5 March 2013

Student caught hiding biosecurity risk goods

A Christchurch international student showed total disregard for New
Zealand’s biosecurity rules when he tried to cross the border with
food hidden in empty tea packages, says the Ministry for Primary
Industries (MPI).

An MPI quarantine official found dried kumara and pork-filled buns in
two large bags of tea when he inspected the baggage of a 16-year-old
Burnside High School student arriving at Christchurch airport from
China on Friday.

A cockroach escaped from the bag containing the buns and ran across
the search bench during closer inspection. It was quickly captured,
says Michael Walker, Team Leader, MPI Border Clearance Services
South.

“We were particularly unimpressed by the contempt the student
showed to our biosecurity laws and to the dangers to which he was
exposing New Zealand’s primary sectors and environment, says Mr
Walker.

“He clearly knew he was breaking the rules, otherwise he wouldn’t
have hidden the food.”

Mr Walker says the passenger was younger than 17, which meant no
legal action could be taken.

MPI plans to visit the school to ensure international students there
are aware of their biosecurity obligations.

© Scoop Media

Gordon Campbell: On Failures Of Care For Those With Mental Disabilities

Hard to imagine a more disturbing insight into the treatment of the vulnerable than the Health Ministry report on Te Roopu Taurima o Manukau. The Ministry has found that the country’s only kaupapa Maori intellectual disability residential care provider has been “seriously dysfunctional.”

The ministry says the business has failed to recruit and retain quality staff – and says the kaimahi (caregivers) that have been employed are seriously unsuitable for the job, lacking basic knowledge. But Te Roopu Taurima o Manukau doesn’t get all the blame. The report says there’s a significant gap under disability laws to ensure there’s oversight by qualified clinical professionals. More>>