Maungaharuru-Tangitū Hapū Claims Settlement Bill

I move, That the Maungaharuru-Tangitū Hapū Claims Settlement Bill be now read a first time. I nominate the Māori Affairs Committee to consider the Maungaharuru-Tangitū Hapū Claims Settlement Bill.

There is a well-known saying associated with these hapū: Ka tuwhera a Maungaharuru, ka kati a Tangitū. Ka tuwhera a Tangitū, ka kati a Maungaharuru. When the season of Maungaharuru opens, the season of Tangitū closes. When the season of Tangitū opens, the season of Maungaharuru closes. It is a proverb that describes the enduring relationship between these hapū and their rohe and their status as tangata whenua and kaitiaki of the natural resources of their area. This bill is the culmination of several years’ work on the part of the hapū involved and represented in the gallery today. It is intended to settle all remaining historical Treaty of Waitangi claims of the Maungaharuru-Tangitū hapū. The negotiations, as one would expect, have been hard fought, and have included some tough conversations at times, but resolution has been reached, the deed of settlement signed, and the hapū, I am sure, can look forward to a better future.

I want to begin by acknowledging the hard work, the commitment, and the perseverance on the part of the hapū negotiators, especially Bevan Taylor and Tania Hopmans, and the support provided to Bevan and Tania by Heitia Hīha and Fred Reti, and many others at Tāngoio Marae. I acknowledge those who have passed on without having seen the fruits of their labours, as sadly so often happens in Treaty settlement negotiations. Most important, I acknowledge the Waitangi Tribunal claimants who have carried the claims of their tīpuna and those who have suffered because of actions or omissions of the Crown.

The claims of the hapū relate primarily to war, raupatu, and Crown land-purchasing methods that left the hapū virtually landless by 1930. The Crown purchased large areas of land from the hapū in the 1850s and 1860s without ensuring that the hapū would always retain adequate reserves in their rohe. In October 1866, the Crown’s military forces unjustly attacked Māori at Ōmarunui and Pētane, and began to treat the hapū as rebels. Some hapū individuals were detained without trial for nearly 2 years on the Chatham Islands, and after they escaped they became embroiled in a war with the Crown, during which Crown forces summarily executed some prisoners at Ngātapa in 1869.

The Crown confiscated hapū land at Tāngoio North and awarded their land at Kaiwaka to one of its allies, who was not a member of the hapū. The Crown’s confiscation process led to the extinguishment of the hapū’s customary titles to nearly all of their other land. The Crown did agree in 1870 to grant this other land to individual members of the hapū and also agreed that this land would be inalienable. However, between 1911 and 1930 the Crown unfairly and oppressively purchased nearly all of this land and, as I said, left the hapū virtually landless.

Since the 1880s, deforestation and development of pastoral farming has significantly increased erosion and pollution in the takiwā. The health of Lake Tūtira has dramatically deteriorated, and the hapū have lost significant fisheries both here and along the coastline. Over the years many hapū family lines died out due to infectious diseases and diseases of poverty, such as typhoid and tuberculosis. Although living conditions and Crown health services have improved since 1945, there continues to be a substantial disparity between the health of hapū members and other New Zealanders.

The Crown failed actively to protect the hapū from the degradations of war, the alienation of their land, and the effect of native land laws. The hapū were not able to retain their land, maintain it economically, or prevent its deterioration. Their health has suffered from the effects of poverty and disease. So today we begin to address the grievances of the past and move with these hapū into the future. I want to acknowledge the newly established governance entity, and I certainly wish the trustees well in their representation of the iwi now and in the post-settlement era. I am sure they are going to take up their new challenge with great enthusiasm.

This settlement is the basis of a new relationship between the people of the Maungaharuru-Tangitū hapū and the Crown, based on mutual trust, cooperation, and respect for the principles of the Treaty. I am very much looking forward to Mr Henare and his team at the Māori Affairs Committee dealing with this bill and returning it to the House. There are three bills being debated today, and he has the Te Tau Ihu Claims Settlement Bill as well to deal with, so it is a very busy committee. They are fine members of Parliament who work together well for the benefit of all iwi, and I am sure that in his customary, exemplary manner, Mr Henare will ensure that this bill is progressed through the select committee and returned to the House very quickly.

I commend the bill to the House.

💬 Hon Shane Jones: Mr Speaker—

I call the Hon Shane Jones. Tēnā koe.

Technically, you are Mr Assistant Speaker, but, with the augustness of the position, I thoroughly enjoy regarding you as Mr Speaker. Given that you have more than a passing level of interest in what has happened in Tāmaki-makau-rau, we now move to another part of Aotearoa.

Ēngari, i te tuatahi me mihi atu ahau ki te whānau i roto i tēnā pito o Aotearoa kua tae mai ki waenga tonu i a mātou ngā kaitōrangapū, ēngari rawa mātou ngā kanohi Māori, ā, tēnā koutou. E kara, e Bevan, tēnei anō te mihi atu ki a koe. Ka mahara atu au i ō koutou mātua te wā i a Wī, i a padre Huata, i a Mackie, i a Scott, i ēnā kaumātua katoa kua riro ki te pō. Kua riro ko koutou hei pīkau, hei whakatutuki i ēnei mahi i waiho mai e rātou hei ‘hakatutuki mā tēnei rēanga.

[But first I must extend a greeting to the family from that particular end of New Zealand who have arrived here amongst us politicians and representatives of Māoridom, so salutations to you all. Greetings to you as well, Bevan, the friend. I recall your elders of the era of Padre Wī Huata, Mackie, and Scott, all of those elders who have passed on. You are the ones now to bear this and complete the tasks that they left behind for this generation to fulfil.]

This piece of legislation, the Maungaharuru-Tangitū Hapū Claims Settlement Bill—I want to read it out. It follows a fairly important format, which is that it uses our Māori language, and it also identifies the deed of settlement. Let us not overlook how difficult and often unrewarding it is for hapū leaders to take on these roles where there are lots of reasons to doubt whether or not it is the right thing to do. There are always problems—whether or not this is the best strategy to pursue—because, no doubt, within the Kahungunu broader tribal community there would have been a debate as to whether you stick as one large entity like Ngāi Tahu or move into smaller groupings. But that is a decision that was made by the people from that iwi, and long may they be good stewards of it.

I want to recall the names in this bill. I want to recall the names in this bill because, having suffered a few misfortunes, such as having been formerly the chairman of the Fisheries Commission, I know that your good works do not go unpunished. So I want to acknowledge Bevan Maihi Taylor, a man who is very well known to a host of us Māori MPs as having been around in the world of Māori politics and resource management issues. In fact, I took Geoffrey Palmer in 1988 to a hui about water in Kahungunu, and Bevan Taylor was one of the people who, on a busy weekend, for reasons best known to himself, came to the hui. He is still representing his people. Tānia Mārama Petrus—oh, te rangatira o tēnā ingoa Petrus—Hopmans; Tamehana Pekapeka Manaena, no stranger to me, a very able accountant and someone who was the financial steward of the Poutama Māori Business Trust; Charmaine Dawn Kui Butler; Kerri Donna Nuku; Justin Owen Ian Puna; Frederick Roy Maadi Reti; and Elaine Rangituai Taylor.

