Te Awa Tupua (Whanganui River Claims Settlement) Bill

Tēnā koutou ngā Iwi o Te Awa o Whanganui, karanga mai, mihi mai, aku rangatira; tēnā tātou katoa.

[Salutations to you, the tribes of the Whanganui River, call and accord a tribute hither, my esteemed ones; accolades to us all.]

I just want to say—as the Deputy Speaker, I do not get to make a speech—that I want to welcome you here, as members from my patch. Thank you for your attendance today. We look forward to this historic day. I just want to also add my congratulations to my beloved cousin and the work that he has done, and the creative response he has to this long-running issue.

I move, That the Te Awa Tupua (Whanganui River Claims Settlement) Bill be now read a second time. The bill gives effect to a deed of settlement between the Crown and Whanganui Iwi that was concluded in August 2014 up the river, not far from Jerusalem. The deed of settlement has two parts. First, “Ruruku Whakatupua—Te Mana o Te Awa Tupua” establishes a new legal framework, “Te Pā Auroa nā Te Awa Tupua” for the Whanganui River that is centred on the legal recognition of Te Awa Tupua as an indivisible and living whole comprising the Whanganui River from the mountains to the sea, incorporating all its physical and metaphysical elements. Secondly, “Ruruku Whakatupua—Te Mana o Te Iwi o Whanganui” addresses that very special—indeed, intimate—relationship between Whanganui Iwi and the Whanganui River. It contains an iwi narrative, an agreed historical account, Crown acknowledgments and an apology, and cultural and financial redress for Whanganui iwi.

Can I acknowledge the work of the Whanganui iwi negotiators, some of whom are in the gallery today. Can I especially acknowledge my negotiator John Wood, our former ambassador in Washington on two occasions and more recently well-known for his work for me, both in relation to this claim and also Ngāi Tūhoe. Of course, he is now resident in Kaikōura and has had to deal with all those issues. He is a wonderful New Zealander, and I acknowledge him. I acknowledge the Government and other agencies that have contributed to this bill.

One person I particularly want to mention on my side is Dr Briar Gordon from the Parliamentary Counsel Office, who led the drafting on this very complex and innovative bill—I acknowledge my friends nodding in the gallery. She would contact me from time to time and say: “Well, how do I express in legislation these metaphysical elements?”, but she got there with the help of Jamie Ferguson, counsel for Whanganui Iwi. So I acknowledge the tremendous work on both sides that was done to achieve the drafting, but I particularly acknowledge Briar Gordon. I also thank the chair and the members of the Māori Affairs Committee. Mr Korako and his team have once again done an excellent job in progressing this bill in a timely manner.

Given the, shall we say, interesting circumstances of the last few days, there are two other people I specifically wish to acknowledge. At the conclusion of the last debate there were some very generous comments made about me, but I have to say that in my 8 years as Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations there are two other people who are responsible for progressing these claims, and without them I would be nothing. There is the Prime Minister of this country, who has been so tremendously supportive of me in this work. I can think of critical moments, both in relation to this negotiation and, for example, the Ngāi Tūhoe negotiation, when, because we were dealing with very innovative redress, both could have gone off the rails. Both could have failed. They did not fail, because of the Prime Minister.

There are some people, including former leaders of my party, who have said that he did not make a contribution. Well, I have to say, it is only because they do not understand this stuff and never would. They live in a world that never was and never could be. But John Key is going to go down in history for a number of reasons, and he is going to go down in history for being a Prime Minister who was tremendously supportive to his Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations and who enabled this important work to be done.

The second person who deserves very special accolades is the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance. So often I have had to do my Oliver Twist act with him—“Please, sir, I want some more.”—and he looks at me and says: “What is it about you that causes me to have to spend so much money?”. But he is always there, because he understands—even though he only went to St Patrick’s College, Silverstream, as opposed to those of us, like Mr Swain and I, who went to a slightly better school: St Patrick’s College, Wellington. He understands what social justice is all about. He understands the need to conclude these settlements. He is a great New Zealander, and I mihi to both of them. It has been a pleasure to serve with them. This has a sort of valedictory tone to it. Well, I can assure you that, like Mrs Thatcher, until the tomahawk goes in I intend to go on and on and on.

