Just 16 working days. That’s all the time the government gave Kiwis to read, understand, and respond to some of the most consequential changes to fisheries legislation. If enacted, the Fisheries Amendment Bill means less transparency, more fish exported, and fewer fish to feed our families. There is no goodwill.

The Bill was issued in March. It’s now with the Primary Production Select Committee to decide what next. Public submissions on the Bill were due to close in April, that deadline has just been extended to 6 May.

Thousands of Kiwis have been loud and clear: they want the Bill scrapped.

The Select Committee will review our submission alongside thousands of others then report back to Parliament by 6 August with recommendations or changes to the Bill.

LegaSea, alongside the New Zealand Sport Fishing Council, NZ Angling & Casting and NZ Underwater will be sending a comprehensive submission rejecting the Amendment Bill outright. We will leave no page unturned, exposing its deep flaws and standing up for what’s best for our fisheries and the interests of all New Zealanders.

The Prime Minister announced in March that the controversial amendment to remove commercial minimum size limits for some species would be pulled from the Bill. It’s still there, so the job is far from done.

The Bill is fundamentally flawed, so cherry picking proposals doesn’t fix the problem.

At its core, the Bill is designed to make it easier for the Minister for Oceans and Fisheries to increase commercial catch limits, favouring large quota owning fishing companies. The Minister Shane Jones has described this as removing “unnecessary red tape”.

But this so-called “red-tape” exists for a good reason – to protect the environment and non-target species when considering catch increases.

Instead, the amendments would weaken that safeguard, so the Minister can prioritise short-term commercial interests ahead of rebuilding fish stocks.

This is not reform. It’s regression – a significant step backward for protecting our marine environment and future productivity.

Currently, when the Minister sets catch limits they are legally required to consider the full effects of fishing on the wider marine environment, not just the fish they are targeting.

The proposed amendments remove this obligation, so any local areas of depletion or ecosystem damage around the Coromandel can simply be ignored.

The Minister’s responsibility would narrow to a checklist of six “standard factors”. So, there will be no obligation to account for long-term damage to habitats or the impacts on species outside the Quota Management System.

The National Party have promised they will listen to the concerns and won’t support the Bill at its second reading unless there are “significant changes”.

The most significant steps National can take is to firstly listen to the people; secondly ensure the Select Committee report recommends the Bill is dropped; then reject the Fisheries Amendment Bill during the second reading.

Keep the pressure on your local MP. They are responsible for the outcome of this Bill. Email and let them know that for the benefit of our kids and theirs, the Bill must be killed.