Church body against proposed fisheries footage OIA exemption

In a submission to Parliament’s Primary Production Committee on the Fisheries Amendment Bill, the Commission warned against reducing transparency and public accountability over a shared natural resource.

“Fisheries are not merely economic assets – they are a shared ecological inheritance that supports food security, cultural life, recreation and community wellbeing,” the submission stated. “Our concern is that the Bill places too great an emphasis on commercial certainty and export value while diluting safeguards intended to protect shared ecological systems.

“We also believe restrictions on transparency and public participation undermine the common good, while the Bill’s emphasis on speed, efficiency and legal certainty for commercial traders risks narrowing the moral horizon of fisheries management.”

The Commission opposed the Bill’s provision to exempt “on-board camera footage from the Official Information Act”, as this would significantly reduce public scrutiny powers.

The submission also opposed the introduction of fines (maximum $50,000) for knowingly disclosing or re-disclosing footage without statutory permission as this risks “silencing whistleblowers and investigative journalists who have historically monitored and assisted in keeping the commercial fishing industry transparent, accountable and honest”.

“Reducing transparency undermines public trust and erodes moral legitimacy, even where ‘administrative efficiency’ is claimed. Furthermore, placing limits on consultation and judicial review (reduced to a strict 20 working-day turnover deadline) will weaken, not strengthen, civic participation, and restrict the right to thorough and fair judicial review.”

The Commission stated that it recognises “the importance of sustainable livelihoods within the fishing sector, and although we do not oppose commercial fishing, nor economic development, Catholic Social Teaching is clear that economic activity must always remain subordinate to ecological limits, social justice and moral responsibility”.

The Commission said the Bill would weaken environmental protection, normalise ecological harm and inadequately meet Treaty of Waitangi obligations on the part of the Crown.

The Commission opposed the Bill “in its current form” and urged “the Select Committee to recommend significant amendments to ensure the Bill better serves the common good, intergenerational justice, the environment and the integrity of Te Tiriti o Waitangi”.

FULL STORY

Fisheries Amendment Bill 2026 (Justice and Peace Commission/Catholic Diocese of Auckland/NZ Parliament)

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