The bill was referred to the Māori Affairs Committee on 24 May 2016 and 21 submissions were received from interested individuals and groups. The committee heard 11 of these hearings at Whanganui and Wellington during August and September 2016. The committee reported back to the House on 24 November and recommended that the bill be passed with changes to the definition of Whanganui iwi and to the Crown nomination process for Te Pou Tupua, the river guardians.

The bill’s definition of Whanganui iwi references a list of those hapū who were active in the 1950 Royal Commission of Inquiry into the Bed of the Whanganui River. The definition is intended to define the groups that fall within the meaning of the term “Whanganui iwi” for the purposes of this legislation, primarily being the settlement of Whanganui River claims. Importantly, it does not define those groups for any other purpose. Submissions by Uenuku Charitable Trust, on behalf of Ngāti Uenuku and Ngāti Tamahaki and Te Iwi O Ngāti Hāua Charitable Trust, requested that the bill reflect their status as iwi. To avoid future confusion, the committee recommended clarifying the explanatory note in schedule 1 to emphasise that the groups listed, which do include Ngāti Uenuku and Ngāti Hāua, may also consider themselves to be iwi. The amendment also includes Ngāti Tamahaki as an example of a group affiliated with Whanganui iwi, even though it is not expressly identified in the 1950 list. I am pleased with the outcome proposed by the committee, as it should provide a level of comfort to these groups regarding their status under the bill.

During the consultation on this bill the committee was made aware of an oversight in the Te Pou Tupua appointment process. As the role of Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations will not exist indefinitely, the committee recommended amending clause 20(1B) to provide that the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations is responsible only for the first Crown nomination to Te Pou Tupua. The committee has recommended that the Minister for the Environment should be responsible for future nominations. The committee has also recommended that both the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations and the Minister for the Environment should consult with the Minister for Māori Development, the Minister of Conservation, and any other relevant Ministers when making the Crown nomination. This proposal recognises the importance of this appointment process within the Crown. Indeed, Te Pou Tupua can be seen as symbolic of the relationship between iwi and the Crown that was envisaged by the Treaty.

I am satisfied with these recommendations as they provide Whanganui iwi and the Crown surety for the future appointments of Te Pou Tupua. Although the office of the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations is gradually being done out of a job, I am very pleased that I will still lead the first Te Pou Tupua nomination for the Crown. Te Pou Tupua is a central element to the settlement and I will work to ensure the appointments are made by settlement date.

This second reading brings us closer to the concluding stages of settling the historical claims of Whanganui iwi to the great river, and I am so excited that this novel and innovative redress will soon become the law of our land. My concluding remarks to my friends from the various Whanganui iwi are that there is still some work to be done; there is still some unfinished business. I see my friend Mr Mair up there. We need to get on with those land claims, and he has been doing great work in encouraging folk to get stuck in. Hopefully, 2017 will see some real advances in that direction as well. So with those words, I commend the bill to the House.

Reo Māori e Te Māngai o Te Whare, kāti: “Ko te amorangi ki mua, ko te hāpai ō ki muri”, tēnei e wehi tonu ana ki tō tātou Kaihanga mō āna manākitanga katoa ka ūhia mai ki runga i a tātau i te rā nei.

He whakatau tēnei ki a Whanganui Awa, ōna hapū, ōna marae maha, ki runga i te tāhūhū ō tō tātou Whare e tū nei. Haere mai rā koutou, haere mai rā koutou! Ka pērā ki te rerenga o tō koutou awa, he maha ngā piko, he maha ngā āmiomiotanga ki runga i Te Awa o Whanganui, ērangi kai konei tonu koutou i te rā nei, kāti, e mihi atu ana!

