Deemed value review 2016

DECISION: APPROVED

Introduction

Commercial fishers who do not balance catch with Annual Catch Entitlement (ACE) must pay a financial penalty, a deemed value payment. Sometimes fishers cannot source enough ACE to cover their catch. Deemed values are charged for each kilo of overcatch not covered by ACE. The per kilo cost may ramp up, on a sliding scale, depending on the species. 

Deemed value rates are reviewed according to the Ministry for Primary Industries’ (MPI’s) Deemed Value Guidelines. Application of these Guidelines has identified six stocks for review in 2016.

MPI has proposed to retain the status in three of these six stocks – Giant spider crab 5 (GSC5), Southern blue whiting 1 (SBW1) and Coromandel scallops (SCA CS).

MPI proposes changes in the deemed value rates for three other stocks: Sea cucumber 3 (SCC3), Triangle shell 7 (SAE7) and Deepwater tuatua 7 (PDO7).  

Submission

The New Zealand Sport Fishing Council worked with LegaSea and New Zealand Angling and Casting Association (NZACA) to submit in response to the proposals for Coromandel scallops (SCA CS), Triangle shell 7 (SAE7) and Deepwater tuatua 7 (PDO7). The Council has made substantive submissions on the deemed value regime for a decade. Our 2012 deemed value submission is here.

Serious concerns

The joint submitters believe the deemed value regime needs to be acknowledged as a failure to constrain commercial catch to the statutory limits sets in some fish stocks. A more flexible mechanism is required to remove the incentive for fishers to overcatch the Total Allowable Commercial Catch (TACC). 

The current review demonstrates the earlier concerns are still valid because the deemed value system continues to incentivise either overfishing or dumping, depending on the landed and export price of that species. 

Relevant information

2016

Minister’s decision

Submission

Proposal

2012

Submission