They are the trustees of the Maungaharuru-Tangitū Trust. The reason I want to recite their names to the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations is that these people deserve to be acknowledged for what has been, no doubt, an arduous task. Politics in Māoridom being what it is, things move very quickly. What you thought took a long time can be forgotten in a flash. To these whānau and to these people, I salute you today on behalf of my colleagues for taking an issue that does not have the media notoriety of something—dare I say it—like my own tribe, Ngāpuhi-nui-tonu, or Ngāi Tahu or Tainui. It is in an area of Aotearoa, not unlike Ngāti Pāhauwera, that does not capture a lot of national media attention. Let the record show that. I am sure that when we get to the Māori Affairs Committee, people will arrive with their submissions—some troublesome, but largely positive.

Let us talk about why this is an important settlement. It is an important settlement because not only is there land and forest involved but there are protocols involved. Talking about the protocols, I want to isolate the importance of the fisheries protocol. In doing that, I want to acknowledge Meka Whaitiri, the successful contender of the recent election in Ikaroa-Rāwhiti, who, unfortunately, has yet to give her maiden speech. As I said on the Māori news, there are illustrious parliamentarians who have come from this part of Māoridom. There is a photo that was delivered here in 1998 by the trustees and various whānau of Kahungunu from the Ōmaha Marae for Tāreha, the first parliamentarian from this part of the motu. He was replaced by Karaitiana. After Karaitiana came a very notable matua of Kahungunu stock, Hēnare Tomoana. After him came the redoubtable Wī Pere, who left the famous land trust in the East Coast called the Wī Pere Trust. Wī Pere fell to Sir Apirana Ngata’s mentor, who was Sir James Carroll, otherwise known as Timi Kara, who held both a Pākehā seat and a Māori seat. Then Wī Pere came back, and then he was defeated by the greatest of all Māori parliamentarians, Sir Apirana Ngata. But no one lasts for ever. He was defeated by Tiaki Ōmana, otherwise known as Jack Ormond. When Jack Ormond completed his stint, there was Tipene Wātene, who was a famous figure of New Zealand Rugby League, who died in Matangireia, our former Māori Affairs Committee room, in the late 1960s. After him came Brown Rēweti of Ngāi Te Rangi. After Brown Rēweti came Dr Peter Tapsell, and if there was ever a man who joined the wrong party, it was probably him, but such is life. Things in a similar vein have been said about Shane Jones, but that is another matter. I could not possibly work with Hone Harawira—I could not possibly work with Hone Harawira. After Dr Tapsell there was a short burst, along with my tuakana over there, Tau Henare, of Mr Delamere. After Mr Delamere was Parekura Horomia, and after Parekura Horomia is the person waiting for her maiden speech. Tēnā koe, e te tuahine.

We no doubt look forward to receiving submissions on the bill, because we want to make sure not only that the bill captures everything that the whānau believe they have agreed to with the Minister but that the structure enables efficient decision-making, because it is very difficult to turn a surplus out of assets that are in neglected parts of New Zealand. I say “neglected” in this sense: it is not a major hive of economic activity like Tāmaki-makau-rau. Tāmaki-makau-rau has its own dynamic. When you look at Tauranga, Tāmaki-makau-rau, and Hamilton, that is what the economists call the golden triangle. Well, there is the golden north, but that is something else, and there is gold to be had in other parts of Aotearoa. When we support settlements located in the provinces, we want to ensure that the structures lead to efficient decision-making, so that not too much pūtea is wasted on running the organisation but rather is dedicated to building the surplus and to supporting the efforts, which will be extensive in terms of making a profit out of the Ōpouahi, I believe it is called, and part of the forest estate that is being put back there.

The protocols, not unlike the Maunga Authority talked about in relation to Tāmaki-makau-rau, are very important. Why are they important? Because the reality is that all the property rights that we seek through settlements cannot be secured exclusively to tangata whenua. We are now in a situation where, yes, it is important that we reflect the tangata whenua interests through the settlements, but it cannot, unfortunately, be done to the total exclusion of other stakeholders. That is just the political nature of the process that we are involved in. That is why I, along with my colleagues, think these protocols are a significant evolution. They did not exist in the late 1980s, when we did the Resource Management Act. In 1990, in Simon Upton’s time, there was, I think, a reference by Winston Peters and Māori parliamentarians of the time for kaitiakitanga. That, then, sent the Planning Tribunal, the Environment Tribunal, on a great quest as to what “kaitiakitanga” meant. One or three lawyers and a few Māori consultants may have grown mildly rich trying to define it. No doubt the developers complained that they were meeting the costs of that. Such is politically common in Aotearoa. I would not complain too much about it.

The regional council is referred to in this bill. Who knows whether there actually will be a regional council in this particular part of Aotearoa. We know that the regional council is busily sponsoring an irrigation scheme. I only hope that settlements of this nature provide a new platform for the Kahungunu representatives to put forward all the necessary interests to ensure that such irrigation schemes, if they do happen to take place, whether in this rohe, the South Island, or any rohe, do not take place neglecting tangata whenua interests, etc. In my experience, regional councils up and down New Zealand do a patchy job when it gets to Māori matters. If the law specifically requires them to go the extra mile, they will. If the law is vague, they will do very little. That is just the nature of the types of politicians, and often the types of managers, that are attracted to regional councils. It is when the law forces them to do something that it happens. This will be the passage of law that will require statutory resource management decisions in that area—hopefully, in time, throughout the entirety—of Kahungunu to take account of the interests and the right to participate of Kahungunu.

The forest that is referred to here is an important forest because it provides jobs, but those jobs can grow into more valuable propositions with, I believe, the provision of more Māori land for forestry or the involvement of our Māori people in the actual administration of the forest. With all these things—capital transfer, asset transfer, and relationships—we salute the people and support the Minister and look forward to the bill going through the select committee. Kia ora tātou.

Tēnā koe, Mr Assistant Speaker. Kāti, tiheiwa mauri ora ki te whaiao, ki Te Ao Mārama. E ngā hapū o Maungaharuru-Tangitū, tēnā koutou. Ngāti Kurumōkihi, Ngāi Tātara, Marangatūhetaua, Ngāi Te Ruruku ki Tangōio me ērā atu hapū, nau mai, hara mai ki te Whare Pāremata e takatū nei. Hara mai nunui mā, teitei mā. Nau mai, piki mai ki te Whare Pāremata. Nō koutou tēnei rā. Ko tēnei ko te rā whakahirahira ki te whakatutuki i ngā wawata ō rātou mā. Āpiti hono, tātai hono, ko te hunga mate ki te hunga mate, āpiti hono; tātai hono, ko te hunga ora ki te hunga ora. Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, ā, tēnā tātou katoa.