Pīkauria mai ngā mate o te wā, ka tāpae atu ki ngā mate maha kei runga i ā mātou e tangi atu nei. Ka whakaaro ake ahau mō tōku tuakana ā Awa-nui-ā Rangi, o Tauranga Moana, i riro atu i Te Rātapu kua pahure ake nei. Ka whakaaro ake ahau mō te kuia rongonui, i ngaro atu ki raro i te maru o Taranaki Maunga, ki roto i ngā rangi kua tahā ake nei, kāti, rātau ki a rātau, ka whakahokia mai ngā rārangi kōrero ki a tātou te hunga ora, tēnā tātau katoa! Mō tētahi wā paku iti nei, ka huri atu ahau ki Te Reo Pākehā.

[Māori language, Mr Deputy Speaker, well then: “The emblem of God in the vanguard, the food-bearers in the rear”, and so this one remains in awe of our Creator in regards to all his generosity and care that he has spread over us on this day.

I pay homage to this Whanganui River, its hapū, and many, many marae under the ridgepole of our House standing here. Welcome indeed to you collectively, come hither! Like the flows of your river, there are many swirls upon the Whanganui River, but you are still here today and so I must commend you!

Bring forth the deaths of the moment that are upon you and lay them out before the many that are upon us grieving here before you. I think about my elder one, Awa-nui-ā-Rangi of Tauranga, who passed away on the Sunday just passed, and the well-known elderly lady who died under the shadow of Mount Taranaki during the past few days just gone, so let them remain there amongst themselves, and bring back the focus of the contributions upon us the living, acknowledgments to us all. I turn to speak in English for just a brief moment.]

It is not often I speak in English on these types of bills and I will be speaking only very briefly in English to congratulate the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations. I am really quite happy to hear of his close working relationship with the outgoing Prime Minister, Mr Key, and, clearly, the person whom he supports to replace him, in Mr English. He mentioned the kind of compromise and begging he has had to do at the table of Mr English, and I say to my colleague Mr Paraone: “By crikey, I think Ngāpuhi could be in with a bloody big rise, come settlement time for Ngāpuhi.”

Ki Te Minita, e mihi atu ana au ki a ia me ōna mahi katoa ki te tutuki i ngā āhuatanga o tēnei pire, me ngā pire kua kōrerohia e tēnei Whare ki roto i ngā wiki, mārama, tau kua pahure ake nei. I kōrero mai Te Minita mō ētahi ō āna āpiha, e mihi atu ana au ki ā rātau, ngā āpiha o Te Karauna, me Te Heamana o Te Rōpu Whiriwhiri i ngā Take Māori o te wā nei, arā, ko Tutehounuku Korako, ā, koutou katoa e ngā mema o Te Rōpu Whiriwhiri i ngā Take Māori. E mihi atu ana tā te mea, te nui hoki o ngā mahi a Te Minita, nā, ko ngā pire me ngā kiko kei roto, ka tau ki runga i te tēpū o Te Rōpū Whiriwhiri i ngā Take Māori.

I rongo atu ahau e pā ana ki tēnei pire, ko reira ngā kaitautoko, arā, ko te nuinga! Ērangi, ko reira anō wētahi amuamu, totohe, ngā take e pā ana ki a tātau Te Iwi Māori, ngā take rawa tēnei mō te whāki atu ki roto i Te Whare Pāremata i tēnei wā. Ko tāku, kua roa rawa e mea atu ana, ko ngā take o Te Ao Māori, waihona atu mā te marae e ea ai, e tau ai, tutuki ai. Kāti, e mihi atu ana ki ngā tāngata katoa kua kōkiri nei i tēnei pire kai mua i te aroaro mō te pānuitanga tuarua i te rā nei.

Kāti, i kite atu ahau i ngā, me kī, ngā whakapapa kai roto i te pire, ka whakaritea nei i ētahi rōpū, i ētahi ope, i ētahi kāhui rangatira hei whakahaere i ētahi o ngā mahi e pā ana ki Te Awa o Wanganui. Ko tetahi wahanga, anā, ko te oranga o te wai, ko te oranga o te awa whānui mai i te maunga tere atu ki te moana, he mea pai tēnā!

