Duncan Garner has come forward with bold new claims about Mycoplasma bovis, saying he's heard from inside sources that the disease cannot be eradicated.
"I've got these sources on the inside," Garner told The AM Show on Friday morning.
"And they're good sources. They are right on the inside of this."
Garner went on to outline the points he says his sources made to him ahead of the Cabinet meeting on Monday, where the Government will decide whether to try and eradicate or manage the disease moving forward.
"One - they will attempt to contain this disease," Garner says.
"The figure being used was 33 farms are being affected right now. And they're now planning for 100 farms to actually have infected cows. We aint seen nothing yet.
"Number two is we've got these 22,000 cows being culled, that'll be replaced by a figure of around 66,000 cows culled. That's $100 million worth of stock. And that could yet change again over the weekend."
The third point, Garner claims, is that cows will "still be moved around the country".
"This disease goes with the cows. So can they contain it? It's really difficult.
"Number four - you can't eradicate this disease. No other country has. So if we can't eradicate, why on earth are we killing cows by the thousand?"
He says it will cost the economy around $1 billion - "and that's on a good day" - adding that he believes Jacinda Ardern should be "furious" about the response from MPI.
"[My sources] say to me that this thing has been woefully handled by officials. This is the crisis that Labour didn't want to inherit."
Garner also claims compensation has been "wrongly held back from farmers".
"And no one can say why, the farmers are inconsolable."
Jacinda Ardern told The AM Show no decision has been finalised ahead of Monday's announcement.
"We need to sit down with Cabinet on Monday - that's the key milestone there. We've certainly had a lot of conversations with the industry in the lead-up to that, and of course because there are so many tests out in the field, we are getting daily information.
"We don't know how it will, in the long-term, affect New Zealand. That's what has made some of the decision-making quite difficult.
"But what I want to make sure is that we have no regrets in the way that we manage it in New Zealand."
She says it will impact the economy "no matter which way you cut it".
Garner did not reveal who his sources were.
Newshub.