[Greetings, Mr Assistant Speaker. Well then, to the World of Light and Enlightenment, behold the breath of life. Salutations to you, collectively, the subtribes of Maungaharuru. To Ngāti Kurumōkihi, Ngāi Tātara, Marangatūhetaua, Ngāi Te Ruruku ki Tangōio and others, welcome and come hither to Parliament House, standing here in readiness. Welcome to the great and the illustrious. Welcome and come aboard Parliament House. This is your day. It is, indeed, a great one to fulfil the aspirations of those who have departed. The lines are drawn together; allow the dead to assemble with themselves and the living to the living. Greetings, salutations, and acknowledgments to you and to us all collectively.]

It gives me great pleasure to speak at this first reading in support of the Maungaharuru-Tangitū Hapū Claims Settlement Bill. The hapū of this area had an area of influence around the Central Hawke’s Bay, that is to say, from the outskirts of north of Napier towards Tāngoio and then east towards the Maungaharuru Ranges. Many people will know this area when they drive from Napier to Taupō. It is that area that takes in the beautiful Esk Valley, with its nicely appointed old church in amongst neat and tidy rows of grapes.

The Crown acknowledges the length of time it took to negotiate with the hapū of Maungaharuru-Tangitū. When the Crown bought the Ahuriri block, it failed to consult the hapū of Maungaharuru-Tangitū. The Crown once again—once again—managed to hoodwink the tangata whenua into accepting unfair prices for land, knowing full well that Māori had no final option but to alienate their land. And that is the sorry story that is recounted through practically every settlement bill that goes through this House.

The whānau at Tāngoio and Mōhaka were led to believe that they would benefit from Pākehā settlements. Unfortunately for those whānau and hapū, Pākehā settlements were confined to Napier. So those places and people were unable to benefit. This led them into economic depression and they were forced, like so many hapū throughout New Zealand, to alienate their land, to help pay off debts incurred due to Crown promises of benefits from Pākehā settlements not being kept.

Part of the history of these hapū also lies with the story of Te Kooti and his followers. Some members of this collective suffered the atrocity of the summary execution of innocent Māori, labelled rebels, which occurred at Ngātapa and became known as the Ngātapa incident. It always makes me feel uncomfortable, the way history minimises in some ways the early colonial atrocities by calling them mere incidents. It is like the way the British called their war with the Catholics in Northern Ireland the Troubles. It is like nothing more than your car running out of petrol and so it puts you in a spot of trouble—you know, like it was not a big deal.

But we know that these incidents are more than just that. We are covering the Te Tau Ihu settlement legislation. There was more than an incident at Wairau, just like there was more than an incident at Ngātapa, and just like the wars over in Northern Ireland were more than just the Troubles. Real people were killed, slaughtered, and murdered. It is these parts of our history that have caused so much suffering to the collective of Maungaharuru-Tangitū. The Crown will take responsibility and apologise to the iwi and hapū of this settlement and acknowledge it failed in its duty to uphold the mana of Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

Much of the area lost to these people is today rich, fertile land that grows the fruit and grapes that every year bring hundreds of millions of dollars into the Hawke’s Bay region. That is the sort of economic legacy these hapū have missed out on. Every day the descendants of the original claimants drive past the expensive wineries and orchards north of Napier and see what may have been, had they not been alienated from their land.

I am sure somewhere amongst the smoking embers of the Anglo-Māori relationships in Hawke’s Bay of the 1860s we will find the torch of Sir Donald McLean, this country’s first Minister of Native Affairs and inventor of that taniwha at that time, the Native Land Court. McLean’s legacy in Napier was at the expense of these hapū and iwi, who lost so much through land alienation and the actions of the Native Land Court.

The Crown will apologise for the attacks against the people of Pētane and Ōmaranui in 1866. And, as you might recall, since I have been doing these calls on settlement bills, I like to use a constant saying that “to understand whakapapa is to understand Māori history”. Unfortunately, some of the whānau’s genetic code was completely erased from the whakapapa of these tribes. Such depredations were catastrophic to the well-being of whānau, hapū, and iwi, and, for this, the Crown will also apologise.

As my colleague Shane Jones has mentioned in speeches before, there are certain elements of commercial redress, protocols, and cultural redress that have been incorporated into these bills, as they are in most settlements, and we are here to tautoko all of those measures. I do acknowledge the work and the negotiating team that were instrumental in getting us to this point. I too would like to acknowledge Bevan Taylor and Tania Hopmans, a name that is familiar to me. I used to look up to her as a corporate lawyer, back in the day. She was a few years ahead of me, but she led the way. Likewise, there are many other familiar names that I see in the negotiating team—Tom Manaena is another name. We did a bit of work together back in the day with Māori businesses. So I would just like to acknowledge them all.

I would like to acknowledge all the kaumātua and kuia who have come down—bussed probably. They rose early this morning to make it here on the trip down, and I would like to thank them all for coming, because this is a special day for this hapū and this whānau group here. I too have special memories of Tāngoio Marae, growing up. I acknowledge the Reti whānau—āpotoro Joe Reti and Hinei. I spent a few trips going through there, having whakamoemiti, playing in the reo brass brand, and fellowshipping with the whānau there at Tāngoio. I would like to acknowledge all the mōrehu there—so I am not outdone by my Mihingare, the offsider there in Shane. I would like to acknowledge the Reti whānau as well, and Fred, who is now following in his dad’s footsteps as āpotoro, for all his sterling work behind the scenes as well.

So, yes, it is very important, I guess, that we acknowledge the work that has gone on, and also those who have passed on, and also how significant these bills are in terms of documenting the history of these hapū and making sure that we are taking a step in the right direction, charting a new future for them. I am looking forward to working in the Māori Affairs Committee under my whanaunga there, Tau, and our sterling crew in the committee as we awhi and hear submissions on this bill. I would just like to acknowledge once again the whānau who have travelled here today. I really tautoko this bill and I commend it to the House. Kia ora tātou.

Tēnā koe, Mr Assistant Speaker. Tēnā tātau katoa e te Whare. Tēnā koutou kai aku rangatira kua tae mai i tēnei rā. Haere mai rā. Kei te tautoko ake i ngā mihi ki a koutou mai i te Minita tae rā anō ki ngā hōnore mema o te Whare Pāremata i te rā nei ki a koutou kua tatū mai ki mua i te aroaro o te Whare Pāremata i te rā nei. Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, kia ora tātau.

I mua o tā koutou taenga mai, nāku anō rā ngā mate o Tāmaki-makau-rau, te rōpū, te whānau i mua i a koutou, ka pērā anō hoki taku kōrero ki a koutou. Haere mai me ngā mate o te wā. Ko koutou tērā i tuku i te roimata ki te wā kāinga, ā, ka mutu, ko ahau anō tēnei te uri o Te Arawa ēngari, ko te āhuatanga o te hononga ki Tākitimu, ā, ko tātau anō tātau. Ēngari, ka mihi rā ki ngā mate huhua o te wā, haere mai me ngā mate o te wā, tēnā koutou kai aku rangatira. Kai ngā uri o Tātaramoa, kai ngā uri o Tūkapua te Tuatahi, kei ngā uri o Whakaari, kei ngā uri o Tauira rāua ko Mateāwha, kai ngā uri o Te Ruruku, ā, te heketanga mai i a Hēmi Puna rāua ko Tāraipene Tūaitū, tae rā anō ki Tahumatua, tēnā koutou. Haere mai, haere mai, haere mai.

