Hawke’s Bay Regional Planning Committee Bill

I move, That the Hawke’s Bay Regional Planning Committee Bill be now read a third time. I acknowledge the iwi from the Hawke’s Bay region involved in developing this legislation and welcome some familiar faces to the gallery. I acknowledge that it has taken a long time to reach this very important milestone. I also acknowledge those who are representatives of the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council. They too, like their iwi counterparts, have travelled a long way to be here in Parliament to listen to this, the third reading of the bill. To those of you who have worked so hard to make this possible, I offer you my very, very sincere thanks. It has been more than 5 years since Cabinet agreed to establish a planning committee of the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council through legislation. The committee is the outcome of a significant amount of both careful and creative thinking about how best to manage the diverse and complex nature of the natural resources in the Hawke’s Bay.

At the beginning of this process we considered a number of existing models around New Zealand to see whether any of those would be suitable for the situation in Hawke’s Bay, and I acknowledge the Hon Nanaia Mahuta here. We actually had a good look at the Waikato model and whether that could be transplanted across, for example. But because of the sheer number of rivers and waterways within the region we actually found that none of those models would work. Having one board for each of the rivers in their catchment areas would result in clumsy administration as well as being very difficult and uneconomic to manage. So a completely new approach was required, and who better to do it than Fran Wilde, who at the relevant time was chair of the Greater Wellington Regional Council, and there is a considerable body of opinion, including me, that she should still be the chair of the Greater Wellington Regional Council. She had been the chief Crown negotiator for Ngāti Pāhauwera, and she had the inspired idea of devising a committee that was tailored to the Hawke’s Bay situation.

It is a committee that takes an overarching, collaborative, and unified approach to resource management, so I acknowledge Fran’s meticulous work. It is not the sort of once-over-lightly, superficial exercise that some may expect Crown negotiators to get involved in. If you adopt that approach in the interests of saving a few thousand here and there, then you fail—not you, Mr Assistant Speaker, of course; I am talking about one. It is certainly not a recipe for success in Treaty negotiations, hence the need for hard-working, dedicated Treaty negotiators. In practical terms this committee, which comprises equal numbers of council and iwi members, has already been successfully working in interim form—since at least 2012 the committee has been operating—and it is demonstrating the benefits of a coordinated and a collaborative approach from elected representatives from both the council and iwi in the Hawke’s Bay region. By improving iwi participation and governance on natural resources, costs in resource management processes for local authorities, businesses, and the public will be reduced over time.

This bill gives effect to the Crown’s commitment made in the Ngāti Pāhauwera deed of settlement, and again recorded in the Maungaharuru-Tangitū deed of settlement to work with iwi and hapū to introduce legislation to establish this committee. The bill ensures that the relevant iwi post-settlement governance entities are entitled to appoint representatives on that committee. It sets out a framework for the committee, but it does not specify all its operating provisions. These will be discussed and agreed by committee members.

What is the purpose of the bill? Well, the purpose is to improve the involvement of iwi in the region to oversee the development and review of a regional policy statement and regional plans for the region prepared in accordance with the Resource Management Act 1991. It does not mean that the committee will make actual decisions on behalf of the full council. The committee has strong recommendatory powers. An important feature of the committee, moreover, is that it is a permanent committee and can be discharged only by unanimous agreement of all members—iwi and council members alike. The rationale behind this is that the committee is involved with resource management issues that span a much greater time frame than local body elections. Under schedule 7 of the Local Government Act, committees are deemed to be dissolved at or following triennial general elections of members. In order to function effectively and ensure continuity of planning, the committee needs to span local body election cycles, so the bill needs to provide for this section of schedule 7 to be overridden.

There are many people who have contributed to this legislation, both within iwi and within Crown agencies. As I have already noted, I particularly want to acknowledge Fran Wilde. She is unable to be here to mark this occasion because, I think, she is in Oslo, but it was her creativity and drive that contributed significantly to the formation of this committee. She and other Crown negotiators do a great job.

