Kia ora Friend,
You've been ignored once. Now it's time to turn things around.
The Fisheries Amendment Bill is with the Primary Production Select Committee and is open for public consultation. LegaSea is urging you to have a say because this Bill represents a material threat to our fish, our fishing, and our kids' interests.
WE NEED YOU TO MAKE A SUBMISSION NOW!
It's so important for the future of our fisheries that this Bill does NOT become law. The decisions made about the Bill will shape the future of our fisheries for generations. As it stands, this Bill risks shifting too much control into the hands of industrial fishing interests while the Minister for Oceans and Fisheries hides behind closed doors. The Minister needs to remain accountable to us, the public.
Many of you have spoken up already. Thank you to the more than 20,000 people who have used the LegaSea submission form to have their say. But to ensure we are heard, we need 50,000 people to Kill the Bill. Please ask your friends, family, colleagues, and wider network to make a submission. Think of the people you've shared your catch with - this is their chance to give something back and stand up for the future of our fisheries. Make your voice count. Encourage others to do the same. |
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Making a submission to the Select Committee on the Fisheries Amendment Bill is different to the fisheries processes we are used to. This time, all submissions must be made using the parliamentary form.
So you have a choice. You can write your own submission on the parliamentary submission page here. Or, you can use the LegaSea submission tool here to build your submission, and then we'll guide you through pasting it into the parliamentary submission page. A bit more fiddly, but important enough to get it done.
Click here for a short video to guide you through the process. |
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Grant McCallum speaking at the 1st Reading of the Fisheries Amendment Bill "Some worry their voices won't be heard, and that we won't listen. But let me assure you, we will. National will listen, I will listen."
– Grant McCallum, National MP, Northland, at the first reading of the Fisheries Amendment Bill. Miles Anderson, National MP and Chair of the Primary Production Select Committee also stated "If this bill doesn't undergo real, meaningful improvements at Select Committee, National cannot support it." If that's true, then now is the moment to test this promise.
Submissions on the Fisheries Amendment Bill are open, and they close on April 29. This is the part of the process where the public is meant to be heard, where concerns are meant to land, and where real changes are supposed to happen.
We've already seen public pressure force changes, and that will only happen again when people take the time to speak up.
The Fisheries Amendment Bill is a government Bill, agreed by all Coalition parties. If National is serious about listening, then they need to hear from as many New Zealanders as possible.
Make a submission and have your say. Let's Kill the Bill. |
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What's in the Bill? Removing environmental safeguards |
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Section 13 - Removing environmental considerations when setting catch limits.
Removes environmental safeguards, allowing the Minister to set catch limits without considering the effect of fishing on the wider marine environment and species not in the Quota Management System. (Note - there are only 98 species in the QMS). |
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The Fisheries Amendment Bill prioritises commercial interests over the health of our fish stocks and the marine environment.
Right now, when the Minister for Oceans and Fisheries 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 catch limits could increase while environmental damage continues.
Instead, the Minister's responsibility would narrow to a checklist of six "standard factors" when setting catch limits, none of which require adequate consideration of the environmental consequences of fishing. This means there will be no obligation to account for long-term damage to habitats, impacts on other species outside the Quota Management System, or the health of the wider ecosystem. We're being told environmental effects will be managed through "other tools", but our reality is that unless the Minister is held responsible by the public, those tools are often delayed, contested, or never implemented at all. In simple terms, the proposed changes will make it easier to increase commercial catch limits while lowering the standard for marine protection. It's a huge step backward for the long-term health of our fisheries.
The Amendment Bill is in response to a string of Court cases that made it clear: the Minister must consider all effects of fishing, past, present, and future. Instead of complying with the Court rulings to strengthen fisheries management, the Coalition government and Minister Shane Jones are proposing to change the law to weaken existing protections.
This Bill moves us away from managing oceans as connected systems and back toward single-species thinking. Single-species thinking isn't world-leading. The world has moved to ecosystem-based fisheries management, taking a more holistic approach to how our fisheries are managed.
If we want abundant fisheries for future generations, the Amendment Bill must be thrown out. Make a submission now!
For more detailed information on what's in the Bill, click here.
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Quick Facts about the removal of environmental safeguards |
π Why does the Minister want to remove environmental safeguards in the Fisheries Act? Because it will make it easier to increase commercial catch limits without the Minister considering the long-term damage to marine habitats, impacts on other species outside of the Quota Management System, and the health of the wider marine environment. |
π Why should impacts on the wider marine environment be considered when setting catch limits?
Because fish live in a marine ecosystem. The Minister must consider the impacts of fishing on the marine environment to ensure that commercial fishing doesn't undermine the health of fish populations or the ecosystems they depend on. A healthy marine environment supports abundant fisheries and our ability to catch fish for now and future generations. |
π Who benefits from these changes?
Removing environmental considerations when setting catch limits benefits the short-term profits for quota shareholders, the people and entities who make money from leasing or owning quota. The costs, however, will be borne by the marine environment, small-scale commercial fishers, the public and future generations. |
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A massive shout-out to all the new LegaSea Works Partners who have answered the call and come on board. Legends, the lot of you!
We desperately need this support right now to keep fighting not just to stop the current threat posed by the Fisheries Amendment Bill, but to push for real reforms that will restore our fisheries and the marine environment. If you can do so, please consider becoming a LegaSea Works Partner. As a thankyou, you will receive a damn fine framed and signed LegaSea Partner print and a $50 Marine Deals voucher. A huge welcome to all our new Partners:
Eco Adventures, My Washing Hub, MPF Engineering, Master Craft Construction, Wilkinson Environmental, Ata Retreat Ruakaka, Fitz, Aqua Plumb Auckland Wide, Maverick Management NZ Ltd, Tairua Automotive Ltd, Hard Out Holdings Ltd, Peak Safety Training, H Group, JC Consult Limited, Atlantic Security (NZ) Ltd, Synapse Solutions, Mainland Fasteners Ltd, Kearna Trust, Waiheke Honey Company Ltd, Grouse Landscapes Ltd, Twin Coast Fishing & Diving Ltd, Stevenson Foundation, Magnolia Trust, Seagar & Partners, GSL, Waiheke Marine Solutions, Watts Group Investments Ltd, ENRA Holdings, Great Barrier Lodge and Auckland Hydroseeding.
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Kill the Bill! Fish for Kiwis first The Coalition government has made a serious mistake in backing the Minister for Oceans and Fisheries' most sweeping changes to fisheries legislation in the past 40 years. Kiwis are outraged. And rightly so. Fishing in Godzone, April 2026 |
Environmental Law Initiative unmoved by attempt to curb judicial reviews
The environmental charity that Shane Jones is trying to hamstring through a statutory restriction on judicial reviews says this could be "the thin end of the wedge" in a wider crackdown on the role of the courts. The Environmental Law Initiative won't reveal its strategy if a 20-day deadline for judicial reviews to be lodged against decisions of the Minister of Fisheries is passed into law, but says it won't be stopped.
Andrew Bevin, Newsroom, April 2026 |
MEDIA RELEASE: Government ignoring public outcry on Fisheries Reforms
Why is the government ignoring high profile Kiwis and strong public sentiment opposing its controversial fisheries reforms?
A groundswell of social media commentary, led by fishing advocate Matt Watson, marathon swimmer Jono Ridler, and advocacy group LegaSea, and an outpouring of public reaction has highlighted the far-reaching negative impacts of the Fisheries Amendment Bill. LegaSea, April 2026 |
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LegaSea is proudly supported by its Gold and Platinum partners: |
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