The New Zealand Government will spend $18.4million over the next four years to strengthen the nation's biosecurity system. It handed down the annual budget on Thursday afternoon, announcing a bigger-than-expected surplus, allowing it to invest heavily in infrastructure, with several key projects in the Primary Industries portfolio.
The Minister for Primary Industries Nathan Guy says a growing economy means more people are travelling and trade volumes are increasing placing increasing demands on the biosecurity system.
“The funding will also be used to accelerate the development and uptake of new tools to detect and eradicate pests," Mr Guy said. "This includes sonar scanning of vessel hulls and automatic acoustic traps for use in pest surveillance and eradication. A major focus will also go on lifting public awareness and participation because biosecurity is the responsibility of all New Zealanders. This will involve targeted programs to drive awareness and behaviour changes, and to meet our goal of having 90 per cent of relevant businesses actively managing pest and disease risks."
These new initiatives are part of the Biosecurity 2025 Direction Statement, which was publicly released last year, setting out a long-term vision for protecting New Zealand.
"Biosecurity has always been my number one priority as Minister because the primary sector is the backbone of our economy. Unwanted pests and diseases have the potential to cause major damage to our producers," Mr Guy said.
The government also announced more than $35.3million over four years towards boosting Primary Industry and Food Export Value. This funding will enable the acceleration of work on priority non-tariff barriers, support primary sector exporters to navigate international regulatory requirements and strengthen information and analysis to help exporters identify and act on market opportunities.
Earlier this week, it committed funding towards two areas of water projects. New capital worth $63million will support investment in the construction of regional irrigation infrastructure, while $26.7million provides matched grant funding to regional scale irrigation schemes.
Meanwhile, the New Zealand Government hopes agriculture companies, exporters and growers can take advantage of improved rail infrastructure, with $450million of funding to be invested in KiwiRail over the next two financial years.
"Budget 2017 investment in New Zealand’s rail infrastructure and systems will ensure that KiwiRail can improve its resilience and reliability, while continuing to support tourism, freight and export industries," Transport Minister Simon Bridges said.
For more details on the budget: www.treasury.govt.nz/budget/2017