I also wish to acknowledge the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council. Its efforts and its willingness to engage with the hapū and with officials have been vital to the ultimate success of this legislation. The council has shown a real commitment to having an ongoing relationship with iwi in its region. In its approach to its obligation to consult with iwi on resource management matters, the council actually had two options. It could make separate arrangements over seven separate catchment areas or it could work with all the iwi in the region to cover the whole of the region, and it chose the latter. The resultant legislation is a good example of a strong co-governance model that is well resourced.

Most important, I want to acknowledge the tireless work of the iwi leaders involved in the development of this very important legislation.

The bill has taken time, energy, diplomacy—at times—patience, and pragmatism so that we could all arrive at a piece of legislation that satisfies all parties that are involved. The legislation is the basis of a new and an on-going relationship between the regional council and the iwi of the bay, and I commend the bill to the House.

Tēnā koe, Mr Assistant Speaker. Ngā mema o te Whare nei tēnā tātau katoa. E te hau kāinga kua tae mai nei, nau mai, hoki mai ki ō tātou Whare i tēnei wā i runga i te kaupapa whakahirahira o te wā nei. Nō reira, hari koa ana te ngākau ki te kitekite anō i a koutou, tēnā koutou!

[Greetings, Mr Assistant Speaker. To the members of this House, greetings to us all. And to the people from home who have arrived here, come hither and welcome back to our House at this moment, on this inspiring proposal of this time. Therefore, it is so heartening to set eyes on you once again—congratulations!]

I stand with members on this side of the House in wholeheartedly welcoming the third reading of this bill, the Hawke’s Bay Regional Planning Committee Bill. Can I please acknowledge those who have travelled long distances to be here to hear the passage of this important piece of legislation. Can I acknowledge the origins of this bill, being the Ngāti Pāhauwera Treaty Claims Settlement Act. Can I mihi to my whānau of Ngāti Pāhauwera, Toro Waaka—good to have you here in the House. Also, I acknowledge our whānau from Maungaharuru-Tangitū, Tania Hopmans. Tēnei te mihi ki a koe ki a koutou katoa. I also see our chairman of the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council, Fenton Wilson. Ka nui te mihi ki a koe, Fenton. It is lovely to have you here again to witness the third reading of this important bill.

I want to acknowledge the work of the Māori Affairs Committee. There was mention that we had eight submissions presented to the select committee. Six clearly supported this bill. Some had some reservations, but I do want to acknowledge the work of the Māori Affairs Committee and our chair and our members here in bringing this bill back to the House. I want to say, just in terms of the select committee process, that I know that although there were only eight who actually submitted, the importance of this bill was well discussed back home in terms of unlocking the co-governance arrangement, which is clearly, I think, going to benefit the Hawke’s Bay region. When I see eight submissions I can almost triple that to know that the people at home have a very, very keen interest in this particular bill and what it will enable. So I want to commend those who did submit.

I also do not want to shy away from some of the points I raised in the second reading, because if you are going to raise an issue then you want to stand by that. There were a couple of issues that I did raise in the second reading. One was around representation, and I acknowledge all the iwi who are currently at the table. I wanted the issue around coverage—and I will, again, welcome all the iwi who are at the table. We still have a major entity back in the Hawke’s Bay, Ngāti Kahungunu Iwi Inc., which, through the Maori Fisheries Act, does have some responsibilities that will probably extend what we are passing through this bill. So the cautionary note I made at the second reading, which I say again at the third reading, was that it will be something that needs to be managed between the iwi at the table and the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council, simply because we do not want anything coming unstuck over what we are starting to pass through this House here. Kōrero is definitely a better proposition to have than to be litigating in the courts, so I just wanted to make that point.

The other point I raised was one around skills and capabilities. I acknowledge the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council’s commitment of $100,000 to help with the resourcing of this committee, but, again, as we get into the technical areas of the Resource Management Act, that requires quite a bit of investment, particularly if you have got iwi at the table to unlock the intricacies, I guess, of the legislation that surrounds the Resource Management Act. Again, I just raise that point to ensure that what we are setting up here is well resourced—well resourced—so that it can do the job that we all want it to do.