E hoa mā, ko tētahi o ngā tohutohu o ōku pāpā i te wā kāinga i roto i a Te Arawa ko tā rātau kī mai: mēnā kua rongo ngā taringa i te kōrero a tētahi atu waiho ērā kia moe. Ko tāku, ko te kī atu kai te tautoko ake i ngā kōrero katoa o ēnei kua tū ki mua i a au. E kore au e whakatuarua, tuatoru i ngā kōrero i tēnei rā. Heoi anō, ko ēnei āhuatanga o te whakataunga kerēme he take nui, tērā ka ngau ki te mamae o te ngākau, ka ngau ki te wairua o te tangata. Nō reira, me tū ake hei waha kōrero mō te Pāti Māori, me te kī atu haere mai me ngā taumahatanga kua utaina ki runga i a koutou, ngā tamariki, ngā mokopuna o te hunga kua ngaro atu i te tirohanga kanohi.

Me pēhea e taea ai e te Whare Pāremata te whakatikatika i ngā raruraru katoa kua pā mai ki a koutou? E kore—e kore, e kore, e taea. Hoi anō, ko tā mātau ko te kī atu, tērā pea he huarahi tēnei hei whāinga mō ngā tau kai mua i te aroaro. Koirā. Kāre i kō atu, kāre i kō mai. Nō reira, haere mai me ēnei āhuatanga katoa.

Nā, i a au e āta titiro ana ki ngā hītori o te takiwā nanā, e kī ana te pepeha o tō koutou kāinga—ko Maungaharuru te maunga, ko Mōhaka te awa, ko Tangitū te moana, ko Tākitimu te waka, ko Tangōio te marae. Ka tuwhera a Maungaharuru, ka kati a Tangitū. Ka tuwhera a Tangitū, ka kati a Maungaharuru. Nō reira, mēnā ko koutou tērā, ā, ka pai. Kua eke mai koutou ki te Whare Pāremata. E ai ki taku mōhio, e hoa mā, i ngā tau kua hipa ake, ko ā tātau tūpuna i noho ā-hapū, i noho ā-whānau. Ki taku mōhio, ko ngā ngahere o Maungaharuru, koinei te pātaka kai o ngā mātua, o ngā tūpuna. Ā, ka mutu, i huri atu rā ki Tangitū, ki te takutai moana, ā, ko te āhuatanga o te kai, he whāngai i te tini, i te mano. Ā, kia tere taku haere ki te āhuatanga o te ekenga mai o te Kāwanatanga, o te Karauna ki waenganui i a koutou, i a tātau i ngā tau 1850s, tērā wā, i eke mai te Kāwanatanga kātahi, ka tīmata ngā mamae kua pā mai nā runga i te āhuatanga o te noho o ngā mātua, o ngā tūpuna i raro i te āhuatanga o te Kāwanatanga, o te Karauna. I reira, ka rerekē noa atu te āhuatanga o te noho. Kāore e kore i te wā o ngā tūpuna, he paku tohe i tū, he pakanga i tū. Hoi anō, i te ekenga mai o te Kāwanatanga, he rerekē te pakanga. Ko te pakanga kē, ko te ture. Ko te ture i eke mai, me kī, i kākahutia tātau e te āhuatanga o te ture, ā, i tīmata mai ai i roto i tēnei Whare. Nō reira, kua hoki mai koutou ki te tīmatanga mai o te raruraru.

Me pērā rawa te kōrero? Nā runga i te āhuatanga o te noho o te Kāwanatanga ki konei, i puta mai a raupatu, i puta mai a muru whenua, i puta mai a kōhuru. Ko tērā kōhuru, ā, i tū i te takiwa, i te tau 1866. I tuhia ki roto i te pire nei. Ko ētahi o ngā mōrehu o tērā pakanga, o tērā kōhuru, i heria ki taku mōhio ki Wharekauri, ki reira mauheretia ai. Ko ētahi, ā, i kōhurutia kia mate. Koinei te tangi o te ngākau. Ko te nuinga o te motu, kāre i te tino mōhio ki ēnei āhuatanga. I mate te tangata i roto i ngā uauatanga i pā mai ki a tātau.

Māmā noa iho te noho mai ki konei kōrero ai ēngari, kei wareware te Whare Pāremata, kaua ko koutou. Kei te mōhio koutou ki te hītori ēngari, kua tuhia katoatia ngā kōrero e te iwi nei. Kua tuhia ki roto i ngā pukapuka o te Whare Pāremata nei, kia mōhio mai ngā whakatipuranga ā ngā tau kei mua i te aroaro, i mate, i mate, i mate ngā mātua tūpuna nā runga i ngā mahi tinihanga a te Kāwanatanga. I ngaro te whenua, i ūkuia katoatia te mana o te whenua. E ai ki taku mōhio, ko tā koutou roto a Tūtira, te wai ū o ngā tūpuna, ā, kua paru, kua kino, kua pirau. Ēnei āhuatanga katoa i tau mai ki runga i a koutou. Hoi anō, waiho tērā ki reira. Kua tuhia ki roto i te pire, i te Whare Pāremata. Ēngari, kai reira tonu te kōrero, he pai kē me huri ki te reo Pākehā mō te wā poto i te mea, kia tuhia atu ki roto i te pukapuka nei me te kī atu, kei konei te pūtake o tā koutou nawe.

[Thank you, Mr Assistant Speaker. Greetings to us the House. Greetings to my esteemed elders who have arrived here on this day. Welcome, indeed. I support the acknowledgments to you by the Minister, including those made by the honourable members of Parliament on this day to you who have arrived here collectively before Parliament. Greetings, salutations, and acknowledgments to you and to us all.

Prior to your arrival I paid tribute to the deaths of the group and family collective from Auckland, and so I express the same sentiments to you. Welcome in respect to the deaths of the moment. You were the ones who shed the tears back home and here I am, this descendant of Te Arawa, but because of the connection to Tākitimu, we are all one. However, the many deaths of the time are acknowledged, so come hither with those deaths upon you. Salutations to you, my esteemed elders. To the descendants of Tātaramoa, Tūkapua the First, Whakaari, Tauira, and Mateāwha, Te Ruruku, a descendant of Hēmi Puna, and Tāraipene Tūaitū, as well as Tahumatua, greetings to you all. Welcome, welcome, welcome.

Friends, an instruction from one of my fatherly figures back home in Te Arawa to me was this: if one’s ears hear statements made by someone else, leave those words there to rest. My take on that is that I totally endorse the statements by those who have spoken before me. I will not be repeating the statements a second or third time on this day. However, matters that bite into the feelings and spirit of a person are aspects of settling a claim that bring about huge issues. Therefore, I stand as a spokesperson for the Māori Party by welcoming you with the burdens that have been placed upon you collectively as the children and grandchildren of those who have now passed on and are no longer seen.

