Thread: Discussion on NZ Hunting moving forward - NZGuns

IMO The key is to have game animals, fish and birds legislated as managed assets. Then NZ FISH & GAME should be removed from the Conservation Act and the Wildlife Act which governs NZF&G should be "stand alone" and funded by government under a specific minister totally independent of the minister for Conservation and the minister for the environment, much like fisheries. The total game management would then come under NZ F&G and its minister. These changes would allow / force formal debate and review at parliamentary level amongst DoC and MfE and Ministry for Wildlife Recreational Hunting and Fishing. Essential funding base would from treasury and supplemented by licence fees.
Decisions can then be rationally argued between this new ministry and the other affected ministries upon such subjects as allowable herd populations and environmental considerations, socio- economic trade-offs and regulation. Competative shooting such as NRA and NZCTA would be a subset under the new ministry and not necessarily funded any differently to what they currently are.
Such a change would have to be a part of a political party policy (perhaps ACT) in order to gain real traction.