I also want to acknowledge that in working out a co-arrangement that would best suit the Hawke’s Bay, we did reference a similar arrangement in the Ngāti Awa and the Ngāti Tama claims to ensure that this particular arrangement was fit for purpose. So I want to acknowledge the research that went into that.

I am glad to stand here to say that I am from the Hawke’s Bay. Our primary industry is critical to the survival of our economy. Having good governance and good decision-making ensures not only that our land and our water are protected but that they are allowed to grow the opportunities that we very much have become accustomed to in Hawke’s Bay and we also want to protect. So in accepting and supporting this bill I see it as a continuum of both iwi and local government having a say in the future of the Hawke’s Bay. I want to acknowledge the Minister’s introductory point around this committee’s role as being purely recommendatory, and say that the final decision sits at the local government level. We have local elections coming up in 2016 and we will be encouraging as many people from the Hawke’s Bay—hopefully, we will see more iwi at both the regional council as well as the city council.

So I really want to support this bill coming through the House. I can see the potential and the fortitude that the negotiators of Ngāti Pāhauwera have set. I have shared my cautionary notes about ensuring that this is an ongoing arrangement. I also want to acknowledge the hard work of the Napier MP, my colleague Stuart Nash, who I want to say works really tirelessly for Napier and for the people of Hawke’s Bay. It is a pleasure to work with Stu and his absolute commitment not only to making us the best region in New Zealand but also to holding on to that log of wood when another colleague of ours hopes to be travelling down with the Northland team on Sunday to try to take it off us. So—

The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Trevor Mallard): I am just going to warn the member against irony.

I again want to assure the House that I look forward to the passage of the final reading of this bill. I can see the potential, like I said, that it will unlock in Hawke’s Bay. I wish that all the iwi who have come today and the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council let it be a model for all co-governance arrangements in Hawke’s Bay, because I can see the opportunity that it will unlock there for our people, whom we represent. I commend this bill to the House.

Tēnā koe, Mr Assistant Speaker, kia ora anō tātau katoa. Kai aku rangatira, tēnā koutou katoa i tēnei ata, kua mihia a Ngāti Hineuru i tēnei ata, ka mutu, nō nā tata nei i puta atu ai a Ngāruahine o roto o Taranaki, tēnei wā ko koutou ēnei kua tatū mai, ko tāku ko te whaiwhai haere i ngā kōrero a te Minita, ā, ka mutu, o taku tuahine ki a koutou, e ngā rangatira i roto i te Whare Pāremata. E kui Āwhina tēnā koe, he oranga ngākau te kite atu i a koe e whakakorikori nei i tō iwi, ka mutu, e hari koa ana kua tae mai koe, koutou i tēnei rā ki te whakaotinga mai o ngā mahi kua roa e haere nei i tōna huarahi, nō reira, hara mai me ngā mate kua kōrerohia, ka mutu, ka huri ki a koutou katoa ngā kanohi ō rātou mā, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, kia ora tātau katoa.

[Thank you, Mr Assistant Speaker, and to us all once again. I acknowledge you all collectively, my esteemed elders. This morning we welcomed Ngāti Hineuru, and, furthermore, Ngāruahine of Taranaki left just moments ago, and now you have arrived here. My part is to follow up the Minister’s sentiments and, after that, those of my esteemed sister’s words to you collectively, the esteemed members of Parliament. Madam Āwhina, greetings to you. How heartening it is to see you mobilising your tribe, and, what is more, it is pleasing to see you arrive, with you others today, to finalise tasks that have been on their way for a long time. So welcome, with the deaths that were alluded to, and, furthermore, I turn to address you, the representatives of all those who have passed away. I acknowledge, commend, and congratulate you and us all collectively; thank you.]

