MEDIA RELEASE

3 January 2013

Ministry needs recreational quad bike focus

Farmers are taking quad bike safety seriously, but the latest incident in the Hawke’s Bay, again highlights this message is not getting through to recreational users.

“Recreational users, quad bikes and alcohol are a cocktail for disaster,” says Jeanette Maxwell, Federated Farmers spokesperson for health and safety.

“While many farmers are heeding the safety message, the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment need to find a better way to convey safety when it comes to recreational users.

“The tragic death following Christmas was recreational in nature as was the latest incident in the Hawke’s Bay. The Hawke’s Bay one seemingly involved alcohol as well.

“Having again fielded a number of media calls, there is an unhelpful assumption all quad bike accidents are farm related. In 2012 there appears to have been two recreational fatalities involving quad bikes and this recreational toll is a concern.

“The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment needs to look at how it is communicating safety messages to casual quad bike users. Frankly, no one should be using a quad bike without the appropriate training and not all quad bikes are designed to carry two people.

“If an untrained person wants to use a quad bike then they must seek training and become proficient in its use. It really is as simple as that.

“But given the number of quad bikes on-farm are similar to the number of road going motorcycles, we also need a degree of perspective,” Mrs Maxwell concluded.
ENDS

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Arguably Reassuring: Inspector-General Finds GCSB "Arguably" Legal

Of the 88 individuals:

• 15 cases involving 22 individuals did not have any information intercepted by GCSB.

• another four cases involving five individuals were the subjects of a New Zealand Security Intelligence Service warrant and the GCSB assisted in the execution of the warrants. The Inspector-General is of the view that there were arguably no breaches and the law is unclear.

• the Bureau only provided technical assistance which did not involve interception of communications, involving three of the individuals, so no breach occurred.

• the remaining cases involved the collection of metadata, and the Inspector-General formed the view that there had arguably been no breach, noting once again that the law is unclear.
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