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Instant fines are on the cards next year for passengers arriving in New Zealand with undeclared goods which threaten the nation's biosecurity.

New measures are being developed by the Government to guard against the inadvertent introduction of genetically-modified seed, the Minister for the Environment and Biosecurity, Marian Hobbs, announced today.

The Minister for Biosecurity, Marian Hobbs, has welcomed the report of the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment Dr Morgan Williams on biosecurity.

The Government has approved the first phase of the response to the new discoveries of the exotic southern saltmarsh mosquito, on the East Coast near Gisborne, and in two sites in the Hawkes Bay, Mahia and Porangahau, the Minister for Biosecurity, Marian Hobbs, announced today.

The Government has approved a $2.75 million package of initiatives to enhance biosecurity, the Minister for Biosecurity, Marian Hobbs, announced today. The package includes a $1.25 million public awareness programme.

MAC's Preliminary Report - Biowhat? - was launched in March this year on Bill Garland's farm in the Waikato. It was a beautiful day and there was a real air of optimism that John Kneebone and his team would find a relatively painless way through the thicket of thorny issues that surround biodiversity conservation.

Customs Minister Phillida Bunkle and Biosecurity Minister Marian Hobbs have today confirmed that border control services will not be merged following an independent review.

The Government has ruled out attempting to eradicate the Varroa bee mite and has opted for a Government-assisted management programme the Minister of Agriculture Jim Sutton and the Minister for Biosecurity, Marian Hobbs, announced today.

The release of a revised draft health standard on imported used vehicles will be delayed until the Cabinet considers an interim biosecurity strategy later this month, the Minister for Biosecurity, Marian Hobbs said today.

The Government wants more information before it decides whether to attempt eradication of the varroa bee mite or opt for a controlled management programme, the Ministers for Biosecurity, Marian Hobbs, Agriculture, Jim Sutton and Research, Science and Technology, Pete Hodgson, said today.

It was too soon to say whether an attempt to eradicate the varroa mite was feasible, Acting Biosecurity Minister Jim Sutton said today.

New Zealand would sign the Cartagena Protocol on biosafety when it opened for signature in Nairobi tonight (NZ time), Foreign Minister Phil Goff said today.

A snake found at a garden centre in Waimauku was killed by the fumigation that took place at the border, Acting Biosecurity Minister Jim Sutton said today.

The Minister for Biosecurity has complimented beekeepers on their responsible and co-operative attitude to the bee mite disease discovered in some Auckland beehives

Nganeko was the Claimant in the Manukau Claim to the Waitangi Tribunal that in 1985 set a new benchmark for the place of her people in their homeland and the protection of the natural resources of the Manukau Harbour

Officials are meeting this evening to decide how best to handle another underwater threat to the Chatham Islands following the sinking of the fishing boat Seafresh 1, three kilometres offshore, the Minister for Biosecurity, Marian Hobbs.

Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry is researching the risk posed by different types of contamination found on containers and if additional safeguards should be put in place, the Minister for Biosecurity, Marian Hobbs said today.

The Green Party’s unrelenting attacks on the development of new biotechnology could end in sufferers from cystic fibrosis and emphysema being denied an improved treatment for their illness, the Minister of Agriculture, Jim Sutton, said today.