Can I just add to the comments made by the member for Ikaroa-Rāwhiti, Meka Whaitiri, as well as by the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations welcoming people here to this particular kōrero. I have not got too much to say in this debate. Suffice it to say that one great thing about this bill in particular—and there is only one point that I want to make—is that, finally, some of our boards and councils that have been set up have come and seen the light. They should not be scared of Māori input into decision making.

The scene was set, I think, by the Hon Mita Ririnui in the Labour Government back in the day, when it opened the door up to involvement in Waiariki, in my case, from Te Arawa people, the Mataatua people, to be involved in decision making at the regional council. Three members on, and no one else has taken up the baton since then. I want to congratulate the Hawke’s Bay region—congratulations on bringing together our iwi into the decision making. I am so pleased, albeit I hear: “Oh, a recommendatory body. Well, you know, I think our people are seeking a little bit more than that.” But that is OK—it is a step along the pathway. We want to actually be a part of the decisions that are made for our region. Why? Nō tātau te whenua, ka mutu he whenua Māori wētahi i raro i te āhuatanga o Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

[The land is ours, and, furthermore, some are Māori lands under the situations that relate to the Treaty of Waitangi.]

I think it is important that we do have absolute say and are part of the decision-making processes, certainly around environmental issues. Why? Because, No. 1, it is a Treaty responsibility, and I think that the debate in respect of the Mayor of New Plymouth putting the whole notion around seats on to councils by right, as a Treaty right, as well as a representational right, is the right thing to do. I am so pleased, as I say, that this has happened today and about the involvement of all iwi that have been spoken about: Ngāti Pāhauwera, who opened the door up—ka nui te mihi ki a koutou—Maungaharuru-Tangitū Trust, which has been in this House before and I see some faces that are familiar; Mana Ahuriri Inc.; Te Tira Whakaemi o Te Wairoa; and He Toa Takitini. It is good to know also there are some other seats there for Ngāti Hineuru, whose legislation had its first reading today, Ngāti Ruapani, Ngāti Tūwharetoa, and Ngāi Tūhoe—all the ones who live down that end, anyway.

So congratulations, our people, on taking up this challenge and putting it in front of the district council. Congratulations to the council on taking up the opportunity to work together, and I hope and pray that this is an example that will be set throughout the country. It has set the scene of working together. We have got a vested interest in our people being involved in the decision making, and I hope that we take up this opportunity with plenty of vigour and participate in the decision-making process. But keep pushing the boundaries—this is but a start. The test will be when it gets down to the crunch and we have to make a decision and somebody disagrees with the decisions that are made across the board by all iwi involved. That is the real test—to see whether the relationship in fact does mean anything. With that, I say congratulations again. Ka nui te mihi ki a koutou katoa, aroha mai mō te poto o tēnei kōrero kua āhua māuiui tēnei Māori, ā, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou kia ora tātau.

[Much appreciation to you all, and my apologies for the brevity of this speech, as this Māori is getting rather weary. And so acknowledgments and congratulations to us all.]

Tēnā koutou katoa. I must admit that Meka Whaitiri’s words were saying—I very much enjoy working with Meka. We work very closely together. Labour in Hawke’s Bay has never been stronger—onwards and upwards.

The Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations made a very good point, actually, and that is that we should never be scared of working in a co-governance model. This is my third speech on this bill and I have outlined the reasons why I support this, but the main reason really is the kaitiakitanga model and philosophy that Māori have around land management. I have always believed, and I have tested this a number of times with my good colleagues, that Māori have more of a stewardship role than an ownership role when it comes to land, and therefore have the ability to look to future generations. As opposed to saying “I own this now and I’ll do what’s best for myself.”, they are saying: “This is here for future generations and we don’t own it. All we are is guardians for the future.” I love that model. I think it is absolutely fantastic and it is the way we should be managing all our native resources. But there is not a word in the English language that encompasses that philosophy and that is as beautiful as “kaitiakitanga”.

