Waitangi National Trust Board Amendment Bill

Tēnā koe e Te Māngai o Te Whare. “Papā te whatitiri, hikohiko te uira, ka tanuku ki runga i te maunga o Hikurangi ki Te Tai Rāwhiti o Kahurānaki ki runga o Heretaunga. Ka rere ā-waikamo ki runga i Te Marae o Kohupātiki ki roto i ngā rangi kua pahure ake nei.” Kai tōku pāpā a Wīrangi Wīremu Whaitiri ōku whakaaro i tēnei wā. Ka kotahi ake te wairua o tōku pāpā ki a ia. Ka kotahi ake te wairua o te toa whutupōro a Jonah Lomu ki a rāua, kia kotahi tonu ai te tangi mō rātou kua ngaro atu ki Te Pō, haere, haere, haere!

Ka whakahokia mai ngā rārangi kōrero ki a tātau me tēnei kaupapa kai mua i te aroaro o Te Whare i te rā nei. Ka tautoko ahau i ngā kōrero me ngā mahi a Te Minita ka tae mai tēnei pire ki mua i te aroaro o Te Rōpū Whiriwhiri i ngā Take Māori. Kua kōrero mai Te Whare ki roto i te pānuitanga tuatahi, tuarua i ngā mahi e pā ana ki ngā kaiwhakahaere o te wāhi o Waitangi, nō reira, e mihi atu ana ahau ki Te Minita, e mihi atu ana ahau ki Te Heamana o Te Rōpū Whiriwhiri i ngā Take Māori, e Tūtehounuku tēnā koe, mō ngā mahi kua tae mai tātau ki tēnei wā.

[Thank you, Mr Assistant Speaker. “The thunder crashes, the lightning flashes and crumbles upon Mount Hikurangi, east of Kahurānaki, and upon Hastings. Tears flowed on the marae of Kohupātiki in days just past.” My thoughts at this moment are with my father figure, Wīrangi Wīremu Whaitiri. The spirit of my father will indeed be as one with him, as the spirit of the champion rugby player Jonah Lomu will be with both of them, so that there will be only one mourning period required for them lost to the Void. Go forth, depart, journey on!

I will bring the contents of the presentations and this matter before the House today back to us. I support the statements, and the work, of the Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage that this bill be referred to the Māori Affairs Committee. The House has expressed its views in the first and second readings in regard to the functions of administrators at Waitangi itself, and so I acknowledge the Minister and the chairman of the Māori Affairs Committee. To you, Tūtehounuku, well done in regard to what has been done to bring us here to where we are at this point in time.]

I speak with a very clear and unashamed passion for this part of the country. Waitangi, since I was born, has been a place very close to my heart. I visit Waitangi not only to commemorate at the beginning of February every year. I have long held my connection to Waitangi, and that connection I want draw to the attention of the House.

Although we may speak of the gift of Lord and Lady Bledisloe I want to return, for the record of the House, the conversation to the time of my ancestor Maikuku, from whom I am a direct descendant. Maikuku was resident in the area now known as the Waitangi National Trust estate. In fact, the place right near the waka Ngātokimatawhaorua is known as Te Ana o Maikuku, or the place where Maikuku lived. I want to remind the House of just how deep my roots are, and indeed how deep the roots of this country are, at the place affectionately known as Waitangi.

The heritage of this country is really important to me. I cannot think of a more important place, when I consider the history of our country, than Waitangi. This is the very place where my ancestors and indeed the colonial ancestors of this country debated the merits of the Treaty of Waitangi/Te Tiriti o Waitangi. They went on to sign the Treaty of Waitangi/Te Tiriti o Waitangi, and thus we have this august institution and the fine country that we live in today.

I want to just pick up a part of the Hon Nicky Wagner’s contribution to the third reading of this amendment bill. In her contribution she said that over 80 years ago Lord Bledisloe, the Governor-General at the time, and Lady Bledisloe showed enormous foresight when they acquired the Waitangi estate and gifted it to the nation. As with New Zealand Governors-General before 1972, Lord Bledisloe was British. Nicky Wagner went on to say that he lived in New Zealand for only 5 years, yet during his time here he showed an interest in New Zealand’s heritage that would put many native-born New Zealanders to shame.

I want to highlight to the House that at the end of the 1800s several Māori groups came together to try to rally central government to protect the estate known as Waitangi. They could see that the farmland was becoming a marginal farm. It was starting to become run down. They understood and appreciated the significance of Te Tiriti o Waitangi and tried to rally central government to ensure that the place was protected. Sadly, their efforts were in vain.

I also want to highlight the efforts of the member Mr Vernon Reed, a former member of the House, who I understand hosted Lord and Lady Bledisloe in the Bay of Islands and shared the rich history of Waitangi with them, which, as far as I am concerned—and what I would like to offer to the House—is what tipped the decision of Lord and Lady Bledisloe to purchase the land and, indeed, make the noble gift of gifting it to the country.

