Estimates Debate — Vote Housing

Tēnā koe, Mr Chair. Tēnā koe e te Minita e whakakī i te tūru o te Minita i tēnei pō. Ka nui te mihi ki a koe. I tēnei tau tonu nei i te marama o Maehe i puta tētahi kōrero i a Iris Pāhau mai i te Coalition to End Homelessness. I roto i tērā pūrongo, i mea mai, e 80 paihēneti o te hunga noho kore whare nō ngāi Māori—80 paihēneti nō ngāi Māori. I te kōrero ia i tētahi hui ā-tau, hui ā-motu ki te whakakore i tēnei mea, te kore kāinga, ka mutu i puta, me kī, te uauatanga o tēnei momo āhuatanga ki runga i ngā mea o Aotearoa nei. I puta te kōrero, arā nō ngā rau tāngata e noho nei, e ai ki ngā kōrero rough sleepers, ko te hunga noho kore whare nei, kore wāhi nei; i roto o Tāmaki-makau-rau. Ka tāpirihia atu, ko ngā mano tāngata e noho nei i roto i ngā boarding houses, motor camps, me kī, i raro i te parirau o te mea temporary accommodation. Tāpirihia atu ko te 4,722 tāngata o roto i te tatauranga ā-motu e noho nei i roto i ngā whare 2,295 o ngā whare karukaru nei me te 43,000 whare e noho kōpā nei, kātahi ka mōhio tonu ki te āhuatanga o tēnei mea ki runga i te motu whānui tonu me te Ao Māori.

I tēnei tau tonu nei i roto o Ōtautahi, kai te mōhio tonu tātau i pāngia katoatia a Ōtautahi nā runga i te āhuatanga o te rū o te whenua, ka mutu, ko te wāhanga o ngā whare, he wāhanga i tino rongo nei i te ngau o ngā uauatanga o te rū, ngā mahi a Rūaumoko. Kai te tino whakaae atu au, ka mutu, e tika ana te aronga o te Social Services Committee me tā rātou titiro ki te wāhanga whare me te mea anō hoki, me titiro hōhonu nei ki te āhuatanga o te rū o te whenua ki runga o Ōtautahi. Me pēnei rawa te kōrero, kai te tino mihi te Pāti Māori ki te Minita mō ngā Whare, mō tāna whakarongo mai ki wā mātou kōrero ki a ia, me tāna tautoko mai, ko tā mātou e whakatakoto mai ki mua i a ia, me te hunga e noho mai rā i roto o Ōtautahi ki Te Tai Tonga. I puta te kōrero i taku hoa i a Rahui Katene mō te hunga, me kī, i nuku nā te rū o te whenua, ka whai wāhi rātau hei wāhi noho ā te wā. Nā runga i te aha? Nā runga i te whakatau o te Minita. Ā, kai te mōhio tonu tātau pea, i puta noa atu ētahi o roto o Ōtautahi ki wāhi kē. I pērā anō hoki ki a au. I haere ētahi ki roto i a au o te Waiariki. Ko ētahi o wā rātau tamariki e haere nei ki roto i ngā kura kaupapa Māori, arā, nei, i roto i a au o te Waiariki. Nō reira, kai te mōhio tonu tātau, he wā uaua tēnei mō te hunga e noho nei i roto o Ōtautahi.

Kāti, me hoki mai au ki te pūtake o tēnei mea o te kore kāinga. Ko tētahi o ngā kōrero i puta i tērā o ngā hui, nā te Iris Pāhau nei tēnei kōrero, kia kaua tātau e titiro noa iho, me kī, ki te emergency housing me te iti o te utu mō te whare. Ko tāna kē, me titiro ki te pikitia nui, arā, te whakahoki i ngā mea kore whare nei ki roto i te whānau, ki te hapū. Me hono anō rātau ki ō rātau ake hapū, ki o rātau whānau. Nō reira, me kī, whai muri i tērā, me titiro tātau ki tēnei mea, te social housing. I roto i te komiti whāiti, arā, te select committee, ko tā rātau e kī nei e 24 miriona taara kua whakatahangia mō te social housing ēngari, 1 hau 8 kua whakatahangia mō te iwi Māori. E āhua pāpōuri au ki tērā momo kōrero.

Ēngari, ko te tētahi mea pai kua kite atu, me kī, ko ētahi rōpū Māori o roto i te takiwā e hiahia ana ki te whakahaere i ngā whare o roto ake rohe. Nā, me kōrero au mō roto o te Waiariki, arā, mō te rōpū e kīa ana ko te Ngāti Awa Group Holdings. Kai te mōhio te Minita ki tēnei momo kamupene, ka mutu, ko tā rātau hiahia ki te hoko mai i ngā whare o te Housing New Zealand Corporation mō te rohe rā. Ka mutu, i kōrero au mō te Ngāti Awa Group Holdings, arā anō a Mangatawa Papamoa Block Inc. Ko taua āhua anō tae atu ki te Rūnanaga o Ngāti Awa, rātau katoa, me kī, ngā rōpū Māori, ko tā rātau hiahia kia hoko i ētahi o ngā whare, o te wāhanga whare o te takiwā o Whakatāne, kia taea e rātau te whakahaere i ngā whare e pā ana ki a rātau ake, arā, ko ngā Māori e noho mai ki reira. Nō reira, he pai tērā ki a au kia riro mā te Māori anō a Māori e whakarite, i ngā whare tonu, kia ngāwari mai ai te noho i te takiwā.

