Media statement
For immediate release
Tuesday, 7 December 2004

Baldock delighted by Minister’s backdown

United Future fisheries spokesman, Larry Baldock, has congratulated Recreational Fishing NZ, Big Game Fishing and Option 4, on their achievement in forcing a backdown by the Minister of Fisheries, David Benson-Pope.

“His willingness to drop any attempt to alter recreational fishing bag limits is simply an admission that he got it all wrong in the beginning,” said Mr Baldock.

“Reducing bag limits was pointless, once the kahawai had been allocated to the commercial fishing interests of the purse seine fishers .

“While I welcome the announcement, I congratulate the spokesperson for Recreational Fishing interests on continuing to press the Government for a full review of the quota allocation.

“The Greens’ suggestion of more research is a pathetic compromise when that was already promised by the Minister and announced at the Recreational Fishing Council meeting in July this year.

“The Government must take seriously the amateur fishing groups’ concerns and do something about commercial purse seine fishing in kahawai, or face the consequences of legal action which has been well prepared and well supported by the recreational fishing community.

End.

© Scoop Media

Gordon Campbell: On the Sony cyber attack

Given the layers of meta-irony involved, the saga of the Sony cyber attack seemed at the outset more like a snarky European art film than a popcorn entry at the multiplex.

Yet now with (a) President Barack Obama weighing in on the side of artistic freedom and calling for the US to make a ‘proportionate response’quickly followed by (b) North Korea’s entire Internet service going down, and with both these events being followed by (c) Sony deciding to backtrack and release The Interview film that had made it a target for the dastardly North Koreans in the first place, then ay caramba…the whole world will now be watching how this affair pans out. More>>