Just as in the spirit of Te Tiriti of Waitangi a partnership was entered into, I believe that in this particular bill a partnership again was reached. Why do I say that? Because for some time now there has been a groundswell of concern amongst the families in te Tai Tokerau in respect of the descendants of the ancestors who were instrumental in the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi. Their concern was based around representation on the Waitangi National Trust. They felt that their voices were not being heard. They felt that their tupuna, or ancestor, had as equal mana as other ancestors who were being represented on the Waitangi National Trust.

So I want to congratulate the House on this bill. One of the amendments is to ensure that the voice of Pōmare, the voice of Nene, the voice of Kāwiti, and the voice of Heke will be now heard on the Waitangi National Trust. It is with some pride that as a descendant of all four of those ancestors I am recommending this bill to the House in its third reading, so that those families can gain representation in the spirit of partnership that was entered into in Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

This amendment bill also looks to the future of the Waitangi National Trust, and that is a good thing, for as much as we celebrate our heritage and our past, it is important to protect the future of not only the estate but also the conversation, the learnings, and the taonga that come from the Waitangi National Trust.

So it sets out a bit of a pathway forward and I think it does so at a very important time in the nation’s future. I know, and many of the members in this House know, that the Waitangi National Trust has looked to having the actual Te Tiriti o Waitangi to Waitangi returned, where, hopefully, one day it will be displayed for all to see in the beautiful place of Waitangi.

I am really excited about the future of the Waitangi National Trust. It has a plan. Part of that plan is to make sure that the education and the story of Waitangi is told to all young New Zealanders—and I am excited by that—so that that conversation does not end and so that that conversation does evolve.

In conclusion, I want to thank all involved in bringing this bill to this point in time, and, in particular, the Waitangi National Trust. It may interest the House to know that upon the death of my father in May, there was a vacant seat left on the trust board. Recently that was advertised and I was asked to consider applying. I did, and I am proud to say now that very shortly I will be a trustee on the Waitangi National Trust Board.

So in its third reading I want to commend this bill to the House. Tēnā koutou, tēnā tatou katoa.

Ā, tēnā anō koe e Te Mana Whakawā. E hiahia ana ahau ki te tautoko i te kaikōrero o mua, e Peeni e mihi atu!

[And thank you once again, Mr Assistant Speaker. I would like to endorse the previous speaker; well done, Peeni!]

It gives me great pleasure and honour to be able to speak to the third reading of the Waitangi National Trust Board Amendment Bill as a member of this Government and also as chair of the Māori Affairs Committee.

I would like to start by mentioning three milestones. One is that this year we are celebrating the 175th anniversary of the signing of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. We are also looking at the 79th year of the Waitangi National Trust Board Act. We are also looking—this is the third milestone—at the fact that it is 9 years since we started this review of the Act. It has also been a little frustrating because we have been in the House over the last 3 or 4 weeks, waiting for this final reading—the third reading of this bill—and so, finally, we come almost, hopefully, to the end of the journey. But in doing that, it has taken some time, so I would like to take my time here to just reiterate a number of the important parts of this bill and the work that a number of Māori Affairs Committees undertook to get it to this point.

The Waitangi National Trust Board is the body entrusted with caring for one of the most important single locations in our country: the Treaty grounds at Waitangi. The important heritage status of this place, this birthplace of our nation, is recognised in law through the establishment of the trust board to administer and act as guardian of these grounds. The trust is self-funded and maintains the Treaty grounds without cost—without cost—to the people of New Zealand. But a need was identified over 9 years ago to strengthen the financial viability and governance structure of the trust.

What the most significant change in this bill does is it structures the trust. Currently, there is a risk that the perception of a conflict of interest could arise between the constitutional roles of the Governor-General, the Prime Minister, the Minister of Conservation, and the Minister for Māori Development, and their roles as ex officio members of the trust. However, it is also important that the relationship between the Crown and the Waitangi National Trust Board be maintained, and that is a very, very important point.

This bill does a good job of resolving this issue. It removes the ex officio members from the trust board, but it continues their involvement with the trust through the appointment of the Governor-General as patron of the trust and the establishment of a Crown representative group to foster good relations and share information with the board. This is made up of the Prime Minister, the Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage, and the Minister for Māori Development. In addition, there are two members of Parliament who will be appointed as full members of the board: one representing the Government and the other representing the Opposition.

The Māori Affairs Committee saw an opportunity also to make a further correction to that representation on the board. Currently the trust board includes three members to represent three non-Māori families, but only one member to represent four Māori families. Our colleague Pita Paraone is currently the representative for those four Māori families, but as a result of the changes made at the select committee he will be replaced by four representatives when his current term ends. I am sure that Pita will enjoy being able to say he was so valuable he had to be replaced by four people. But, in all seriousness, we feel that this was a change that was very important and that it was important to make that change now, while we had the opportunity, and that is what we have done.