Ko tā mātau ko te tautoko i te kōrero a ngā tāngata pēnei i a Mark Solomon me tana kī atu, ko wai atu i te Māori kia noho hai hoa haere mō te Kāwanatanga i roto i ngā mahi hokohoko? Ko wai atu i te Māori? I tēnei rā, me kī, ko te International Day of the World’s Indigenous People ki taku mōhio, he rā pai tēnei hei whakanui i tērā āhuatanga. Kia taea ai e te Ao Māori te noho hai hoa haere mō te Kāwanatanga, ka tahi, ki te hoko i ngā whare, ka rua, ki te whakahaere i ngā whare ka whiwhi i a rātau. Nō reira, me pēnā rawa pea tērā whakaaro, whakatakotohia ki mua i te aroaro o te Minita, māna tēnā e wānanga hei te wā. Nō reira koia tērā.

Ki taku mōhio i tēnei wā, rahi ake i te 300 kāinga, whare rānei e pērā anō te āhua. He aha te hē o te noho ā-hoa haere o te Māori me te Kāwanatanga. Nō reira, kāti ake, ka waiho tērā kōrero ki te Minita hei wetewete i te mea, ā, kei te mōhio tonu ia ki te āhuatanga o te whakahaere o Te Rūnanaga o Ngāti Awa, nā runga i tana hoa tata nei, ka mutu, ko te Ngāti Awa Group Holdings, pērā rawa te āhua. Nō reira, kāore he hē o te kōrero i ēnei take ā te wā. Ka waiho tērā kōrero ki reira, ā, e te Whare, kia ora tātau katoa.

[Thank you, Mr Chair. Greetings to you, the Minister in the chair, who is filling in for the Minister tonight. Much regards to you. In March this year Iris Pāhau from the Coalition to End Homelessness stated that 80 percent of those without homes were Māori—80 percent were Māori. She was speaking at a national annual conference to end homelessness, where the difficulty of this kind of situation for those here in New Zealand became a reality. It was reported that a few hundred so-called rough sleepers were those who were homeless and of no fixed abode—particularly in Auckland—as well as the several thousands of people living in boarding houses and motor camps under the wing of this thing called temporary accommodation. In addition, 4,722 people were recorded in the last census as living in some 2,295 run-down dwellings, plus more than 43,000 overcrowded households, making us aware of the sheer enormity of this thing upon the country at large and, in particular, upon Māoridom.

Christchurch and the housing sector this year really felt the full impact and difficulties created by earthquakes, by the work of the earthquake god. At the end of it all, I agree totally that the key focus for the Social Services Committee in examining Vote Housing should be to consider the effects of earthquakes on Canterbury in general. I want to say how much the Māori Party appreciates the way the Minister of Housing listened to what we had to say and put before him about the situation in respect of our people housed in Christchurch and the South Island. My colleague Rahui Katene referred to those who relocated because of earthquakes and who eventually found accommodation elsewhere. What brought this about? The Minister made it happen. It was like that for me as well. Some came to live within my Waiariki electorate, and some of their Māori-medium schoolchildren attended our Māori-medium schools in my electorate. So we are very much aware that this is a difficult time for those residents in Christchurch.

Let me go back to the cause of this thing: homelessness. One of the statements made by Iris Pāhau that emerged from that conference was that we should not restrict ourselves to just emergency housing as being the affordable option. She insisted that we should be looking at the bigger picture and getting Māori without homes to go back to family and subtribal roots. They must reconnect with their very own family and subtribe. It is only when that option has been fully explored that we look at this thing called social housing. The select committee reported that $24 million had been set aside for social housing, but of that amount, only one-eighth was set aside for Māori people. I was somewhat disappointed with that.

But a positive thing I see is that there are Māori organisations of influence about the region wanting to manage State housing in their own area. I will talk about the ones in Waiariki, about the organisation called Ngāti Awa Group Holdings. The Minister is aware of this type of company, which furthermore wants to purchase Housing New Zealand Corporation houses for that region in particular. I talked about Ngāti Awa Group Holdings, but there is the Mangatawa Papamoa Block Inc. as well. It wants to do the same thing, including the Rūnanga of Ngāti Awa. All of them, all Māori organisations, want to purchase Housing New Zealand Corporation stock in the Whakatāne District so that they can administer houses that belong to them and Māori people living there. That appeals to me. Māori can make decisions for Māori in relation to houses and live comfortably there in the district.

Our part is to endorse the statement made by people like Mark Solomon, who asked who else other than Māori should partner the Government in terms of commercial ventures. Who else but Māori? To me, with this day being the International Day of the World’s Indigenous People, it is a great day to celebrate that partnership. Māoridom will be able to work in tandem with the Government, which is one; purchase houses, which is two; and administer what they obtain. That is how that concept should be dealt to. Put it before the Minister for him to address in time. That is that.

At this very moment, I understand there are over 300 suitable properties or houses available. So what is wrong with Māori working alongside the Government as partners? Enough said; I will leave that for the Minister to mull over. Besides, he is aware just how capable Te Rūnanga o Ngāti Awa is, because of his close colleague here. Furthermore, the case for Ngāti Awa Group Holdings is the same. So there is not a problem when it comes to the time when these matters are discussed in future. I leave that talk there and extend greetings to us all, the House.]

Vote agreed to.

Vote Immigration agreed to.

Vote Conservation agreed to.

Vote Food Safety agreed to.

Vote Labour