I a au e pānui ana i ngā whakapapa o te pire, nā, kua wahaina ki roto i te pire nei, ko Te Awa Tupua, ko Tupua te kawa, ko Te Pou Tupua, ko Te Karewao, ko Te Heke Ngahuru ki Te Awa Tupua, ko Te Kōpuka nā Te Awa Tupua, kia matāra rawa te korotete o Te Awa Tupua. Wēnei whakapapa katoa kai roto i te pire! E mihi atu ana ki tērā atu āhuatanga, me te whakatūpato i ā tātau ki roto i ngā mahi kei mua i te aroaro. Ko ēnei whakapapa kua kōrerohia nei e te pire, e ōrite ana ki te terenga o te wai, ko ngā āmiomio kei roto, ko ngā piko e haukoti nei i te wai, nā, ko reira ngā tūpatotanga. Nō reira, koina tāku atu ki a tātau i te rā nei.

Ka huri i tua atu ki tērā kaupapa i kōrerohia mai nā e Te Minita, e pā ana ki te tikanga me Te Ao o Te Māori, ka whakaturengia ki roto i te ture ā Te Pākehā, i roto i ngā pire tatūngā take Tiriti kua pahure ake nei. Kua roa rawa au e mea atu ana, āe mārika, kia matāra tātau! Ki te whakawhāiti tātau me ō tātau ake āhuatanga o Te Ao Māori ki roto i ngā ture o Te Pākehā, tēnā pea ka tīpoki, ka tahuri te waka! Tēnā pea, ka raru ko ngā tikanga ā ō tātau mātua, ā ō tātau tūpuna.

Ka whakaaro ake ahau mō tetahi atu o ngā pire ki roto i a au o Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa me te kī atu, ā, ko ngā uri o tēnei tupuna anake ka whai pānga ki tēnei pire. Kaua au e whakaae ana ki tērā tūāhuatanga, ka haukoti nei i te āhuatanga o te whāngai tamariki. Ka haukoti nei i ngā āhuatanga ka kitea ia rā, ia rā, ki roto i ngā whānau me ngā hapori o te kāinga. Koinā ngā tūpatotanga kai roto i tēnei pire i a au e pānui ana i ōna kiko, i ōna kōrero katoa.

Nā, ka kōrero atu ahau mō te āhuatanga o tēnei mea, Te Awa, me te kī atu, āe, e ai ki te pire nei, he tangata. He oranga tōna, he mauri tōna, e tautoko ana au i tērā tūāhuatanga, āe. Āe mārika e tautoko ana au i tērā tūāhuatanga, koinā anō. Ko tāku wero atu ki tēnei Whare, me Te Minita, ka pēhea ngā wai Māori puta noa? Ki roto i a au, ki roto i ā māua ko Pita Paraone o te kāinga, ko Whatitiri Te Maunga, ko Porotī Te Kāinga, anā, ko Te Waipuna o ngā mātua tūpuna. Ko reira te totohe mō tēnei take o te wai. I kī atu mātau ki Te Minita me ōna āpiha katoa, he oranga tōna, he mauri tōna. Nā, kua roa rawa mātau o taua kāinga rā, e whai pānga ana ki tēnei wai kaukau o ngā mātua, o ngā tūpuna, kāti. Ko tāku atu, he nui ngā mahi kei mua i te aroaro.

Ko te mea pai o tēnei pire, kua tīmata! Kua tīmata te ture ki te aro mai ki ngā kōrero a ō tātau mātua, ki ngā mahi a ō tātau tūpuna me te hiahia, kia puāwai tonu mai, kia whakawhanake ai ngā kōrero mō ngā uri whakatupu ā taihoa ake nei, kāti! Ki roto i te toenga o te wā, ka mihi kau atu ki a Wanganui, me wā rātau hiahia ki te kōkiri ngātahi, ki te kawe ngātahi i tēnei take kei mua i te aroaro o Te Whare Pāremata, me Te Minita a Chris Finlayson; e mihi atu au ki tērā atu tūāhuatanga. I kōrero mai Te Minita mō tērā, ahakoa te pai o ēnei kupu ki roto i te pire, ē hoa, ka mamae tonu Te Iwi Māori, ngā Iwi o Whanganui.