I tell you, I stand up here and I am fearful that one of the longest courtships is going to end in one of the shortest marriages. The Minister, the Hon Chris Finlayson, talked about how this had taken 5 years to get to where it is—extensive negotiations between affected parties. But the way that I read this piece of legislation is that once the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council is gone, then this group falls over. What we are facing at the moment is an amalgamation referendum in Hawke’s Bay. On 15 September this year we will know what the governance arrangements for Hawke’s Bay will be. We will know whether there are still four local councils and one regional council, or whether the Napier City, Wairoa District, Central Hawke’s Bay District, Hastings District, and the regional councils are to be dissolved and merged into one Hawke’s Bay council.

The way I read the final proposal put out by the Local Government Commission is that what will be attached to this new amalgamated council is a Māori board and a natural resources committee. What it also says is that that Māori board will have a statutory limit of 6 years, and then it will exist only due to the largesse of the council. So I do not know where this committee stands in respect of the local legislation. Does it mean that there could be possibly two Māori advisory boards? Because that is the way I read it.

I talked to Wairoa District Council extensively about this and it has one of its advisory boards. The way it believes things is that its advisory board will once again disappear and be replaced by the advisory boards as outlined in the Local Government Commission’s final report. I might be wrong. I may be reading the legislation wrong, and if I am, then I am sure the Minister will correct me.

💬 Hon Christopher Finlayson: No, I can’t.

No, no, personally—you will correct me personally and I will seek to address this in a newspaper article or something. But I do not understand how this fits in to the final proposal for Hawke’s Bay regional governance. The reason I say this is that I had a look through the final proposal put forward by the Local Government Commission before I came to speak on this bill and I saw no reference to this group at all. So I am unaware as to whether the Local Government Commission was even aware that this piece of legislation was going through the House, which would surprise me because, as we have acknowledged, it has been in the winds now—or more than the winds; it has been on the table—for 5 years. So it is a very important piece of legislation, and there are people who have put a lot of time and effort into it. As mentioned, I completely support it. So let us see what will happen there. Let us have a talk afterwards, Mr Finlayson, and see where we end up on this.

The other thing I would like to say is that these committees are fantastic in principle and they look really good on paper, but the real test is whether we can really make these work and whether there is the relationship with the council—not just the council but the body itself—to make sure that people are working in partnership with good faith. The way people tend to work in Hawke’s Bay, by and large, is in good faith. There is no doubt about that. That is my experience from being a member of Parliament for 3 years—being outside and coming back. But I just hope that that same good faith is transferred from this board through to the regional council and that we can make decisions in the best interests of Hawke’s Bay.

Obviously a big one that is coming up—a very, very big decision—is the Ruataniwha Water Storage Scheme. This is one that I know my colleague Meka Whaitiri has major concerns about. I have no doubt—well, I do know, actually, because I have been in a number of meetings where Meka has spoken about these concerns, and this is something that we are going to need to work through as a community to get the right outcomes for Hawke’s Bay.

I will leave it at that, but let us hope this works in the best interests of the Bay, because we are a province of immense potential. We are doing well in some areas. I must admit we did not get the boom times when the dairy sector was going hell for leather, but as a consequence we are not getting some of the bust times when the dairy sector is in the doldrums. We have got the wine industry doing incredibly well, we have got the apple industry doing incredibly well, red meat is doing well, and there are also a number of exceptionally innovative businesses from Hawke’s Bay that are taking on the world and winning. So all I can say is onwards and upwards. Meka and I are going to be here for as long as it takes to really drive meaningful change in Hawke’s Bay, and I will look forward to the next few years. Thank you very much.

Tēnā koe, Mr Assistant Speaker, ā, huri noa i te Whare Pāremata nei ngā mema e me mihi atu ki a koutou katoa. Tēnei te mihi o te whanauka o Te Waka o Tākitimu ki a Ngāti Kahungunu me koutou rā ngā iwi katoa, e mihi atu ki a koutou.

