After six years as Chair of the New Zealand Game Animal Council and with my term about to end, I want to reflect on how far the organisation has come and the exciting opportunities ahead for hunting and game animal management.

When I took on this role, the Game Animal Council was extremely limited in its capability. We had just appointed our first full-time staff member, Tim Gale, as General Manager, and like many organisations in our sector, a great deal depended on volunteer goodwill and people giving their time because they cared deeply about hunting in New Zealand.

Today, the organisation is in a very different position. We now have a staff of six backing up our council members – bringing expertise across organisational leadership, science, research, policy, communications and administration. That growth has not happened by accident. It has been made possible by sustained effort and increased financial support under two different governments. That investment has allowed the Game Animal Council to become a more capable organisation for hunters, fulfil our statutory functions more fully, and provide more support for the hardworking organisations in the sector.

Over the last six years, there has been a huge amount of effort put into ensuring hunters are properly part of the broader conservation and game animal management conversation.

The clearest example of this is the progress being made towards establishing the first two Herds of Special Interest (HOSI) in the Central North Island and Fiordland. These proposals have taken an enormous amount of work to get to this point, and they simply would not be where they are without the hard work of the Fiordland Wapiti Foundation, the Sika Foundation and others across the sector.

HOSI offers the promise of a new and more constructive way forward. It recognises game animals as valued introduced species, while managing their impacts in a practical way that can support both hunting and conservation outcomes. That is a genuinely exciting prospect, and I hope the success of these first two HOSI helps pave the way for more balanced, pragmatic approaches to game animal management in future.

Looking ahead, it’s clear that the legislation governing conservation and game animal management in New Zealand desperately needs updating. It’s no longer fit for purpose and does not reflect the realities of modern conservation, game animal management or public expectations.

My hope is that a future government will commit to meaningful legislative reform. But for that reform to work, it must incorporate game animals as valued introduced species. The risk, of course, is that the reform is driven by ideology that refuses to acknowledge the place of game animals in New Zealand. In my opinion, that would lead to needless division, conflict and poorer conservation outcomes.

The fact is that hunting and fishing are a critical part of New Zealand’s culture and identity. International visitors who come here are often astonished by the public resources we have access to and are deeply envious of the opportunities we have to enjoy them.

That’s why I expect the Game Animal Council to continue to work closely with Fish & Game New Zealand as a kindred organisation in protecting, promoting and looking after our valued introduced species. Strong relationships across the sector, and with external stakeholders, really matter for small organisations like the Game Animal Council.

Finally, I want to say thank you to Tim, to our current Chief Executive Corina Jordan, to all the GAC council members I’ve worked with, and to Jenny Wotten and our other staff for the effort they put in behind the scenes. Thanks to the Department of Conservation, whose relationship with the Council is important, and to the ministers from both governments we’ve worked with over the last six years. Most of all, thank you to the hunting sector and its leadership for their support, their effort and their commitment to New Zealand hunters.

There is still much to do. But I leave this role confident that the Game Animal Council is stronger, the sector is being heard more clearly, and the future of hunting in New Zealand is bright.