Opposition politicians are criticising border control systems over the nest of Australian redback spiders and eggs found on an imported bus in Auckland.
Shane Ardern, National's biosecurity spokesman, said the find was alarming.
"But what's more worrying is that it wasn't our border controls that found the nest, but staff at Bayes
Coachlines.
"Our treatment of containers from suspect areas is disgraceful," said Mr Ardern.
"We've heard reports of wharfies being told to use fly spray to kill insects found in containers, and of containers being checked at home after half the contents had already been unpacked."
The Greens' biosecurity spokesman, Ian Ewen-Street, said vehicles imported from Australia should be inspected and certified in Australia, as well as being steam-cleaned in New Zealand.
He said female redbacks were already established in New Zealand and believed to be displacing the rare native katipo.
The spiders and eggs discovered last weekend behind a panel on the bus had survived the steam-cleaning of the vehicle and stayed in it for several days on a North Shore yard.
They were killed yesterday when the bus was fumigated.
Mr Ardern tabled a media report about the spiders in Parliament yesterday, but his complaints did not draw a response from the Government.
* Communication between biosecurity departments had improved since an audit found there was no clear focus between them, Customs Minister Rick Barker said yesterday.
The Audit Office, which carried out an audit of the biosecurity sector and its response to risks, reported last month with 12 criticisms.
Those concerns were for the four main biosecurity departments: the Agriculture and Forestry Ministry, Department of Conservation, Health and Fisheries Ministries.
The audit provided six recommendations for improvement.
Mr Barker told Parliament that communciation had improved "significantly".
- NZPA
Herald feature: Environment