How will Parliament remedy all the breaches that have affected you totally? It will not be able to—absolutely not. So then, all we can say is that this may be a path to pursue as a way of going forward into the future ahead of us. It is that. No more, no less. So come forth with all these attributes.

While I was making a careful historical research of the particular area there where you are, I noted an aphorism about your settlement—Maungaharuru is the mountain, Mōhaka is the river, Tangitū is the ocean, Tākitimu is the canoe, and Tangōio is the courtyard. When the season of Maungaharuru opens, the season of Tangitū closes. When the season of Tangitū opens, the season of Maungaharuru closes. So if that describes you, all is well. You have reached Parliament House. According to what I know, friends, in years past, our ancestors lived subtribe and family like. My understanding is that the forests of Maungaharuru were, indeed, food storehouses of our elders and ancestors.

Furthermore, they turned to Tangitū, to the foreshore and ocean, where in terms of food, it fed the very many and the thousands. Let me hasten along to the period when the Government and the Crown arrived among you and us in that period of the 1850s. The arrival of the Government was the beginning of the pain that affected elders and ancestors, because of the living circumstances imposed upon them by the Government and Crown. At this point the style of living changed. There is no doubt that in the days of our ancestors there were minor disagreements, and skirmishes occurred. But when the Government arrived, the battle took a different turn. The battle instead became one against the law. Let us say that the law had arrived and we were adorned by the circumstances of law that emanated from this very House. So you have returned to where all the trouble began.

How else can I put it? Because of the Government’s situation here, confiscation emerged, land was taken, and murder took place. Such a one occurred in the district in 1866. It was recorded in this bill. Some of those who survived that battle, that murder, as I understand it, were taken to the Chatham Islands and imprisoned there. Some were murdered and died there. The heart laments over this. The majority of the country was not even aware of these circumstances. People died as an outcome of difficulties that overcame us.

It is easy enough to sit here and speak about it, but although the House of Parliament might forget, you will not. You know the history. But all of this has been recorded by this crowd here. It has been written into the records of this Parliament so that future generations become aware of the facts that ancestral forefathers died repeatedly because of acts of trickery by the Government. Land was lost. Authority over land was completely extinguished. As far as I am aware, your lake, Lake Tūtira, the nourishing waters of the ancestors, is polluted, contaminated, and foul. All of these situations are now yours. Enough for now; put that to the side. It has been recorded in this bill in the House of Parliament. But the talk about it is still there and it might be better if we turned briefly to the English language so that the source of your grievance can be written into this record.]

I have given a brief overview of some of the history I know, but I did want to take one quote from the Crown’s apology to the people who have arrived here today. I think it is important because it is quite a big acknowledgment if you put it in the context of the history that they have been through. So let me just turn to English for a short while and read from the bill, the Maungaharuru-Tangitū Hapū Claims Settlement Bill. Clause 8, “Text of Crown acknowledgements”, states: “(14) The Crown acknowledges that its failure to protect the Hapū from being left with insufficient land for their present and future needs by the 1930s—(a) had a devastating effect on their economic, social, and cultural well-being and on their development and was a breach of the Treaty of Waitangi and its principles; and (b) contributed to significant population losses suffered by the Hapū before 1930, and that for too long Hapū members have endured poverty, poor health, poor housing, and low educational standards.”

Kua tuhia tērā ki roto i ngā tuhinga o te Whare Pāremata, kei aku rangatira, mō ngā tamariki, mokopuna. He wā tōna pea ka hoki mai rātau ki te āta titiro ki ngā pukapuka kua tuhia ki reira, kua tuhia ki roto i te ture, kei reira tonu mō ake ake tonu atu. Nō reira, haramai me ēnei āhuatanga katoa, me te mōhio anō hoki, ehara i te mea kotahi anake te wā i kōkirihia ai koutou i ngā nawe ki mua i te aroaro o te Whare Pāremata. Ki taku mōhio i te tau 1901, i tae mai te rangatira nei a Te Teira Te Paea. I haramai ki te kooti teitei rawa atu o Aotearoa, ka whakatakotohia i tana nawe ki mua i te aroaro o te kooti ēngari, auare ake. Kāore i eke, i whiua reretia tana nawe ki ngā hau o Tāwhirimātea. Koinei te tangi. Nō reira, anei tēnei wā tahi rau, tekau tau, ā, kua eke ki tēnei taumata i muri mai o te mahi a Te Teira, ka mutu, ka whiwhi i a koutou te pūtea, ko te pūtea anō te pūtea, ko te mana anō te mana.

Me mihi rā ki a koutou kua tae mai i tēnei rā. Whai atu i ngā painga o te moni ēngari, he oranga ngākau kua kī mai koutou me whakatikatika i ngā ingoa o te takiwā, o tō koutou kāinga. He mea pai tērā i te mea, o roto i ngā ingoa o ngā hītori, o ngā kōrero o ngā mātua, o ngā tūpuna, kei reira te whānuitanga o ngā kōrero.

Nō reira, kāti ake kei aku rangatira. Kua tae mai koutou kaua ki te whakarongo ki a au ēngari, kia tere haere tēnei kaupapa i runga i tōna haere. Ko tāku noa ake ki te kī atu, kei te tautoko te Pāti Māori i tēnei huarahi, me te mihi ki a koutou i haere mai i tēnei rā. E aroha atu ana ki tā koutou mema ki a Meka, e noho wahangū nei i tēnei rā ēngari, taihoa ake nei, ā te wiki tū mai nei, kua tū ake ia ki te tuku tana kōrero.

Ko te tikanga ia, kua tū ake ia te mema o tērā takiwā ki te tuku kōrero. Ēngari, nā runga i ngā herehere o te Whare Pāremata e kore e taea. Nō reira, me mihi rā ki a ia, ka mihi ki a koutou. Haere mai, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou. Kia kaha, kia toa i ngā rā kei mua i te aroaro.

[That has been written into the records of Parliament, my esteemed elders, for children and grandchildren. There will come a time when they will examine publications and law where they have been written to ensure that they are still there. So welcome in respect of all these situations, knowing full well once again, too, that it is not the first time that you have taken up grievances before the House of Parliament. I understand that in 1901, the respected leader Te Teira Te Paea came here. He came to the highest court of New Zealand to place his grievance before it, but to no avail. It did not make it. His grievance was tossed out to fly with the winds of the God of Winds. This causes grief. So after reaching a period of 110 years after Te Teira’s action and furthermore, you are receiving funding, but funding is about funding, and integrity is about integrity.

I really need to salute you who have arrived here on this day. Pursue the benefits that money offers, but I am put at ease by the fact that you have sought to have the district names and those of your settlements corrected. That is a good thing because in the names of historical accounts about elders and ancestors is the full extent of the conversation.

So enough from me, my esteemed elders. You have come here not to listen to me but rather to hurry this bill along on its journey. My part is simply to say that the Māori Party supports this procedure and congratulates you who came here this day. I feel sorry for your member Meka who has to remain silent on this day, but her time will come soon enough when she delivers her speech next week.

