Federated Farmers has rightly labelled Fish & Game New Zealand's ill-fated High Court challenge a disaster.

The challenge was a failed attempt to by-pass all the work associated with walking access and it is a spiteful and damaging waste of the fishing and hunting license fee money. The High Court in Wellington yesterday dismissed Fish & Game's challenge over the rights of South Island pastoral lease holders.

"This decision brings relief for affected High Country farming families, as they now know Fish & Game members won't be entitled to walk all over them," says Donald Aubrey, Federated Farmers High Country chairman.

Both Federated Farmers and the High Country Accord played an instrumental role in the formation and development of the Walking Access Commission.

"We have contributed positively to the development of rules for public access that give pastoral leaseholders and their families security and certainty. Meanwhile, Fish & Game's Executive has sadly played nothing but a negative and destructive role.

"The High Court's decision affirms the right of leaseholders to have consent over what people do on pastoral leasehold land.

"High Country pastoral leases impose strict conditions on us as farmers. The judgment acknowledges that leaseholders are responsible for much more than just grass.

"It's only right that farmers have the ability to control and manage access to such land. This decision enables pastoral leaseholders to operate a business and maintain authority over their property rights contained in their leases.

"The High Court's judgement also recognises that pastoral leaseholders perform a stewardship role. In other words, we farm with the High Country and not against it. That stewardship role was also recognised recently by Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment, Dr. Jan Wright.

"Fish & Game chief executive, Bryce Johnston, now needs to take a long hard long look at his and his Council's decision to waste a vast amount of license fee money on this challenge.

"Federated Farmers consider it also time for the Government to look at the legislative privilege that enables Fish & Game to fund such frivolous litigation. This inappropriate use of license fee money should not go unchecked by Government," Mr Aubrey concluded.

Federated Farmers encourages and supports the awarding of costs by the High Court to the High Country Accord.