[Thank you, Mr Assistant Speaker, and to the members of this House of Parliament, I acknowledge you all. I, this relative of the canoe of Tākitimu, acknowledge you, Ngāti Kahungunu, and all other tribes; greetings to you collectively.]

I am pleased to speak in support of the third reading of the Hawke’s Bay Regional Planning Committee Bill, and I want to acknowledge the representatives of both iwi and the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council who are here today. I also acknowledge those who have worked so hard on this bill but could not be here today. The establishment of the Hawke’s Bay Regional Planning Committee was mandated by the deeds of settlement with Ngāti Pāhauwera and Maungaharuru-Tangitū Hapū, but it incorporates many other iwi along with representatives of Ngāti Hineuru Iwi Inc., Ngāti Tūwharetoa Hapū Forum Trust, He Toa Takitini, Mana Ahuriri Inc., and Te Tira Whakaemi o Te Wairoa.

The committee is already in operation and by all accounts is working very well. It was clear to us on the Māori Affairs Committee that there was a strong relationship between the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council and local iwi. The relationship developed through an understanding on the shared goals that Māori and non-Māori have for the Hawke’s Bay region. With the establishment of the Hawke’s Bay Regional Planning Committee—the final step, as this legislation is passed, is to give it legal standing—that relationship will only become stronger.

Another thing that was clear to the Māori Affairs Committee when we considered the bill was the innovative approach to a very, very complex problem in some ways. None of the existing models of natural resource management would have worked for Hawke’s Bay, so a new approach was indeed needed. This is a new way of collaborating, a new way of putting into practice the relationship between iwi and local government, and it is working successfully. It is a great example of how iwi and local government can, and should, work together in partnership. This bill does not give iwi the right to mandate certain outcomes or overrule the elected council. Its purpose is not to move decision making away from the regional council but to bring iwi into the process.

Although the committee has been operating successfully without a formal legal mandate since 2011, the bill is important to the ongoing operation of the committee. First of all, it ensures that the committee is a permanent committee—just to address the previous speaker, Stuart Nash—of the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council and is, therefore, not dissolved before each local body election. This permanence ensures that the committee and its work continues regardless of election cycles, although some of the membership will change, depending on the outcome of the election. This enables the committee members, particularly the iwi representatives, to undertake long-term planning over multiple years and across election cycles. The bill also enshrines in law the entitlement of post-settlement governance entities to appoint representatives to the committee.

I would like to once again acknowledge the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council. Our Minister has acknowledged the many people who have been involved in the bill and the workings of the committee to date. I just want to acknowledge, though, the committee co-chairs, Fenton Wilson and Toro Waaka—tēnā koe—and everyone else who has served on that committee since its formation for the success they have had in the first years of the committee’s operation.

Finally, in a lot of ways there is not a lot of change with the passing of the bill because the committee is already in operation, but the bill enshrines in legislation what is already happening and ensures the committee’s future. This is an excellent bill, and I commend it to the House. Kia ora.

E te Māngai, tēnā koe, tuarua, ki ngā mema o tō tātou Whare tēnā koutou katoa, tēnei te mihi ki ngā tāngata katoa i te Whare. Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa.

[Thank you, Mr Assistant Speaker. Secondly, acknowledgments to members of our House, and I pay a tribute to everybody in the House. Greetings to you all.]

I am speaking in the third reading of this bill, and I maintain that it is a privilege. But I am speaking on the bill for the Green Party in the place of Catherine Delahunty, who was the Green Party MP on the Māori Affairs Committee, which was hearing the submissions on this bill. She was spokesperson on the issues raised in this bill as it progressed through the House.

In the second reading of this bill the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations, the Hon Chris Finlayson, explained that this bill will establish the Hawke’s Bay Regional Planning Committee, which implements the Government’s decision to establish a statutory body called the Hawke’s Bay Regional Planning Committee. The establishment of this committee will give effect to the commitment made by the Government in the Ngāti Pāhauwera deed of settlement and recorded in the Maungaharuru-Tangitū Hapū deed of settlement to work with iwi and hapū in the Hawke’s Bay region and with the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council to agree on details of this planning committee in order to introduce legislation.

