New Zealand
November 19, 2021
Source: New Zealand Plant Breeding & Research Association
Tēnā koutou,
Thank you for your engagement over the course of the PVR review.
The Plant Variety Rights Bill has now been reported back to Parliament following consideration at select committee. The Committee’s report, which includes the revised version of the Bill is now available on the New Zealand Parliament website. Here you can also find all advice presented to the Committee by officials, including the Departmental Report recommending changes to the Bill.
Plant Variety Rights Bill – New Zealand Parliament website.
A summary of key changes to the Bill is available on MBIE’s PVR Act review webpages.
PVR Act review background – MBIE website.
Thank you to all who engaged in the select committee process through written and oral submissions. We are confident the proposed changes will strengthen and modernise Aotearoa’s PVR regime, while also protecting kaitiaki interests consistent with the Treaty of Waitangi – a central focus of this review.
The Bill will now start going through the remaining Parliamentary stages. However, with only three sitting weeks left this year, and many other pieces of legislation in the House, we are advised that it is unlikely to get further than second reading. While this will not affect the overall timeline of the new regime commencing in mid-2022, it does mean a short delay to starting the process to get the Māori Plant Varieties Committee up and running under Part 5 of the Bill.
Meanwhile, we are aiming to get policy decisions on the new PVR regulations in coming weeks so that drafting of these regulations can commence. We plan to be able to share an exposure draft of the proposed new regulations around March 2022.
If you have any questions about the Bill or supporting regulations, please get in touch with our team directly on pvractreview@mbie.govt.nz.
Thank you again for engaging with us during this review.
Ngā mihi nui
The PVR Act Review team
Topics
Species
