Phil Heatley MP
National Party Fisheries Spokesman

9 January 2008

Travel costs blow out at Ministry of Fisheries

Travel costs at the Ministry of Fisheries have increased by 274% since 2002, says National's Fisheries spokesman, Phil Heatley.

Answers to parliamentary questions show travel costs rose from $211,000 in 2002 to $789,460 in 2006/07.

"This is at a time when the Ministry's bureaucracy is ballooning and beach patrolling, prosecutions, and infringement notices are way down.

"The Ministry now has 452 employees, compared to 327 just five years ago, and an astonishing 356 of them have staff credit cards.

"This is the worst type of bureaucratic excess. Why do 356 Fisheries staff need credit cards? Even more disturbing is that nine of those credit card holders have a limit of $10,000.

"Where are the Minister's priorities? Surely Jim Anderton should be spending taxpayers' cash on protecting our valuable fisheries resource, not on increasing his fisheries fiefdom.

"It is unacceptable that so much money is spent on expeditions and expenses for officials while our coasts are being pillaged.

"Jim Anderton has gutted and filleted the beach patrol service resulting in a massive drop in the number of prosecutions and infringement fines.

"He should take the filleting knife to his Ministry instead."

ENDS

Attached: 2006/2007 Financial Review Q & A
PQ 19005

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From: qwawf
Sent: Tuesday, 27 November 2007 4:36 p.m.
To: Simonette Ferreira
Cc: Philip Heatley; Philip Heatley
Subject: 19005 (2007) Published - Fisheries - Normal Reply

Question: How much was spent on overseas travel by the Ministry, including accommodation costs, the attendance or enrolment fee if any for events and the cost of travel, in the 2002/03, 2003/04, 2004/05, 2005/06 and 2006/07 financial years and what is the budgeted travel cost for the 2007/2008 year?

Portfolio: Fisheries

Minister: Hon Jim Anderton

Date Lodged:16/11/2007

Answer Text: The details are set out in the table below.

Year ended 30 June Amount spent
2002/03 $211,331
2003/04 321,945
2004/05 472,775
2005/06 561,101
2006/07 789,460
2007/08 (budget) 572,025

This information has been provided previously in response to questions from the Primary Production Committee in its financial reviews of the Ministry.

Attachment: None

Date Received:27/11/2007

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