The bill ensures that the relevant iwi post-settlement governance entities and Crown-mandated entities will be entitled to appoint representatives to the planning committee. We support the concept of the Treaty settlement process creating mechanisms for genuine sharing of decision making that respects the rights and responsibilities of mana whenua hapū and iwi—and the Crown, for that matter—as a Treaty partner.

We are supporting this bill but we are also compelled to point out, as others have, that this bill could have been more aligned with the settlements that commit regional authorities to more than simply allowing a regional advisory committee on Resource Management Act issues. We acknowledge that there are certainly complexities around Kahungunu Inc. and iwi katoa, but we maintain that the Crown has an obligation to lead the regional authorities away from advisory tokenism, and we fear that that may well be the result of this bill. So we say that the Crown should lead authorities towards a genuine relationship between the regional council and iwi based on the rights and the obligations outlined in article 2 of Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

My colleague Catherine Delahunty notes that this genuine relationship is a slow process. It is a gradual process of leading the horse of Pākehā dominance and resistance to the pool of water, as well as making that horse drink. Iwi Māori know this well, as do those who have spent decades teaching Te Tiriti o Waitangi to tauiwi katoa—that racism is rife and disquiet still exists from Pākehā around Treaty settlement bills and bills like this that try to give some effect to some aspects of Treaty settlement. If I were to hazard a guess—because I do not really understand it—I would suggest that that racism stems from a fear of sharing power. And it stems from a sad and widespread lack of understanding of the history of our land, where, really, few Pākehā actually understand the losses that were suffered by iwi and hapū in the Hawke’s Bay area and across Aotearoa. We maintain that, in the end, tangata whenua of the rohe deserve a whole lot more for their historical suffering—the raupatu, marginalisation, and the economic servitude and low-paid jobs on land that was stripped from their grasp. They deserve the full right to the things that they never handed over: rangatiratanga and mana motuhake.

We note that the Hawke’s Bay Regional Planning Committee is a committee with powers and functions relating to the Resource Management Act. We note that iwi are already advisers to the council and that the advisory committee is, effectively, already operating. We would have preferred to see a co-governance, co-management model. I note, as would many in this House who have already had to deal with co-governance and co-management, that it is not an easy process. Those of us from Tainui and Raukawa and the other river iwi—we know this. The difference is that this committee will make recommendations, but it will not make decisions.

Having said that, may this bill be celebrated as a step—not as the final deal, but as a step—in the right direction. It is a tribute to the negotiation team and to the tenacity of that negotiation in a context where the parameters are frequently changing. We see this as a beginning. As well as the end of this process through the House, it is a beginning and, certainly, it is not full and final. We see it as the beginning of a permanent negotiation for decolonisation and justice. We note and we acknowledge that this should be, and is, a time for optimism for the iwi of the Hawke’s Bay area, and we look forward to seeing how this plays out. We sincerely hope that true decision-making and power will be handed to iwi in due course as a result of this bill. Nō reira, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa.

Tēnā koe, Mr Assistant Speaker, ā, tēnā koutou aku whanaunga, pēnei i a au nō Te Tai Tokerau, mahara ana au i te wā tuatahi kua tae mai koutou ki waenganui i a mātou, wēnā taku karanga ki a koutou aku whanaunga mēnā he tuakana, tēina rānei ēngari, ko te mea nui he whanaunga, ēngari kei te tautoko i ngā kōrero i kōrerohia e aku tuākana, aku tuāhine, ki te ‘hakatau i a koutou i te rā nei. Kei te tautoko mātou o roto i a Aotearoa Tuatahi i tēnei pire.

