Anderton Jim: Biosecurity and Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Legislation Amendment Bill — In Committee 
Anderton Jim: Biosecurity and Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Legislation Amendment Bill — In Committee 
[Volume:646;Page:15191] 
Hon JIM ANDERTON (Minister for Biosecurity) 
: 
 I thought Supplementary Order Paper 194 had been laid on the Table to be honest but I have a copy here which I will lay on the Table now. Perhaps I could help the Committee by just going through it quickly and making sure that a copy is available to members. 
The Maori Party had tabled Supplementary Order Paper 188 which seeks to alter the period during which Australian honey may not be imported so that the period extends until 90 days after the independent review panel established under new section 22A—to be inserted into the Biosecurity Act by new clause 5A—becomes operational. The Supplementary Order Paper that the Maori Party has laid on the Table appears to be based on a misunderstanding about the independent review being offered to the National Beekeepers’ Association. The review being offered to the Beekeepers’ Association will commence as soon as possible. The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry has already met with the Beekeepers’ Association to discuss aspects of the review and both parties wish to see it proceed quickly. The review will be similar in nature to the independent review process that is to be developed under the new section 22A of the Biosecurity Act but there is no reason to delay the review until that process is established. Therefore there is no logical connection between the formation of an independent review panel under the new section 22A and the commencement of the 90-day period under clause 7A. 
The Government is proposing an alternative Supplementary Order Paper Supplementary Order Paper 194 which will ensure that the import health standard on honey is not validated until after the review process has been completed. The words to this effect are: “To omit this clause (lines 13 to 19 on page 4) [of clause 7A] and substitute the following clause:”—which I will lay on the Table. This new clause 7A “Suspension of power to give biosecurity clearance” states: “Despite section 7 no biosecurity clearance may be given under section 26 of the principal Act for any goods to which the  
Import Health Standard for the Importation into New Zealand of specified Bee Products from Australia 
 dated 2 August 2006 applies until the Director-General has—(a) received a report from an independent review panel set up in consultation with the National Beekeepers Association of New Zealand to consider the scientific evidence in dispute in relation to that import health standard; and (b) determined whether any amendment to that import health standard is necessary to achieve the purpose of Part 3 of the principal Act; and (c) publicly notified that determination.” The explanatory note states: “This Supplementary Order Paper [of the Government] amends  
clause 7A  
to provide that no biosecurity clearances may be given until an independent review panel has conducted a review as provided for in  
paragraph (a) 
 and the Director-General has made and publicly notified the necessary determination.” 
This amendment in the view of officials from the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry and Biosecurity New Zealand whom I have discussed this with deals more appropriately with the issue raised by the Maori Party than its original Supplementary Order Paper does. We recommend this amendment to the Committee.