Procedure-wise, the member of the electorate involved in the bill being debated will take a call. However, because of the constraints of Parliament, this is not possible. So as well as acknowledging her, I acknowledge you, too. So welcome, greetings, and salutations to you collectively. Be strong and resolute in the days.]

Tēnā koe, Mr Speaker. Tēnā koutou e te Whare. Ki ngā iwi rā, tēnā koutou katoa.

[Acknowledgments to you, collectively, the House, and to you, all the tribes there.]

I acknowledge the people in the gallery today, the people of Ngāti Marangatūhetaua, the people of Ngāti Kurumōkihi, the people of Ngāi Te Ruruku, and the people of Ngāi Tauira. I rise to take a call for the Greens on this, the Maungaharuru-Tangitū Hapū Claims Settlement Bill, and I maintain that it is a privilege to do so. When a Treaty settlement bill comes to the House, we are mindful that it represents decades of work spanning generations, and I pay tribute to those who have bravely fought for justice and worked to bring this bill to the House. I acknowledge the struggle that it has taken to have some of these wrongs righted and to receive an apology from the Crown.

I think one of the most important aspects of this bill is that together with the deed of settlement, it records the historical nature of the grievances that this bill seeks to address. For the hapū of Maungaharuru-Tangitū, these grievances go back to 1851, when the Crown first unfairly acquired the Ahuriri and Mōhaka blocks, and it includes the 1867 compulsory confiscation of land, including 9,000 acres at the Tāngoio North Block that in 1870 the Crown refused to return to the hapū for more than 40 years. In 1870 the Crown also allocated 30,000 acres at Kaiwaka to reward a Crown ally and refused to investigate the hapū rights. In the 19th century the Crown, through the Native Land Court, also awarded ownership of significant lands to individual Māori and essentially embarked on a programme of alienating hapū from their lands, so that by 1930 the hapū in the area did not have enough resources to support themselves either then or into the future.

The history of the hapū in this settlement bill is frequently harrowing to read. For those in the gallery today who have shepherded this settlement to the House, it must be far more harrowing for your tīpuna to have lived through these times, and for them to have known this history themselves for so long and to not have these injustices acknowledged. This settlement bill puts into legislation that acknowledgment—that the Crown, through its military forces, killed more than 20 people at Ōmarunui and Pētane in 1866. The bill acknowledges that this was a huge injustice, and it also acknowledges that it was unjust that the Crown detained without trial 13 members of the hapū on the Chatham Islands for nearly 2 years, and that their summary executions in 1869 were wrong. All these actions—the loss of life, the confiscation of land, the misuse of the Crown’s powers to acquire land, and the alienation of hapū from their land through the Crown’s actions—were all breaches of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. This bill also acknowledges that this meant that the loss of the hapū resources and economic base has contributed to a reduced population, to some families dying out, and to hapū members living in poverty with poor health, poor housing, and low educational standards.

I think it is worth reiterating that the bill also has the Crown—this Government—acknowledging the lack of care subsequent owners of the land showed. It acknowledges the deforestation of the land and how pastoral farming has helped cause significant erosion and environmental damage. The bill specifically refers to the pollution of Lake Tūtira, one of the most polluted lakes in the country, and to the pollution of the coastline and the subsequent severe flooding of the marae and the community at Tāngoio. When we look at the apology that the Crown has offered, and we look at the damage that has been done to ngā tāngata, to te whenua, to mahinga kai, and to the wai, I am astounded by the generosity of the Maungaharuru-Tangitū hapū. Although we acknowledge the journey it has taken to get this bill to the House, the Greens also maintain that this bill does not represent a full and final settlement. The actions of the Crown cannot be settled. It makes it sound as if the issue is done with, and it is not. This bill represents a deal. It represents the best deal the hapū can negotiate at this time, but it is still a deal. The ramifications of the Crown’s actions are not final, so this cannot be a final settlement, because generations to come will still be affected.

The commercial redress amounts to around about $23 million—some property, including receiving rental proceeds from Crown forestry licences and some forestry land, as well as the right of refusal of other Crown property. I am frequently amazed at how many New Zealanders resent the compensation negotiated by the Crown with iwi over Treaty breaches. I guess it is because a lot of New Zealanders do not know the history of Aotearoa New Zealand, and tend not to see things in context. If we compare this commercial redress to other things the Government spends its money on, the amount becomes less significant. The Prime Minister, for example, has allocated $34 million to promoting conventions, and presumably convention centres, in New Zealand, which is more than these hapū will receive. We should not forget that there was a bailout of the South Canterbury Finance company—about $12 billion—when it went broke, and those investors did not lose their land or their birthright when that happened.

Once again, I want to acknowledge the generosity of the hapū in negotiating the deal. The cultural redress restores the hapū’s standing with various Government departments and local authorities with deeds of recognition. It allows for the vestment of several easements and reserves, and also outlines several instances where the land can be vested in the hapū and then gifted back to the Crown within days—a very generous act. This settlement lists the statutory acknowledgment of the hapū and their relationship with various lands, streams, and rivers, and allows for geographical name changes that reflect the history and the customary practice of the hapū.

These are the final paragraphs of the apology, which I think are worth repeating: “The Crown acknowledges that many family lines have died out and cannot be brought back. It profoundly regrets the poverty and poor health which have long afflicted your people. It deeply regrets its acts and omissions which have affected your capacity for social and economic development and your physical, cultural and spiritual wellbeing. Through this settlement the Crown is seeking to atone for its past wrongs towards the Hapū, to restore its tarnished honour, and to begin the process of healing. The Crown hopes that this apology will mark the beginning of a new relationship between the Crown and the Hapū based on respect for the Treaty of Waitangi and its principles.” I acknowledge that this is a day for celebration and that these hapū wish to move into the future with hope and with their pride restored. I acknowledge the huge generosity of those hapū who are part of the settlement bill, because it benefits us all here in Aotearoa New Zealand. It is my sincere hope that as a country we will abide by the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi, and this bill is a step towards that. Nō reira, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa.

Tēnā koe, Mr Assistant Speaker. Tīhei mauri orā. Whakataka te hau ki te uru. Whakataka te hau ki te tonga. Kia mākinakina ki uta, kia mā taratara ki tai. E hī ake ana te atākura. He tio, he huka, he hauhunga, ā, tēnā koutou. Ki te Whare e tū nei, tēnā koutou. Ki ngā hapū, ngā tangata o Maungaharuru-Tangitū, tēnā koutou. Ki ngā rangatira o ngā hapū, tēnā koutou. Ki a koe Bevan, tēnā koe. Ki a koutou ngā hapū, ngā tangata, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā tātou katoa. Nau mai, haere mai ki te Whare Pāremata.