This bill makes a number of other changes to modernise the provisions for the Waitangi National Trust Board, such as providing term limits for representative members, and we also have given the board general powers to do anything a natural person would do. This will allow the board to make better use of its commercial opportunities by doing things like borrowing money or managing forestry on its own land. The trust board takes care of the Treaty grounds at no cost to the taxpayer, as I said before, and these changes will allow it to continue to do so.

I want to acknowledge the members of the Waitangi National Trust Board for the work that they do for the care of one of our most important historic sites. I also acknowledge my fellow members of the Māori Affairs Committee for the work that they put in to consider this bill. There was a lot of work that was done. I also want to acknowledge the honourable Minister Maggie Barry and the input that she had, our officials also, and also a former chair, the Hon Tau Henare, because, as I said, this bill has been going for some time.

Finally, I acknowledge the earlier speaker Peeni Henare, as I said at the beginning, but I want to pay tribute once more to his father, the late Ērima Hēnare, who served this country and his people on many other boards and was a tireless advocate for Te Reo Māori. This is a legacy organisation.

My final acknowledgment here is that I sincerely want to commend this bill to the House. Kia ora.

Tēnā koe e Te Māngai o Te Whare, oti noa e tika ana kia tuku mi’i atu ki a tātau katoa, otirā, kia whakapiri taku mi’i atu ki te mi’i i tukuna mai e taku w’anaunga nei, a Peeni, ki te W’are, otirā, ki a rātau mā i te wāhi ngaro, nō reira, tēnā tātau katoa.

[Greetings, Mr Assistant Speaker, but at the same time my acknowledgments to us all, and to my colleague here, Peeni. I add my tribute to those he accorded to the House and, indeed, to those who have gone to the place lost from the sight of mankind; so salutations to us all.]

It is indeed a pleasure to stand and take a call on this really important bill for our nation. It is as important as Waitangi itself, which is said to be the birthplace of our nation, and I would quickly add that it is the birthplace of our modern nation. I think it is important that we recognise the importance of the place but also continually recognise the importance of the event that took place there and celebrate that. In doing that and in talking to this bill, we need to ensure that we make it the best that it can be.

I want to congratulate the Māori Affairs Committee, which, through its work, actually made some really significant changes to the original bill—the bill that was first introduced into the House on 7 November 2013, so it has been a long time coming to this point—and, in particular, the change and the acknowledgment to the four w’ānau so that they may each have a representative on the trust. I think that was very, very important, and I mihi to the committee and to Nuk Korako, the chair of the committee, who has just resumed his seat. Ā, nō reira, e mihi ana ahau ki ngā w’ānau nei o Hone Heke, ki te w ’ānau o Mai’i Kāwiti, kite w’ānau o Tāmati Waka Nene, ki te w’ānau anō o Pōmare. E tika ana kia tuku mi’i atu ki a rātau.

[And therefore I commend these families of Hone Heke, Mai’i Kāwiti, Tāmati Waka Nene, and Pōmare as well. It is only right that I recognise them.]

I think it is important to do that because they take now their place as individual w’ānau rather than collectively together, and I want to acknowledge that. I want to also acknowledge quite a significant change, which I would characterise as enhancing the partnership between the Crown and ngā iwi o Tai Tokerau, for this particular site. The removal of the Governor-General, the Prime Minister, and the other members who held those memberships in an ex officio capacity—removing them and establishing the Crown Representative Group—to me, takes them out of the trust but also continues the relationship in a more partnership model, and I think that is a good idea.

I also want to acknowledge that there will be a member of Parliament appointed by the Prime Minister and a member of Parliament appointed by the Leader of the Opposition as trustees. So in that way Parliament still gives the recognition to that trust as being very important to Parliament, but the relationship is between the trust and the Crown Representative Group. I think that is a very nice way of maintaining the representation of Parliament but also having the Crown-iwi relationship continuing in that capacity.

I do want to touch on, also, the term of each trustee being changed to a 3-year term, with a maximum of 9 years. During the Committee stage I did say that I agreed with it, and I continue to agree with it, but I do recognise the contribution of other members who spoke to that point. There has been a long tradition, not only for this particular trust but for a number of Māori trusts and organisations, where we do tend to have a long membership continuing on, and I think that is more a reflection of rangatiratanga and leadership within our people. I want to still support the idea of having a 9-year term in this instance, but I think it is really important that we put in place, perhaps, some measures within the trust to ensure that there is continuity and that we do not end up with, after 3 years, all of those representatives being changed at one time. I think that is something for the trust to work on at the appropriate time.

Finally, I just want to recognise that in September of this year Heritage New Zealand gave the status to Waitangi of being a wāhi tupuna. I think it is very important that that happened. I also want to suggest to the House, to the Parliament, and to the Government that we should surely be looking at this special place to us as New Zealanders going through the process of becoming a World Heritage site. I think that Waitangi is not only important to our country but, actually, really important to the whole world. I have had discussions on a personal level with indigenous peoples from around the world, who quite often visit our country on the basis of quite a special Treaty between the Crown and Māori—the Treaty of Waitangi. I think this place is a representation of the Treaty, and that is acknowledged by others around the world, and so I thought I would finish on the point that this place is so important that it ought to be a World Heritage site. Nō reira e tika ana kia tuku mi’i atu ki ngā iwi katoa o te Tai Tokerau, nō reira, tēnā tātau.

