealand Customs Service and New Zealand Defence Forces.

In this United Nations International Year of Volunteers, 2001, I pay a special tribute to our 350 honorary fishery officers who give freely of their time to support the Ministry. This network of volunteers makes a huge contribution to the Ministry’s compliance and enforcement effort.

Also in terms of people giving freely of their time I acknowledge the input we receive from our environmental, recreational and commercial stakeholders. I also thank the 10 Kai Arahi/Liaison Officers and the 104 Tangata Tiaki/Kaitiaki working with various iwi around the country for their contribution to fisheries management during 2000/01.

More than 62,000 people responded to the Ministry’s discussion document ‘Soundings’, which discussed options for improving the management of recreational fisheries. This level of input from the public during the year was most encouraging.

Finally, I acknowledge the support the Ministry has received during the year from the Minister of Fisheries the Hon Pete Hodgson, the Associate Minister of Fisheries, the Hon Parekura Horomia, the Minister for Biosecurity, the Hon Jim Sutton and the Associate Minister for Biosecurity the Hon Marian Hobbs.

Warwick Tuck
Chief Executive