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Presumably, neither of these found favour with the big companies. The result of the demise of the latter is an increase in deemed value landings and charges. In other words, extra fish, violating the spirit of the quota system, being landed. I do object to the comment about small-scale fishers ending up as serfs in their own boats but in no position to complain, as they were probably given the quota to start with. The first part is absolutely correct. The second part is absolute nonsense. Apart from the objectionable expression "given quota", those still struggling as owner-operators will have been in that position to start with as skippers of company boats (as the permit holder, the company will have gained the benefit of the catch history and hence the quotas), or will have entered the industry subsequent to the inception of the QMS. Fishermen who earned quota through their catch history have largely cashed in and departed the scene. Those of us who are still around, by the way, do not have the "deepest pockets for litigation" described by M and S. Another glaring error is the comment that the scrapping of the resource rental leaves the public poorer, except for some tax take. Fishers and processors still pay resource rentals under other names. The combination of charges and levies to the Ministry of Fisheries, FishServe and the New Zealand Fishing Industry Council, or SeaFIC, are as onerous to the industry as the previous resource rentals. It should be noted that, unlike most other government departments, which are funded by taxation, MAF's Fisheries division is largely funded by the industry. I have trouble with the comment on the supposed error by the government of the day over the ownership of the fisheries by Maori. The Treaty of Waitangi assured them retention of, inter alia, "their fisheries" without specifying what they entailed. This was an arguable case for total ownership, but equally arguable for restriction to ownership at the catching level at that time. Further, under international custom, fisheries outside territorial limits (three miles from shore) were open to everyone. In short, Maori could not have owned fishing rights over three miles from land, so the government should have been free to do what it wanted with those. I might add that, as a descendant of Ngai Tahu and Ngati Mutunga, I could have been a beneficiary of the fisheries settlements. I opposed them on the principles that my ancestors did not owe me a living and that Maori had 140 years to get involved in the industry, so those who had not done so should not expect a handout. The only fishing rights I claimed were those I had established with my own hands. As I watch what Maori have done with their deep-sea settlements – deriving benefits from exploiting vulnerable third-world deckhands on FCVs – I feel my decision was absolutely right. Lastly, recreational fishers should look out! Hot on the heels of Miranda O'Connell's advocacy of a "pay to fish" recreational fishing regime – note that in her response to my letter she does not deny that she favours such charges, but simply justifies them, Gareth Morgan and Geoff Simmons are pushing for you to be brought within the QMS. Once amateur fishing is fully within the QMS, many citizens may find going fishing will only be possible if they pay for expensive permits and/or annual recreational catch entitlements, which will soon be owned by the rich, leaving the average fisher to become a fish thief. Get your cheque books and credit cards ready. Don't order any more diesel for your vessel until you have read this FREE REPORT on Diesel Bug… This report will explain how to detect, eliminate & prevent microbial contamination (Diesel Bug). To get your FREE report phone: TELEPHONE 0800 99 99 86 Global Leader in Anti Fouling Technology ANTIFOULING THAT PROTECTS 10,000 COMMERCIAL SHIPS WORLDWIDE NOW AVAILABLE HERE FOR YOUR BOAT STOCKISTS: All Marine Norsand Boat Yard Wairau Paint Centre Linkup Paint Supplies Dickson Marine Tissiman Marine Dunedin Shipping Supplies Whangarei 09 438 4499 Whangarei 09 430 8485 North Shore 09 443 3430 Tauranga 07 571 8921 03 546 9024 03 328 7585 03 477 7212 Nelson Lyttelton Polymer Group Ltd e: sales@polymer.co.nz 0800 999 001 www.polymer.co.nz TOTAL MARINE: • Wharves • Jetty and Marina Construction and Repair • Marine Towing • Pile Driving and Drilling • Salvage • Barge and Tug Hire TOTAL FLOATS: Design, Supply and Installation of all Floating Structures: Marinas – Commercial and Private Wharf Pontoons Phone 09 379 9752 • Fax 09 379 9751 www.totalmarineservices.co.nz March/April 2012 Professional Skipper 61 VIP.S80 VIP.S86 VIP.S71