[Therefore it is appropriate that I congratulate all the tribes of North Auckland, so well done to us.]

I rise to take a brief call on the third reading of the Waitangi National Trust Board Amendment Bill. Everybody knows that the Waitangi National Trust Board administers the Waitangi Treaty Grounds. It is a self-funded group that maintains the grounds without cost to the people of New Zealand, and that is good.

Being on the Māori Affairs Committee, I can say there were some recommendations. One of those recommendations was about giving the board the power to do anything that a natural person would do. This is about strengthening its financial viability as a trust board. These things that a natural person would do include having the ability to borrow money, and to own, manage, and operate its forestry on the board’s land and its neighbouring Waitangi endowment forestry lands as well. This is all about increasing the commercial viability of those lands and also bringing in some income for the trust board.

My colleague Nuk Korako spoke a little bit about one of our recommendations, which is about the provision of representation from Māori families by increasing those numbers from two to four. Also, our colleague across the way, Adrian Rurawhe, talked about the tenure of the board members, but there was also a little bit extra, in that, once this bill comes into effect, board members who have served for more than 9 years will be given another 3 more years on top of that to complete their tenure.

I am all in favour of changeover of board members. I am in favour of keeping some old heads in there, as well as bringing in some new heads. They bring in new lenses to look at the type of business. They allow for the ability for people with other skill sets to come in and fit within that trust board membership grouping. That can actually grow a business and keep it vibrant and moving along. I, personally, am all for a changing of the guard every now and then, to make sure we keep the toto, I suppose—the blood—of the organisation moving significantly.

This is a very important bill for the Waitangi National Trust Board. As my colleagues have said in the House, it has been a long time coming. I think that haste is of the urgency here, so I have no hesitation and am very proud to be able to commend this bill to the House. Thank you.

It is a real pleasure to rise to speak to this third reading of the Waitangi National Trust Board Amendment Bill. It does seem that this bill has been the one that has almost got into the House for its final reading a number of times, so it is good that we will see it off before the end of year and are able to implement the provisions within it. It is a straightforward bill, it is a refreshingly simple bill, but it is also profoundly important in that it does deal with the governance of what I would argue is undoubtedly the single most important heritage site in our country. For that reason the bill is significant.

Waitangi is an important historic site. I think it is also important for our future that as and when we conduct a constitutional discussion, a dialogue in the country, as to our future constitutional arrangements, we return to Waitangi and actually stand on that land and have that conversation as well as having it in other parts of the country. It has long been a significant site for gathering, for dialogue, for decision making—even prior to 1840, of course. I think we should continue to honour that tradition in that place.

I confess that when we first sighted this bill, I think from memory about a year or so ago, or a little over a year perhaps, I was inclined to some suspicion because it appeared to be that the Government was handing back a level of authority or relinquishing a level of control over the Waitangi National Trust. I tend to suspicion when I see Governments appearing to do that. But I must acknowledge Pita Paraone, our matua, who, given his unique perspective on the board, was able to reassure me that it did seem benevolent and actually we were looking for better outcomes, and for that reason, of course, we are very happy to continue to support the bill.

As others have mentioned, I think one of the most important provisions of the legislation is to allow for proper representation of those four chiefly families who formerly have been represented by just the one representative. I am quite sure that Mr Paraone and others who have gone before him did a sterling job in representing, but really there is no substitute for having those descendants of Hone Heke, of Kāwiti, of Tāmati Waka Nene, and of Pōmare properly represented by the descendants of those individuals. They are, of course, fruitful families. There is no shortage of contenders, I think, to represent and represent well those rangatira. I think it is a very good provision that will see richness and depth come to that board in a way that perhaps has not been possible previously.

On that note, I would just like to acknowledge what we heard just earlier about our colleague Mr Henare. I think it is entirely fitting that he should step into that role that was so honourably kept by his late father, and I am sure he will do the role great justice in his time as well. So that is very good news, and I look forward to the official announcement of that. It is equally fair to say, I think, the Crown representation on the trust is now more evenly balanced. There will be MPs representing both the Government and the Opposition on the trust as of right, as well as the Prime Minister and the relevant Ministers in a sort of an ex officio way. I think that does better reflect the status of the body as a representative body, to have that input and those perspectives represented there.

Can I just say in passing that I think as New Zealanders a lot of us wear our heritage quite lightly. Perhaps we take for granted these sites like Waitangi and do not really understand or think enough about their significance and the role they played in making the country that we are fortunate enough to live in today. Waitangi itself, of course, but for the Bledisloe gift, could have been lost to the country. It could have been privatised. It could have been put to some other use. It was, effectively, rescued and at least maintained in public ownership in perpetuity by that gift, and I think we should acknowledge that. I think, equally, of other sites like Te Waimate, which was an important signing, and Māngungu, which was, of course, on 12 February 1840, the site of the single largest signing of Te Tiriti, and yet only in recent years has there been more than a very humble celebration. It is only now starting to get some recognition, as are many of the other historic sites around the country. I think it is important that we do continue to recognise the importance of our history and the heritage sites.