Ka haehae tonu mātau i te kiri nā ngā pānga mamaetanga ki runga i ā mātau ki roto i ngā tau maha kua pahure ake nei, kāti! Waihona atu tēnei kōrero ki konei. E hari koa ana. Ā tae hoa ake nei ka puta mai ko te pānuitanga tuatoru o tēnei pire hei whakamana ki roto i Te Ture a Te Pākehā. Ki a tāua Te Māori, kia ū tonu ki tō tātou tikanga. Kia kaua tēnei Whare e haukoti nei i ngā āhuatanga, me ngā tikanga ā ō tātau marae, whānau, hapū, iwi, kāti, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, kia ora tātau katoa.

[In regard to the Minister, I acknowledge him and all he has done to complete the circumstances that related to this bill and the bills that have been spoken about by this House during the weeks, months, and years just passed. The Minister talked about some of his officials to us, and I acknowledge them, the Crown officials, the current chairman of the Māori Affairs Committee—that is Tutehounuku Korako—and all of you the committee members. I compliment them because of the huge workload of the Minister, and now, the bills and contents within them will land upon the table of the Māori Affairs Committee.

As far as this bill is concerned, I heard that the supporters are there, in other words the majority! However, there are some complaints as well, contentions, some issues relating to our Māori people. This is about resources to disclose in Parliament House at this point in time. To me personally, I have been saying for a long time that issues concerning Māoridom should be left at the marae to be aired, sorted out, resolved, and settled. Enough, I commend all the people who have championed this bill that is before us for this second reading on this day.

And so I saw, shall I say, genealogies in the bill that are to determine some groups, contingents, and high-ranking clusters to administer some of the operations relating to the Whanganui River. There is one part, then, about the well-being of the entire length of the river from the mountain to the sea, and that has to be a good thing!

As I was reading the bill’s genealogies it declares in this bill that Te Awa Tupua is an indivisible and living whole, the protocol is to be Tupua, Te Pou Tupua is its human face, Te Karewao is an advisory group, Te Heke Ngahuru is a strategy document, Te Kōpuka is a collaborative strategy group to Te Awa Tupua, and the eel trap cage of the Whanganui River would really need to be untangled. All these genealogies are in the bill. I acknowledge that situation and caution us in terms of the tasks ahead of us in the future. These genealogies mentioned here by the bill are similar to the flow of the water. The swirls in it and the bends that interrupt the flow of the water, there then are those alerts! So that, then, is mine to us on this day.

I turn to that other matter that the Minister talked to us about in regard to custom and Māoridom enshrined in a Pākehā law and in Treaty settlement bills just past. I have said for a long time, yes, indeed, we must be vigilant. If we are to pack ourselves and our original aspects of Māoridom into the laws of Pākehā, perhaps the canoe might nosedive, might overturn. Perhaps the customs of our forefathers might become compromised.

I recall another bill from within me of Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa and assert that only the descendants alone of this ancestor will be permitted to have an interest to this bill. I will not agree to that kind of situation that denies an opportunity for adopted children, situations that are seen on a daily basis within families and communities of the home. Those are the precautions in this bill as I was reading its contents and all of its commentaries.

Now I will comment about the situation concerning this river thing and assert, according to this bill, yes, it is a person. It has a living and a life force, and, yes, I endorse that kind of circumstance and agree totally. My challenge to this House and to the Minister is what about the fresh water throughout? Within me and Pita Paraone, and I from back home, Whatitiri is the mountain, Pororotī is the settlement, and of the ancestral forefathers, Te Waipuna is ours. That is where the contention in regard to this matter about the water is. I said to the Minister and all his officials that the river is living and it has a life force. Now then, we of that place have had an interest in this swimming pool of our ancestral waters for a very long time, but enough. For me personally, there is much to be done ahead of us in the future.

The good thing about this bill is that it has started! The bill is starting to take heed of what our parents are saying. It is starting to take into account the work of our ancestral forefathers, their aspirations; to ensure that it continues to flourish, and that it continues to develop the conversations for our forthcoming generations. Enough! In the remaining minutes left to me, I truly commend you, Wanganui, and your desire to work collaboratively in regards to this matter before the House with the Minister Chris Finlayson. I acknowledge you in regard to that other kind of situation. In regard to that, the Minister talked to us about it, but regardless of how wonderful the words in the bill were, gee, mate, it was still hurtful to Māoridom and the tribes of Whanganui.