[Greetings to you. Behold the breath of life. Cease the winds from the west; cease the winds from the south. Let the breezes blow over the land; let the breezes blow over the ocean. Let the red-tipped dawn come with a sharpened air, a touch of frost, and a promise of a glorious day. Greetings to you collectively. To the House standing before me, subtribes, people of Maungaharuru-Tangitū, and leaders of the subtribes, greetings to you collectively. Greetings to you, Bevan. Acknowledgments, salutations, and tributes to you the subtribes and the people, and to us all collectively. Welcome to Parliament House.]

Can I welcome everybody to the House today. Can I also commence my speech by acknowledging Meka Whaitiri in what is my first opportunity to welcome you to the House, Meka, and to wish you well in your term in Parliament.

Most important, today we are here to acknowledge this Treaty settlement with Maungaharuru-Tangitū, which is a collective of hapū from the beautiful Hawke’s Bay and from an area I represent—the Napier area. This rohe sits, as Rino described it, between the Esk Valley, which is a place where I actually live, Rino, in that particular part of the area—my home is in the Esk Valley.

The area is actually more than that. The Napier-Taupō road is actually the start of this area of the rohe. It goes up the Tangitū coastline, which includes the Tāngoio, Taits Beach, Waipātiki, Aropaoanui, all the way up to the Waikare River mouth. The rohe is north of the Waikare River, then goes inland to Maungaharuru, which is a mountain range to the west, and then down to the commencement of the old Ahuriri lagoon.

It is interesting that Maungaharuru—“maunga” meaning mountain, “haruru” meaning roar—actually speaks to much of the history of that particular area. Many seabirds—petrels—used to live in that range of mountains. The roar of the seabirds flying up in the dawn was a memory from those days. That is actually something that I know that the hapū are trying to reconstitute, working with the likes of Julian Robertson, who is an overseas investor but who has put a million dollars into actually restoring the birdlife in that particular area. So that gives you a sense of the area. In the middle is Lake Tūtira. It is one of the most beautiful parts of this country. That coastline by Waipātiki Beach is just a stunning part of New Zealand. It is no wonder that you would want to look after that part of the country and to defend your rights there.

Can I acknowledge the different hapū that are here today—Ngāti Kurumōkihi, Ngāti Tū, Ngāti Whakaari, Ngāi Tauira, Ngāi Te Ruruku ki Tāngoio, and Ngāi Tahu, which form the collective of hapū within the Maungaharuru-Tangitū hapū collective there.

I have talked about the area so that everyone is clear about what we are talking about here, and about its richness, because, indeed, that is the case. I want to also acknowledge the grievance that we hear. Many members have talked in the House today about that, and we have talked about the apology that the Crown has given. No one is trying to defend what happened. It is a situation that occurred with the land where there was some raupatu and where the hapū were left in a situation of economic, social, and cultural deprivation, which we have had to acknowledge and seek some form of redress for.

I acknowledge the member from the Green Party, Denise Roche, in talking about the level of compensation that is paid in these situations. It will never totally fulfil what has been lost, but we do need to take steps towards this. I think the Green Party does need to acknowledge that it is part of the Crown making this settlement and part of this process. So, yes, although we can criticise former Governments for what went on, this is a way forward for all of us, and I think that is the important thing, particularly if I reflect on my mihi at the start of this speech. It talks about a new dawn and a new beginning, and I think that is very much the perspective we need to put around this.

Today I want to particularly acknowledge the people who have been part of this settlement, who have driven this, and who have shown leadership over years—not months, but years—particularly Bevan Taylor, whom I acknowledged in my opening mihi, and also Tania Hopmans. When we sat at the Tāngoio Marae and listened to Bevan giving a mihi about Tania’s work, you got a sense of the efforts that she has put in to bring the different hapū together, to make sure that this settlement got momentum and then got to signing—so can I acknowledge you. Can I also acknowledge the other members of the settlement team. I think you have done an outstanding job to get to this position, which is superb.

This settlement is a way forward. It does have economic, social, and cultural redress. Obviously, the $23 million is part of that economic redress going forward. There is some forestry redress in there, but also, really important, some key reserves that are returned—part of the Ōpouahi Station, and the Ōpouahi Scenic Reserve. Ōpouahi is just a stunning part of the country, up behind Lake Tūtira. Ōpouahi now has a kiwi recovery programme within it. The boundary stream that is behind it is Department of Conservation land and has some stunning bird life in there now. It is just a magic part of the country.

My encouragement is to use this settlement wisely. I know that we have got very esteemed people within the collective there who will use this investment wisely and take the hapū forward into the future. It was actually exciting to sit there at the signing of the Treaty settlement and to talk to people such as Bevan, and to say—even though he found the process difficult, I acknowledge that—that this was actually a way forward for everybody in terms of addressing some of the wrongs that had happened historically. So I personally am excited about the future. I think it is a step forward and a way forward for all of us. I ask that you think about the mihi I used at the start: whakataka te hau ki te uru, whakataka te hau ki te tonga. Kia mākinakina ki uta, kia mātaratara ki tai. E hī ake ana te atākura. He tio, he huka, he hauhunga.

[Cease the winds from the west; cease the winds from the south. Let the breeze blow over the land; let the breeze blow over the ocean. Let the red-tipped dawn come with a sharpened air, a touch of frost, and a promise of a glorious day.]

It does talk about a new beginning, a new dawn, and a new way forward.

Tēnā koe, Mr Assistant Speaker. Tēnei e tāpiri atu i āku mihi ki a koutou kua tae mai ki te whakarongo ki tēnei wāhanga o tā koutou pire mō te tutukitanga o ā koutou kerēme. Nō reira, ki te rōpū kāhui o Maungaharuru-Tangitū, nei te mihi maioha ki a koutou katoa.

[Greetings to you, Mr Assistant Speaker. I add my acknowledgments, extended to you who have arrived here collectively to listen to this part of your bill about the settlement of your claims. To you, therefore, the collective of Maungaharuru-Tangitū subtribe, an affectionate tribute to you all.]

It is a great privilege to be able to join other speakers and acknowledge Meka Whaitiri, the member for Ikaroa-Rāwhiti, on this first reading of the Maungaharuru-Tangitū Hapū Claims Settlement Bill. I will be brief because we have two other readings to go. I am pleased that this bill will come to the Māori Affairs Committee, that we will have a robust round of hearing the submissions, and that we will give this bill the scrutiny that it deserves to ensure that the deed of settlement aligns with the legislation that has been prepared for you in order to give effect to the agreements that your negotiators have come up with. It is an important part of the process. Even though people see it as pro forma, it is important for the select committee to scrutinise that what was intended in the deed of settlement is reflected adequately in the legislation. We, as members of that select committee, can ask the officials and those who have been involved what the specific elements in your bill have been, to ensure that everything you intend to have happen can happen.

The proof of the pudding, as you know, though, is in the eating. So the hard work of getting to this point of reaching a settlement, and your legislation, seems so much more, I guess, of a step towards an even harder task of implementing and giving effect to every part of what you want to see happen in the future. So my humble comments here—although I have, I guess, no inherent knowledge of the rohe and the people, I have some understanding of the dynamics of what is happening in the settlement space.