I was at Waitangi on 28 October in a whare rūnanga listening to a very interesting, very engaging lecture from Mānuka Hēnare about the events of 28 October 1835. Again, that is such an important part of our history. Arguably, 28 October is New Zealand’s independence day, because the declaration did not declare the independence of Māori—that was a given—it declared the independence of New Zealand as a nation State, and it was recognised as such in Britain and by the powers of Europe. I think we tend to gloss over that reality, that it was the beginning of the nation State that we now have. Of course, Waitangi and Te Tiriti was the next significant step in that process to full independence.

So I think it is important that we continue to attend to what happens at Waitangi. I do visit there fairly regularly. It is great to see the museum advancing apace and we look forward with real pleasure and expectation to its opening. I do echo the comments made as well that it will be great when we have an adequate facility there to store the original document. It is appropriate for now that it be stored here in Wellington in conditions that will protect it, but it is equally compelling that it should be at that site where it was signed back in the day, and we do look forward to that occurring. I think it is not a cost; it is a real investment in our past and in our future to return the document home.

With those few words, I will be pleased, as I say, to confirm the Greens’ support for this bill. We look forward to its passing, and we wish well the new membership of the board as it reforms in the new year. Kia ora.

Tēnā koe, Mr Assistant Speaker, ēngari, i mua i te haere tonu o aku kōrero kai te tautoko au i ngā mihi i mihingia e taku tuakana ki ngā whānau o Lomu, a Whaitiri. E tika ana kia mihi kau ki a rāua nā te mea, i tata ake nei i ngaro atu rātau ki te tirohanga kanohi, nā reira, haere, haere, hoki atu! Hoki mai ki a tātau e te hunga ora, tātau i roto i Te Whare nei i tēnei wā tēnā koutou.

[Thank you, Mr Assistant Speaker, but before I continue with my assertions I endorse the tributes by my elder kin to the Lomu and Whaitiri families. It is apt that tributes are accorded to those two because they were lost from the sight of mankind just recently, so depart, journey on, leave! I come back to us, the living, in this House at this moment of time; greetings to you collectively.]

Before I continue, I ought to declare a vested interest in this bill over and above being an ordinary citizen of this country. I have had the privilege of being a member of the trust board for some time now and an even greater privilege to be its chair for the last 5 years. Can I say on behalf of the board that we have certainly looked forward to this particular point in time when, in a few minutes, this bill will be passed by this House.

Can I just make the comment that it has been a lengthy gestation for this bill, given that it was introduced back in 2013. It has taken almost 3 years for it to get to this stage. I also want to comment on the speech made by the Minister who commenced the third reading of this bill, the Hon Nicky Wagner, and make reference to the comments that were also referred to by the member for Tāmaki Makaurau, Peeni Henare.

The Minister made reference to the knowledge of Waitangi being more known by people from outside New Zealand. She referred to that as being quite shameful. Can I suggest that there is something more shameful than that. At the time, the Government of the day refused to accept or listen to the representations made by the member for the Bay of Islands, Mr Vernon Reed, who made several submissions to the then Government of the day for it to buy the estate. As a consequence of the Government declining that request, he made submissions to Lord and Lady Bledisloe. In their benevolence, they provided the funding to purchase the estate.

This bill certainly makes amendments to the original Act in relation to the representation of the various families who are listed in the original Act, and, in particular, the Māori families. For some time now I have represented the four Māori families. Although I feel that I may have done a good job, I still felt that it seemed to be inequitable that the Māori families were represented by one person whereas the non-Māori families each had their own representation. This bill corrects that. But I must say that in terms of the length of the term that people can sit on the board, which is limited to periods of 3 years with a maximum of 9 years, up to this point in time the membership of the board was left to the individual members who sat on that board to determine when they would resign or it was when they departed this world. To think that my grand-uncle sat on that board for almost 49 years, and there were other long-serving members.

Never, in the history of the board, were there any untoward decisions made that would put the estate in jeopardy. In fact, the only time that there was something that questioned the integrity of the board was when the Department of Conservation was responsible for the administration of the trust. But, be that as it may, the board certainly looks forward to the enactment of this bill.

Can I say that the bill is not entirely what the board had requested from the beginning, but we take solace in the knowledge that it is the intention of the Minister to conduct a review that will look at the possibilities of the board being able to enter into commercial activity. At the moment, the trust deed restricts the board being able to do that. I certainly look forward to doing that.

