5. TODD McCLAY (National—Rotorua) Link to this
to the Minister for Biosecurity
What recent developments have there been in response to the kiwifruit disease Psa?
Hon DAVID CARTER (Minister for Biosecurity) Link to this
Last Friday night, after 2 days of intensive grower consultation, the Kiwifruit Industry Advisory Council announced that it strongly supported the $50 million Government and industry plan to aggressively contain the Pseudomonas syringae pv. Actinidiae ( Psa) disease. This is great news, and gives the green light for the fight against Psa to get under way. The response is a first-rate example of Government and industry working in partnership in real time to tackle an urgent and serious biosecurity issue.
With funding approved from both industry and Government, the aggressive containment strategy is now under way. A technical advisory group has been convened, and vine prunings from quarantined orchards are being incinerated or deep buried by Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry at a site near Te Puke. As of yesterday evening, 61 properties have tested positive for Psa, with the vast majority of those properties centred in the Te Puke region. This is the approximate level of spread that had been anticipated within the agreed response plan.
Hon Steve Chadwick Link to this
Has he made any commitment to kiwifruit growers that he will reinstate the 54 front-line biosecurity jobs that were cut last year?