‘Better a dead marlin than a dead campaign’: Shane Jones’ fisheries pivot

Sunday, 11 January 2026

In an exclusive interview with the Sunday Star-Times’ Jonathan Killick, Shane Jones explains why a controversial proposal to allow commercial operators to sell marlin bycatch is dead in the water.

“The facts have been lost in the tin,” maintains Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones. But, when it comes to fishermen’s tales, sometimes it’s about who told it better.

“It’s a case where the noise and the tune was inversely related to the size of the actual catch,” says Jones.

The minister has been caught in a war of words with fishing TV star Matt Watson over rights to a popular recreational fishery, with adjectives like “egotistical” and “unhinged” being exchanged between the pair.

What started as a “Yamaha hikoi” of protesting Northland anglers, crossing Auckland’s Harbour Bridge with boats in tow, threatened to turn into “public unrest” with Jones admitting that walking down the street in his home town of Kerikeri has been a little uncomfortable lately.

“There is a constant level of tension between the commercial sector and the recreational sector and this was further evidence of that tension,” says Jones.

After a reflection over the Christmas break and a conversation with his leader, he’s had to come to a “pragmatic” election-year decision.

Yet, if there’s one thing it’s difficult for Jones to abide by, it’s a wasted resource. Hundreds of dead marlin are cast back to the sea each year by commercial fishing operators, and Jones isn’t apologetic about proposing to do something about it.

The controversial proposal up for consultation would have allowed commercial vessels monitored by cameras to keep and sell marlin - if they were caught accidentally, and as long as they were already dead.

“We all know it’s bullshit,” says Ultimate Fishing and ITM Fishing Show’s Watson who, along with thousands of boaties, took to the streets, incredulous of the intent behind the proposal.

For the sport fishing community the whole episode reminded them too much of the early 2000s when swordfish were “furtively” added to the quota management system on the basis that they had been previously allowed as bycatch.

The family of billfish species are prized among sport fishing enthusiasts, and public outcry over swordfish at the time resulted in an agreement with the Government that marlin would remain exclusively for recreational anglers.

In a letter sent last month to Jones, the Sport Fishing Council implored him to reconsider his proposal, asking for an urgent meeting to stop “the marlin issue being a hot topic of conversation over the fishing season” and prevent further “public unrest we have seen in recent weeks”.

Having had the Christmas break to consider the issue, Jones tells the Star-Times he’s decided to make the practical decision to walk back the proposal.

“After a brief discussion with the prime minister at the end of last year and recent discussions with my leader Winston Peters, this is a case where it is important that we demonstrate that we’ve heard the voices of the sports fishing industry,” says Jones.

“After taking account of the feedback from the sports fishing community and other recreational fisheries stakeholders, the Government will not be proceeding to change the status of marlin and the regulations enabling the commercial sector to bring marlin back to shore,” says Jones.

Vice president of the NZ Sport Fishing Council, Andrew Johnson, called it “a good example of ministerial discretion”.

“The value of recreational fishing to New Zealand is immense, and it’s intrinsic to our cultural identity,” he says.

“I mean [Northland] is the Mecca for recreational fishermen even if you're only ever sitting in your 12-foot tinny off the beach catching snapper and kahawai for dinner.”

Johnson says that billfish species in particular are a treasured taonga, with many Northland families having a story about the first time they caught a marlin.

“The allure of going out and fighting this gladiator of the sea - it’s Ernest Hemingway sort of stuff when you see it jump out the water. And, the adrenaline of everyone on board trying to catch it fuels your fishing ambitions for the rest of your life.”

Jones says having taken the time to consult, he has heard the voices of the people and taken their sentiments on board.

“They told me directly that ‘we have a photo of you catching a 305kg blue marlin, Shane Jones, so don't tell us that you don't know how exciting pursuing this type of fish is’.

“Any decent politician has to know how to pivot. And yeah, I'll trade a dead marlin for a dead campaign any time of the day.”

However, speaking to the Star-Times, Jones still expresses regret at a valuable resource “disappearing to Tangaroa”.

“The small number of [commercial] vessels that catch marlin as bycatch when they’re after the pelagic species will be required to continue dumping them at sea.

“I personally find that a terrible waste, however this is a case where the issue requires some pragmatism on my part.”

Ben Chissell who organised the One Ocean protest in November, welcomedit as a “step in the right direction” and said it sent a message to government about what happens when you mess with recreational fishing.

“One Ocean was just a bunch of blokes from boats who got pissed off and said ‘no man, that’s enough’.

“We’re glad [Jones] put aside some of the rude comments he’s been making and made a good decision, but it just makes us very cautious about everything they do and they haven’t really shown we can trust them.”

Chissell said that the establishment of 19 new “highly protected areas” (HPA) in the Hauraki Gulf as part of a suite of new regulations brought in by Jones would rely on improving the relationship between ministers and anglers.

“At the moment, you’ve got three marine reserves in Auckland. How are you going to police 19 more, especially out at the Moks [Mokohinau islands]?”

“It’s an honesty box type scenario, and at the moment people don’t trust these guys [Fisheries NZ]. I think people will go out of their way to respect the HPAs when they’re shown equal respect from Shane Jones and the Government about what we’re asking for.”

For Matt Watson, who joined the protests and has been vocal on social media, Jones’ concession is a small victory.

“It’s definitely not winning the war, it’s a battle that’s being fought on many fronts when so many valuable species have been overfished.

“Rather than pump the brakes, its like ‘lets find some more species we can hit’, rather than do the right thing and manage the species that have been hammered.”

Watson points to the closure of northern scallop fisheries and Jones’ five year ban on crayfish take as evidence of a continually plundered natural environment.

“I support both of those bans because it needs to happen to allow it to rebuild. What I would say is, why are we in this position in the first place?

“If everyone had got as up in arms about these species as we have about the marlin, then maybe we could have prevented some of this [commercial] mismanagement, but by and large mainstream Kiwis aren’t activists.

“What I would like to thank Shane Jones for is making it blatantly obvious what’s been going on. I’ll give him this much, he’s taken it out of the shadows - he’s doing it upfront and he’s been bolshie about it.”

Jones, meanwhile, says as part of significant reform this year he will accept an invitation from the NZ Sport Fishing Council to update a Billfish Accord.

The council has asked him to sign a document that would see exclusive recreational rights to marlin maintained and a review of swordfish catch quota.

“It will be examined by our officials, and we will explore in association with reps from the sports fishing community what improvements might be made to the accord and what legal status, if any, should be attributed to it,” says Jones.

With the election on the horizon, he's clear of choppy waters over the issue.

“Now we can continue fishing and they can focus on baiting their hooks and not the matua.”