On Waitangi Day next year we will have the privilege of opening a museum that will allow for the trust board to exhibit a number of taonga that we have in our possession. The previous speaker, Mr Clendon, made reference to the hope that the Treaty might one day be displayed in Waitangi. I certainly hope that that can be achieved, as does the board itself. However, although we had hoped that the Treaty might be displayed during the opening of our museum next year, unfortunately, due to the fragility of the original Treaty document itself, there is some difficulty about the possibility of that happening. However, I have signalled to the Minister that it is certainly the ongoing desire of the board to see the Treaty displayed in Waitangi, albeit for a brief time.

There is not too much more to say, other than to say that in terms of the representation of Parliament on the board—a member from each side of the House—although it is not exactly articulated in the bill, it is intended that in terms of the representative from the Opposition, the Leader of the Opposition will consult with all other parties who are not sitting in Government. I just wanted to make that point.

In conclusion, I want to acknowledge my colleagues on the Māori Affairs Committee and the time that they took to consider this bill. I also want to acknowledge the officials and, in particular, a former chief executive officer of the Ministry for Culture and Heritage, Lewis Holden. He was certainly responsible for initiating this whole process, from a ministerial point of view.

💬 Hon Trevor Mallard: He was the one who quit because Maggie Barry was so rude.

Be that as it may—I want to conclude by acknowledging my fellow board members. I know that a number of them will be watching this debate. They have waited for so long. But we are also waiting for the intended review that the Minister promised. Ā, nā reira kei te tautoko au i te urunga mai o te mana hoki o tēnei ia pire, arā, ko Te Waitangi National Trust Board Amendment Bill, kia ora rā.

[And so I endorse the introduction of the particular power in this bill; in other words, in the Waitangi National Trust Board Amendment Bill. Thank you very much.]

Thank you for the opportunity to speak on the third reading of the Waitangi National Trust Board Amendment Bill. I am not on the Māori Affairs Committee, so it is a great privilege for me to be able to contribute on this bill, because this bill reflects the important partnership between the Crown and the Waitangi National Trust Board.

Our founding document, the Treaty of Waitangi, remains central to much of the governance of our country. The Treaty is an integral part of our constitutional framework. The Treaty is embedded in many Acts of Parliament—for example, the Conservation Act, the Resource Management Act, and many others. When developing policy, the Government considers its responsibility under the Treaty of Waitangi alongside other factors, to have the best possible outcomes for the people of New Zealand. The ongoing relationship between the Crown and Māori, grounded in the Treaty, helps the whole society move forward together. The Treaty helps us build social cohesion while addressing the growing diversity within New Zealand. The combined cultural factors that we have in New Zealand—that is, Māori and Pākehā—give us a very unique identity as a nation.

It is important that the Waitangi Treaty Grounds are recognised, because it is about our culture and it is about our history. It is important that the heritage status of Waitangi is acknowledged and also that the governance structure of the board is strengthened. This bill is to provide for financial viability, and to strengthen the governance board. This bill is also about separating the Crown from the board, which will help remove any possible risks of conflict, and also will ensure a positive ongoing relationship between the Crown and the board.

This bill ties in really well with the work that this National Government is doing to acknowledge our history and to acknowledge our Māori people. I support this bill and commend this bill to the House. Thank you.

I have got to, firstly, acknowledge that it feels like quite an honour to be able to speak this evening to this bill, the Waitangi National Trust Board Amendment Bill, in its third reading. I also want to acknowledge that it is very easy to forget in this House, sometimes, the mana that the different members of this House carry with them. Listening to this debate so far, I have been reminded, indeed, of the mana carried by so many members of this House. There are people with some very deep links to Waitangi. I want to acknowledge the chair of the Waitangi National Trust Board, Pita Paraone, who spoke previously, and all of those who share whakapapa with the families on this board. I also want to acknowledge my colleague David Clendon, who spoke earlier, who has family members who signed the Treaty both for the Pākehā settlers and for the tangata whenua. That is, I think, something worth acknowledging.

Personally, I think that I feel a sense of grievance on some levels that I did not learn about the Treaty or its history in my time of going through school. It was only when I went into the workforce, into the community organisation working for Women’s Refuge, that I learnt about our history. There is the amazing example that the Treaty is for us and the rest of the world of the vision, if the Treaty was fully realised, of how it is possible for peoples to live in partnership and dialogue to resolve difference, to ensure that identities and cultures are able to be realised. The role of fundamental connection to the land and sovereignty that is within that document is, I think, an extraordinary thing. After learning that history, I just have such a sense of privilege about having a place to be in this country through that document that I really, really wish everyone in this country would get access to that learning, to be able to have that same sense of belonging and place and responsibility that is held within the Treaty.

What we are debating here in the third reading are some changes to the Waitangi National Trust Board that are positive. It is really nice, also, after days of urgency and an undermining of the democratic process, to actually have accordance within this House and to see what can happen when a democratic process goes through and when people’s voices are honoured and principles of partnership are realised. It is a good feeling, and this House feels different now from how it has in the last couple of days.