We continue to cut up into the skin as a consequence of the effects of the pain we experienced over the many, many years, but enough! Leave this contribution here. I am absolutely stoked. The third reading will arrive soon enough to mandate it as a Pākehā Act. To you and me as a Māori, we must continue to commit ourselves to our custom. We must never let this House compromise aspects and customs that pertain to our marae, whānau, hapū, and iwi. Enough; acknowledgments and congratulations to you collectively and to us all.]

Tēna koe e Te Mana Whakawā, ā, tēnā rā koutou ngā pouwaitaka o tō tātou matua tupuna. E Whanganui iwi, nau mai, haere mai ki Te Whare Pāremata. E mihi nei, e tangi nei koutou rā tōku whakahirahira, koutou tūmanako ake nei, koutou e hāpai nei, ka mihi, ka mihi. Rātou ki a rātou, tātou ki a tātou, ā, nō reira, e mihi atu ki a koutou katoa!

[Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker, and to you collectively, the blossoms of our ancestral forefather. To you, the tribes of Whanganui, welcome to the Parliament, come hither. I extol you, as you collectively grieve my prominence, in terms of your aspirations to come and responsibilities you will shoulder, for which I commend and admire you. Allow them, the dead, to remain there among themselves while we remain here, I therefore applaud you all.]

It is indeed a privilege to speak in the second reading of the Te Awa Tupua (Whanganui River Claims Settlement) Bill. This is indeed ground-breaking legislation. Particularly under the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations, this is an outstanding piece of work. I want to acknowledge all of those, too, who have been responsible for getting the bill to this particular place in time, and particularly those officials from both sides—from the Office of Treaty Settlements and from Whanganui iwi—and then also, in particular, the submitters.

In the second reading—and particularly when you look at the passage of this bill, from the introduction to the House to the first reading, and then, from the first reading, it being handed down to the Komiti Whiriwhiri Take Māori, the Māori Affairs Committee. I also want to acknowledge my members, as the chair of the Māori Affairs Committee, on the excellent work to date that they have done on this very, very unique bill. The second reading is always an important part of the journey of a bill, and particularly to talk through the various sorts of submissions and the changes that have been recommended to the House on this particular bill.

I was actually at a conference last week speaking about Treaty settlements and the process that we have, which is a very, very unique process. It does not happen anywhere else in the world. One particular thing that I spoke about was this bill, because what this bill actually does is create a living thing—the river, Te Awa Tupua. That was really amazing in the interest that I got on this—on how this particular piece of legislation is actually about the creation of an individual and how that actual individual really does enhance, physically, spiritually, commercially, all of those who actually live along its course. So it is about, indeed, the uniqueness of this bill and this legislation.

I commend the Whanganui iwi on this particular sort of bill itself, because the bill was not easy, and it is still not easy because it is actually about a balance of competing interests of multiple iwi and all of those who are actually the users of the river. Just to look at sort of the way that some of those submissions were actually presented—and thank you to all the Whanganui iwi and, particularly, the mandated group, because when we went to Whanganui, actually, it was an excellent sort of opportunity for us to hear kanohi ki te kanohi from all of the submitters.

In this case, I think the important thing is just to go through some of the sort of various groups that submitted and the ones that actually really stood out. It was the influence of their submissions why, actually, we relooked at the bill and made some suggested changes.

I think the first one is really around the fact that—I want to talk about the Maniapoto Māori Trust Board. It raised concerns that this settlement of historical claims regarding the Whanganui River could compromise its future settlement opportunities. These concerns were similar to a claim filed with the Waitangi Tribunal, which stated that the Whanganui River settlement covers offshoots of the river that are exclusively managed by Ngāti Maniapoto, which were included without Maniapoto’s mandate. We are advised that this bill explicitly states it does not settle Ngāti Maniapoto’s historical claims to the river. Furthermore, Ngāti Maniapoto’s future redress will be subject to an overlapping claims process that will involve Whanganui iwi. That is the first one.