[Thank you, Mr Assistant Speaker, and acknowledgments to you, my relations—like me, of the North. That is how I regarded you collectively the first time you came amongst us. I referred to you as older or younger siblings—you bet—but also, importantly, as relatives, and I endorse the sentiments expressed by my elder and female colleagues in welcoming you here today. We of New Zealand First support this bill.]

I just want to reiterate that we do support this bill and we recognise that this is part of a settlement process. I also want to say that it is the establishment of a committee comprised of iwi and members of the council. It is a committee. It does not provide for separate seats on the council, which is a different matter altogether.

The Minister for Māori Development did make reference to a former member of this House, the Hon Mita Ririnui, who introduced—I think it was called—the Bay of Plenty Regional Council (Māori Constituency Empowering) Bill, which set aside two seats specifically for Māori. New Zealand First has never supported that approach. One of the reasons is that the example that I have just alluded to—at the time there were actually six Māori on that council. From the time that that bill became law, that council has had no more than two iwi members on it. What we are saying in New Zealand First is that we are no less than, and we are just as good as, those of the general public. However, I acknowledge the process that has been taken to get to this stage.

The bill puts into legislation an organisation, a committee, that has already been operating for a number of years. I am glad that the Crown negotiator saw fit to adopt that approach. However, the main point is that iwi have the opportunity to contribute to that whole process affecting the council.

I just want to take up the comments made by the honourable member for Napier, Stuart Nash. That is an issue as to whether or not this bill has the durability to overcome any possible amalgamation of the different councils at the moment. I think the proof will be in the pudding, if the people of the Hawke’s Bay agree to that amalgamation. However, from the comments that I have heard when I visited the Hawke’s Bay, people are certainly not in favour of it. However, time will tell whether or not that is going to be an issue.

I do not have too much to say, other than to say that New Zealand First will certainly be supporting this bill because it gives the opportunity for iwi to participate in the process, albeit in a recommendatory process. So without further ado, I commend the bill to the House.

Ā, tēnā koe, ngā mema o te committee o Hawke’s Bay Regional Planning, ka nui te mihi atu ki a koutou. Time is of the essence, and my contribution will be a short one. Everything that has been said has been heard. Everything that has been written has been submitted. Everything that can be debated within the Māori Affairs Committee has been debated and discussed. And all that is left for me to say, with some words borrowed from the great Barry White, is that this has been the committee’s first, it has been the committee’s last, it is the region’s everything. Congratulations. I commend the bill to the House. Kia ora.

Tēnā koe, Mr Assistant Speaker. It is pretty hard to follow Barry White, but I do have that baritone, that bass, that I can roll out here.

I just want to make a short contribution to congratulate the members, the iwi, the hapū, the tangata whenua groups, and the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council on—actually, they have beat us to the punch, for we are just formalising the commitments that were made in the Treaty settlement. So Parliament is actually in catch-up mode. They are way ahead of the game. They have been working as a committee for over 2 years now. So it is really up to Parliament now to try to catch up with the mahi that has been going on.

I congratulate all the groups. Can I acknowledge my whanaungas, Ngāti Pāhauwera, Maungaharuru-Tangitū, we had Hineuru this morning, and all the other groups that are represented on the committee. It is an exciting time and I know that they have got a lot of money—mahi that is going on. [Interruption] I hope they are generating some money as well. But whatever the reorganisation or potential hypothetical situations that might be happening with local government reorganisation in the future for the Hawke’s Bay region, this committee is a permanent committee that has been established based on solemn agreements reached with the Crown. So, regardless of what future structures may come into being, this committee will continue. I am very certain of that, based on the commitments that have been entered into with the tangata whenua, with the hapū, and with the iwi of the Hawke’s Bay.

I do not want to prolong this debate, but can I just congratulate the groups once again, congratulate everyone who has been involved in this legislation, and I commend it to the House. Kia ora tātou.

Time is of the essence, and I too would like to rise in support of this bill. It is an exciting time for the principles of partnership and kaitiakitanga. With that, I commend this bill to the House.

Bill read a third time.

The House adjourned at 12.49 p.m. (Wednesday)