As I understand it, for Ngāti Kahungunu as a whole iwi, it covers a big area, so what they have managed to do, I think, is provide a bit of a model for other iwi to perhaps think about. It is always a very difficult space about how you manage the dynamics between your collective iwi interests and also your hapū interests. As I understand it, having had a conversation on the campaign trail with Meka—and we were actually driving past Lake Tūtira when she was explaining this to me—she said: “You know, Nanaia, the way that Ngāti Kahungunu have approached it is that we have kept the fisheries settlement as a collective asset for the whole iwi.” So that is managed under the Ngāti Kahungunu iwi umbrella.

However, for hapū, with the land claims, they were able to ensure or keep the door open so that each hapū or cluster of hapū can negotiate their own outcomes. There is some wisdom in that. There are six large, natural groupings throughout the district of Ngāti Kahungunu. We have already had, as members will recall, Ngāti Pahāuwera come here with their particular claims in their rohe. Now we have Maungaharuru and Tangitū hapū.

The wisdom of it is to ensure that, yes, the rangatiratanga and the mana of hapū collectives are under a larger grouping, but they can be maintained in a very practical way. So I was quite fascinated with this as Meka was explaining it to me on our drive from Hastings down to Wellington. I said to her: “Do you mean to say that it is OK for the iwi to allow this type of arrangement to happen?”, and the response was simply: “Yes, because the relationship is really important.” Although we recognise that at the iwi level some things can be done collectively, it is more important that some things must be done at the hapū level.

We have had lots of debates in this House about models of settlements where the tensions between the iwi aspiration and the hapū aspiration have not been well aligned, and here, now, we have a model that is starting to set, I guess, the type of footprint or template—whatever you would like to call it—as a way of doing things. So I guess that in some respects people are going to say that something we have learnt by observing other settlements is what they do not want to do and how they want to do things better, and we can only applaud that level of wisdom coming into the settlement space.

There are many aspects of this settlement, as I said previously, that will deserve the good scrutiny of the Māori Affairs Committee. There are statutory acknowledgments, which I think are significant. I think that the issues around the naming and rectifying the naming are going to be, again, another model that many settlements will follow to ensure that place names are adequately and correctly referenced, and also there are issues around relationship agreements. Again, it is in these types of agreements that the proof of the pudding will be in the implementation. Although iwi certainly maintain a level of consistency in leadership and institutional knowledge, there is ongoing change within Government departments, within ministries, and with officials.

Retaining the same level of institutional commitment to the implementation of settlements is a point that I raised yesterday in the House, and it requires leadership. That will require leadership not just from the Government of the day but from the other parties in the House that are committed to ensuring that the Treaty settlement process is an enduring one, a lasting one, and one that will achieve the highest aspirations of iwi within their rohe.

Nō reira, ki a koutou katoa mō tenēi wāhanga o te pire, iti tēnei kōrero. Ko te tino hiahia ka whakahokia mai te pire ki mua i te aroaro o ngā kaitōrangapū ki te whakamārama, nā te hōhonutanga o ā koutou tutukitanga i roto i te pire nei.

[Therefore, this address to you all is a brief one. My greatest wish is for the bill to come back before the politicians to explain the extent of what your settlements are in this bill.]

So I just wanted to take that brief opportunity to add my support to this process for Maungaharuru-Tangitū in the first reading of their bill. When the bill comes back for its second reading, I hope to ensure that we can have a great level of detail arising from the submissions and add to the rich kōrero around ways in which this settlement will help these people, this hapū, reach their opportunity to do things for themselves and forge a way forward in the future. Kia ora koutou katoa.

Maungaharuru-Tangitū Hapū, Ngāti Kurumōkihi, Ngāti Tū, Ngāti Whakaari, Ngāi Tauira, Ngāi Te Ruruku ki Tangoio, Ngāi Tahu, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa.

[Acknowledgments, salutations, greetings, and tributes to you all, Maungaharuru-Tangitū subtribe, Ngāti Kurumōkihi, Ngāi Tū, Ngāti Whakaari, Ngāi Tauira, Ngāi Te Ruruku ki Tangoio, and Ngāi Tahu.]

The claim of the hapū relate primarily to war, raupatu, and Crown land-purchasing methods. The only land left in the possession of the hapū is in a flood-prone zone, which is the location of their marae, Tāngoio, and their kōhanga reo. I would like to précis the summary of settlement redress, not because I want to show or to talk about the assets that are involved here but to highlight the generosity of the hapū and the pragmatism of the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations in dealing with this very real issue and coming to some resolution in order to move forward.

The redress includes a summary of the agreed historical accounts, and Crown acknowledgments and apology. The cultural redress package includes—and I am going to précis here—the vesting of part of Ōpouahi Station; the vesting of Te Pōhue Domain Recreation Reserve; the vesting of lake beds of Lake Tūtira, Lake Ōrākai, and Lake Waikōpiro; the vesting of the administration of the stratum above the lake beds and the hapū; and the vesting and gifting back of four significant cultural properties, including Boundary Stream Scenic Reserve, Bellbird Bush Scenic Reserve, the balance of Opouahi Scenic Reserve, and Whakaari Landing Place Reserve.

It includes a tātai tūāpapa over nine sites of significance to the hapū, the establishment of a fund for the purpose of soil conservation in the Tāngoio area, and the formation of a relationship between the hapū and Hawke’s Bay Regional Council. It includes te kawenata, a partnership agreement, with the Minister and Department of Conservation, a relationship agreement with the Ministry for Primary Industries and Ngāti Kahungunu iwi, statutory acknowledgments and deeds of recognition, the appointment of an advisory committee, the assignment and alteration of geographic names, and the transfer of commercial properties.

That is just a summary of what will be returned and gifted back and given to these hapū. It is in no way a replacement of what they have lost previously, but I want to take this time to acknowledge the Government, and, particularly, the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations, the Hon Chris Finlayson, for the pragmatic manner in which he has set about these settlements. The concept of partnership inherent in the Treaty has been worked through so that overall there are 66 Treaty settlements and the Crown is now over halfway towards completing the historical Treaty settlement process. We need to resolve these historical issues so that we can move forward together as a nation and leave behind these grievances.

These settlements will provide an economic base for these iwi, including these hapū, to invest in the regions of their rohe. It is good for Māori and it is good for the hapū and it is good for Aotearoa New Zealand. Other iwi such as Tainui and Ngāi Tahu have grown into important drivers of regional growth through settlement of Treaty of Waitangi grievances. This Government has successfully increased the speed at which outstanding negotiations are conducted and concluded through leadership and better resourcing and strategy.

So Maungaharuru Tangitū hapū, I acknowledge you and thank you for your generosity. Ngāti Kurumōkihi, Ngāti Tū, Ngāti Whakaari, Ngāi Tauira, Ngāi Te Ruruki ki Tangoio me Ngāi Tahu, mihi atu ki a koutou katoa. I commend the Maungaharuru-Tangitū Hapū Claims Settlement Bill to the House. Kia ora.

Bill read a first time.

Bill referred to the Māori Affairs Committee.

Permission has been granted for a waiata, if you wish to have a waiata.

Waiata