The next one was Te Rūnanga o Ngāti Maru, and it raised similar concerns. The Whanganui River settlement does not settle the historical claims of Ngāti Maru, and their role as an iwi with interests in the river is recognised in the ongoing management of Te Awa Tupua.

The other one that was very interesting—and it brings this value of kanohi ki te kanohi—was the Uenuku Charitable Trust, which expressed concerns that the Waikune Prison site, currently held within the Land Information New Zealand (LINZ) land bank and leased to the Whanganui River Māori Trust Board would not be available for its future settlements. We have been advised that the prison is Crown land held in the LINZ land bank, and will, therefore, be available for future Treaty settlements, subject to negotiation with the Crown and overlapping claims processes.

There were also some concerns that have led to us recommending changes to the bill as originally introduced. Concerns were raised about the reference to some groups as hapū groups who consider themselves to be iwi in right. I think that particular one has been addressed, and to make sure that it is clear, we recommended the amendment of the state that Uenuku and Ngāti Hauā may be viewed as iwi within the broader context of the Whanganui iwi.

So that is some of the work that we have done to date. It will be interesting to move through to the Committee stage. But, finally, it is my great pleasure to commend this bill to the House. E mihi atu ana ki a koutou katoa Whanganui iwi. Ngā mihi.

Ā, tēnā koutou; tēnei te tū ake ki te tāpiri aku mihi ki ērā i whakatau i a koutou i raro i te korowai o te ngākaunui mō tēnei tutukitanga, nō reira, Whanganui iwi, tēnei te mihi atu ki a koutou katoa.

[And so acknowledgments to you collectively; I rise to add my tributes to those who paid homage to you under the cloak of dedication for this achievement, therefore, to you, the Whanganui tribes, I commend you all.]

I have listened carefully to the contributions today and, in fact, since this particular bill was introduced into the House. It got me reflecting on a number of things. As I am not from the area, I had to go back to when my relationship began with the Whanganui River and how it enriched the way in which I thought about my own river.

I went back—what—some 18 years to my first opportunity to experience Te Awa Whanganui. Successive visits since then really started to embed within me—when you hear the saying “Ko te awa ko au; ko au te awa.”—the sense in which a people have a relationship to their river as an entity and, more than that, as an ancestor and, more than that, as a being that infuses an essence and a perspective in the way that you look at things.

In this term there have been two settlements that have been innovative in their approach to understanding how we might think about our relationship to each other and to the environment—our care of duty, of stewardship, and of kaitiakitanga towards nature. Those two settlements are Te Urewera and this one, Te Awa Tupua. Why? Because to a large degree, infused within the components of the settlements, they take two very simple notions, rākau in the Urewera settlement and wai in this settlement, and urge a different conversation towards the way in which we think about our custodial care for our environment.

That is really exciting for settlements yet to come. I would hope that a number of iwi who are yet to settle take on board the approach and the type of conversation—the new conversation space—that is being created by these two settlements. It is exciting and it is an opportunity. It urges people into a different space of responsibility vis-à-vis rights, and it urges people to take a longer-term view towards what it is going to take to ensure that our custodial care and obligations as kaitiaki will ultimately benefit our taiao—and, yes, our people, but our taiao—so that future generations can reap the rewards of that.

With that said, I thought about certain aspects of the settlement, and I actually used the opportunity as a member of the Māori Affairs Committee to again comment on the innovation of Treaty settlements at a water symposium. I commented on, alongside our own Waikato River settlement, this one as well, in particular, as a model for the future. Why? Because Te Pou Tupua—the relationship between the Crown and Whanganui iwi to have custodial care for the river, like a baby, to have a conversation about its well-being like you would a child, to think about the external environment within which that child is being raised, the broader community, and to think about the relationships that need to be integrated into a long-term solution for looking after the care and well-being of this child or this tupuna, mokopuna or tupuna. I thought Te Pou Tupua, whose genesis has been in Whanganui, provided an interesting and innovative framework. I think it provides a common point of approach that many can draw from. Again, having a strategic plan is something that is important to Te Kōpuka, the collaborative group that oversees the way in which that strategic plan can be implemented, and I thought that was excellent.

