Appointment of Chief Executive of Ministry of Fisheries

The State Services Commissioner, Mark Prebble, announced today the appointment of Mr Simon (Wayne) McNee as Chief Executive of the Ministry of Fisheries.

Mr McNee is the Chief Executive of the Pharmaceutical Management Agency (PHARMAC), a position he has held since 2001, and is currently seconded to the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet.

"In his role at PHARMAC Wayne McNee has built effective relationships with a wide range of stakeholders, some with competing interests, in an environment that is sometimes emotionally charged. He has the professional skills, maturity, integrity and determination to make a successful transition into the Ministry of Fisheries," Mark Prebble said.

"New Zealand's marine environment and fisheries resources are highly valued economically, culturally and environmentally. As the incoming Chief Executive, Wayne McNee will be expected to focus on the long-term direction of fisheries management by considering issues such as oceans policy and biosecurity, the capability of the Ministry to achieve its goals and balancing profitable harvesting, long-term sustainability, and conservation of the marine ecosystem.

"Wayne McNee will lead the Ministry to achieve the Government's goals for fisheries, through implementing aquaculture reform, reducing the complexity of the regulatory environment, implementing customary fisheries policies, and promoting fisheries contribution to New Zealand's economic transformation," Mark Prebble said.

Mr McNee will also be expected to work closely with the other natural resource sustainability agencies, the Department of Conservation, the Ministry for the Environment and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, to investigate opportunities for closer engagement and collaboration.

After completing a Bachelors degree in Pharmacy at Otago University in 1985, Mr McNee undertook a series of pharmacy roles both in New Zealand and England before taking up the Therapeutic Group Manager role at PHARMAC in July 1995. He then followed a career pathway within PHARMAC culminating in his appointment as Chief Executive. In 1998 Mr McNee was awarded a post graduate Diploma in Clinical Pharmacy at Otago University and he has undertaken Executive Management programmes at Oxford and Stanford Universities.

Mr McNee takes up his appointment early in 2008.

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Contact: Jason Ryan, Communications Manager,

Tel 04 495 2850