Ewen-Street Ian: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers Questions to Members 
Ewen-Street Ian: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers Questions to Members 
[Volume:613;Page:9935] 
12.  
IAN EWEN-STREET (Green) 
 to the  
Minister for Biosecurity 
: Why was a shipment of Douglas fir seedlings infected with pine pitch canker seized and destroyed this week and why was it ever allowed to leave California for New Zealand? 
Hon JIM SUTTON (Minister for Biosecurity) 
: 
 A consignment of Douglas fir scions—unrooted cuttings—in a secure quarantine facility in Kaiapoi was destroyed last week because it was infected with a fungus provisionally diagnosed as pine pitch canker a disease New Zealand does not have. The cuttings were from an area considered to be free from pine pitch canker and had been in quarantine for the past 9 months so any infection could be detected and destroyed without risk to our environment. 
Ian Ewen-Street 
: Is it not the case that the destruction of the seedlings was effectively the ambulance at the bottom of the cliff and became necessary only because 3 months before the seedlings were imported the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry had removed the fence at the top of the cliff by declaring 20 counties of California to be free of pine pitch canker against the specific advice of Dr Michael Ormsby the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry’s national adviser on forest biosecurity; if that is not the case what is the case? 
Hon JIM SUTTON 
: The rules for the import of either animals or plants are made not by me or any Minister but by the chief technical officer and on a scientific basis. In the light of this occurrence the ministry has immediately suspended any further imports of pine pitch canker host material from the United States and will review its long-term requirements. 
David Parker 
: What does this interception demonstrate about our biosecurity surveillance system? 
Hon JIM SUTTON 
: Quite simply it demonstrates that quarantine works. Imports are required to be held in quarantine where there is any potential risk so that the disease status can be ascertained. As the Douglas fir case last week shows the system has worked. The Government has a strong commitment to biosecurity with annual baseline expenditure having been increased by more than $50 million since we were elected in December 1999. 
Ian Ewen-Street 
: Given that the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization describes a pest-free area for phytosanitary purposes as being “demonstrated by scientific evidence” on what specific scientific evidence was the decision made to declare these 20 counties in California to be free of pine pitch canker? 
Hon JIM SUTTON 
: I am not qualified to instruct the member on the scientific evidence but I can say that this country relies very much on people applying honest science to quarantine and import-export requirements and it would be most inappropriate for New Zealand to make decisions on what is acceptable in terms of quarantine on the basis of political comments rather than on the basis of honest science. 
Ian Ewen-Street 
: Given that pine pitch canker has caused so much damage to natural pine forests in California that radiata pine has been classified as an endangered species there does the Minister agree that our biosecurity agencies should be focused on managing the necessary risks associated with trade and tourism rather than flirting with utterly unnecessary risks as in this case; if not why not? 
Hon JIM SUTTON 
: To accuse the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry of flirting with unnecessary risks simply illustrates the reason why politicians are not given charge of decisions on quarantine.