I do want to specifically acknowledge the Māori Affairs Committee for the work that it has done on this bill. My understanding is that it really listened to the submitters and to the concerns that were raised by the Māori families about the fact that up to this point the three non-Māori family members have been represented by three members on the board, whereas four Māori families were represented by only one member. The Waitangi National Trust Board, the symbol of partnership and nationhood for us, should fundamentally recognise that sense of partnership, and that was not being realised. The committee worked through the detail of that and worked with the Parliamentary Counsel Office to be able to find out that this bill could realise that vision in changing the structure and the membership of the board. That is a great thing. That is what select committees can do when they are functioning really well. I give credit to the chair and all of the members of the select committee for really engaging with that and doing honour to the intent of the legislation and the vision of the Treaty of Waitangi.

I do also feel compelled to mention, as has also been mentioned, that it is the 175th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty—[Interruption] Are you sure, Mr Assistant Speaker?

The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Trevor Mallard): The member has a 5-minute call, which she has used.

I am not sure that is—my understanding was that it was an extended call, because it was not being split, Mr Assistant Speaker.

The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Trevor Mallard): I will let the member run. It is a—

Fascinating contribution!

The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Trevor Mallard): —new arrangement. In fact, what we will do, just in the spirit of doing everything properly—I seek leave for the member’s speech to be up to 10 minutes, having taken 5 minutes already. There is no objection to that.

Thank you, Mr Assistant Speaker. I may not take the full 10 minutes. It is the 175th anniversary of the signing of Te Tiriti o Waitangi, and the 79th year of this trust Act. I also recognise that it is 2015 and that He Wakaputanga o te Rangatiratanga o Nu Tireni was signed on the lower marae on the Waitangi grounds in 1835. So this is a very significant year for us as a country. It is not often enough acknowledged, I think, the role of He Wakaputanga around establishing us as a nation, and that sense of Māori taking the leadership to say to the world: “This is our country. This is a country that you need to deal with as you would deal with another nation. This is not just a land for you to come and do what you will with.” It was an expression of tino rangatiratanga that put this country in, I think, a very strong position for going forward, and that enabled the later signing of Te Tiriti o Waitangi, which, I say again, gives us all that place to stand, if only we fully lived up to the principles in it.

On that note, and, again, noting the mood in the House, the Green Party is very pleased to be able to end this sitting period in supporting a bill that improves democracy, relinquishes some control from the Crown, and acknowledges our nationhood and partnership between Māori and non-Māori. Kia ora koutou katoa.

It is with great pleasure that I rise to take a short call on this bill: to tautoko the kaupapa of this particular bill, but also to tautoko a lot of what has been said already in this House today. I think it has been a great example to hear, actually, what everybody is saying and what everyone wants to see happen around this, and to hear some of the aspirations that different members have that will come as a result of this bill coming into force.

There is no question that Waitangi—the place that is Waitangi—is significant for New Zealand. I do not think it matters what your view is on the Treaty of Waitangi or what its status is in the constitutional arrangements of New Zealand. Whether or not you think it has been honoured or not honoured or how that works, you would actually have to be completely blind, deaf, and stupid not to accept that it is still a significant part of our history and needs to be maintained. It needs to be managed well and it needs to be taken care of in a way that future generations can enjoy that place—enjoy coming together as New Zealanders to really acknowledge what went on there.

I just want to sum up by saying that it has been great to see that as it has gone through, the Māori Affairs Committee has been able to improve this bill to recognise some other families up north and the role that they will play on this trust board going forward. So with those brief comments I commend this bill to the House.

I too want to support the third reading of the bill and make a couple of brief contributions. I commented in previous parts of the passage of this bill on the issue of extending the membership, so I do not intend to significantly go over that ground. I want to acknowledge the chair of the Māori Affairs Committee, Nuk Korako, who stewarded through the discussions on this bill in a very fair way. We had only one significant discussion, which was around the extension of the memberships, but it was also around the pending review that the Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage should take with regard to the future role and function of the trust.

I also, for those who are listening carefully to this debate, want to acknowledge the current chair of the Waitangi National Trust Board, Pita Paraone, who at the very onset had declared his conflict of interest. He had not weighed down, one might say, any of the consideration of the committee when it came to some substantial issues. Firstly, the issue around the rotation and the term of members on the board—notwithstanding some personal views that he may have held, he enabled the discussion to be fully had around a three-term membership for 3 years and the pros and cons of that. The second issue was specifically in relation to extending the membership on the board of those whānau members. Again, as chair he may have had personal views, but he stood somewhat back from the discussion so that all committee members could consider on merit whether or not there was a justified reason to be able to urge the Minister to change the legislation in favour of that. I make that point because it is difficult as a serving member of Parliament to take yourself out of the discussion and provide some wisdom and some support to members when they are considering significant things. Nō reira, tēnei te mihi atu ki a koe [and so I acknowledge you].

The other point that I would raise in the third reading is the impending review. In fact, the committee was at pains to ensure that the Minister was going to give some urgency to a future continued review of the role and function of the trust board. The trust board itself presented a submission to the committee that really put in context the type of modernisation and parameters that needed to be considered in terms of its future role and function, most of which have been covered by my colleague Peeni Henare in terms of the future role of the trust board. It asked that consideration be given to the way in which its business activities are carried out but also to its bylaw-making powers and the penalties that stem from those particular provisions.

If I could say one thing in this third reading, it is there is still a need to review the operating parameters of the trust board so that the more extended roles and functions that the trust board can have for the future operation of Waitangi can continue apace. If you look yourself at the website of the trust board, you will see that it is modernising the look and feel of this significant site on our behalf—on the nation’s behalf. There is an education component that occurs at Waitangi, where young people can go up to Waitangi for an out-of-classroom, integrated curriculum experience. That is a good thing for all of us, because people get to learn about the Treaty in situ. They also get to appreciate the contribution of the Treaty to the national identity of our country. It is, I think, the ongoing future role that the trust board will play in this space that will improve our relations within this country but also so that future generations can inherit a very proud history that we have, albeit chequered at parts along the way.

The other part that you will notice on the website is the collaborations that have occurred in order to promote the Treaty of Waitangi but also to make more accessible the role of the Treaty in a modern context as it links to our historical foundations. In 2013, in partnership with Westpac Banking Corporation and at the same time that the fund was launched to invest in renewing the museum, a film competition was promoted amongst young people. These are the types of collaborations that the board in its foresight saw as necessary to advance the contribution of this estate to the public consciousness and education about what Waitangi is all about as a place, its historical connections, and the Treaty of Waitangi. They are all other aspects that people may not be aware of, and this speaks to the business end of the role and function of the trust board. Not only is this a place to visit—and it is a significant tourist attraction destination for domestic and international travellers—it is also a place that is available for venue hire for those very special occasions, and I am sure there have been many there.

The forestry estate—in the first reading and the Committee stage of this bill, a number of members made comment that the forestry estate gifted by the Bledisloes in 1932 should remain an inherent part of the trust board property. In fact, I went back to my first contribution and I had mentioned that one of my concerns was that in the context of Treaty settlements that are occurring, certainly in the north, it is my great hope that the forestry estate remain intact with the purpose of the gift of the Bledisloes and managed by the trust board. That will be the case. We certainly explored that to some extent, and that was confirmed.

Other aspects that we did not comment on at all—and I did not want to cover ground that had been covered by my colleagues previously—was the fact that the Official Information Act and the Public Audit Act applies to this bill, as it did previously. I think that is an important aspect of ensuring public confidence in the work and the decisions of the Waitangi National Trust Board. Again, albeit the trust board will manage its own affairs through its own income, it is still publicly accessible in terms of the decision-making process. People might not be fully aware of some of the smaller intricacies of the Act—and I am sure there will be a colleague who is sitting not far away from me who will be able to inform us in time and in due course about whether or not these are very real issues going forward.

It is around the bylaw-making powers. The trust board at present can make by-laws and cannot impose a fine more than $250 for an offence. At some point in time, once the review continues and those bylaw-making powers are properly reviewed, the penalty regime may need to be reconsidered as well. That is a matter that will legitimately go to the Regulations Review Committee. There will be ample opportunity to consider the range of penalties that may need to be considered within a modern context, but let us take, for example, the issue of access and the closed roads that are able to be managed by the trust board that is currently in place. If access provisions come up in the future, who knows what some of the challenges might be?

I will reserve those types of comments for when the review takes place, but it is important to mention it in a third reading speech, because my final comment is to the Minister, and that is to urge a review of the full operations of the Waitangi National Trust Board so that it can operate in a modern context for the future benefit of, and contribution to, all New Zealanders, so that we can celebrate not only Te Tiriti o Waitangi but the contribution of a significant, historic place that all New Zealanders should be very, very proud of. Kia ora koutou.

It is a pleasure to take a short call on this third reading of the Waitangi National Trust Board Amendment Bill, a bill that, effectively, contemporises the actions of the board. I see this new thing as new kaupapa—a new kawa, if you like—but I think it is an extension of the good work that the trust board is already doing. I would like to acknowledge Pita Paraone as the chairperson of that board.

I had an example of its good work recently when I was petitioned by a group of constituents. They were raising a question, which I know has been raised in great detail, around the admission charge to Waitangi. I took this up. I had an off-line discussion with Pita and he advised me to speak to the chief executive officer, and I got an excellent letter back from the chief executive officer. He pointed several things out to me, and one of the things he pointed out was that ratepayers in the Far North District Council area do indeed receive a discount, representing the fact that the Far North District Council contributes significantly to Waitangi and its surrounds. Well, what an excellent, modern, sensible commercial collaboration—what an excellent example of what the board is already doing. I think that what we are doing here with this bill is giving it more leeway for exactly the same in future collaborations—modern, sensible commercial collaborations.

So this has been just a short call to support the chairperson, Pita Paraone; to support the board; and to support this bill, with the widening of scope—the relaxing of scope—that this bill gives to the trust board, and to lend my support to it and to this bill. Thank you.

Bill read a third time.