When we think about the river as a system, those in the upper reaches, the mid reaches, and the lower reaches having Te Karewao as a group of locally selected elected representatives will ensure that they can take a catchment-based approach to the health and well-being of those very unique parts of the river system. Again, it is very innovative and provides a different space for conversation, engages the community at a wide point, and absolutely ensures that the iwi are front-row centre to shaping the conversation around Te Awa Tupua. Those values and attributes are really important to keep in mind when you are thinking about decisions going forward.

All of these things, hinged together, were actually very difficult to understand at a select committee level, when we read this settlement on paper. But when we heard the submission and the intent, we started to piece together, I guess, a picture of what is trying to be achieved. I think we have only slithered across the top of the intent, and there is something much deeper here that is happening. We will see the fruits of this, I believe, in the next 5 to 10 years. And if this contribution is what it is intended to be, it will shape a very different conversation between Crown and iwi, between local government and iwi, between the rest of the community and iwi, and, actually, between the corporate sector and iwi. Why? Because the custodial care of our taiao is very important.

I commend the work of the negotiators. It is evident, certainly from what I can see, that the stewardship of care by which those guiding hands of those who have gone past is infused in everything that this settlement represents. I am sure they will be very proud of the negotiators who have carried this settlement forward. The Minister made mention of Briar Gordon. She is exceptional when it comes to putting together the legal framework in a way that stays as close as possible to the intent of the deed of settlement. We have had many times when we have ourselves tried to kind of find our way through the conversation with Briar Gordon as a member of the Parliamentary Counsel Office, and she has brought the total sum of her experience into every Treaty settlement that she passes her hand over, with the first being the Ngāi Tahu settlement, right up until this settlement, 20 years later. So you have had the very best parliamentary counsel legal drafter have hands on this legislation. It may not be everything, but it is certainly an advancement—again, I can only comment from a place of knowing—on previous river settlements, into a very innovative space.

I also want to thank Minister Chris Finlayson. You have been overly ambitious, in my view, in terms of pushing us on time frame. The chair of our select committee will attest to the fact that we have tried to keep working through these settlements in a respectful manner and in a conscientious manner, but in a manner that will help iwi like Whanganui get on with it—get on with it, and do what you need to do to make this all that you need it to be.

The chair of our select committee commented on a couple of concerns, but can I have on the record again—because it abuts the area that I represent—the interests of the upper catchment. At the end of the day, words cannot supplement relationships, but what is very evident about this settlement is that it absolutely relies on relationships. So although iwi like Maniapoto may be concerned, I hope that the undertakings of the settlement will allay some of their greatest concerns, but I know—I know—that what will actually make this work in a way that has mutual advantages will be the relationships. And for this settlement, ultimately, to be effective, it is all about practical, living relationships to give effect to the intent of the legislation, which is to have a stewardship of care for a most beautiful river in our country. Nō reira, he iti tāku, me kī kia tuitui ki ngā kōrero i mua i ō tātou aroaro i tēnei rangi ki a tātou katoa.

[Therefore, my contribution is a brief one, let us say, as a thread on to the contributions before us all on this day.]

I am very humbled to be able to support the second reading of this settlement. Tēnā koutou.

Tēnā koe, Mr Deputy Speaker. E rere kau ana mai Te Awa nui, mai i Te Kāhui Maunga ki Tangaroa, ko au te awa, ko te awa ko au.

[Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker. The big river flows from the National Park to the sea, I am the river and the river is me.]

I begin my korero with this whakataukī because I have a short story to tell about my journey to understanding what that whakataukī has meant to me. Many in the House will not know this, but I went to school in Whanganui, at Whanganui Girls’ College. I was in Wickham House at the time, and Wickham House was in the city and the college was over the river. For 4 years I walked over that bridge to school and back from school, and to sports, and back to the hostel. I remember looking down into the river as I crossed it—into the murky depths of the river; it seemed like that all the time—but back then I did not realise the deep connection that I had to it. Years later, my work career brought me back to Whanganui, working first for the district health board and then for Taumata Hauora Trust and Ngā Tai O Te Awa. This time I arrived back in Whanganui understanding my whakapapa, but trying to understand whereabouts I fitted into Te Awa o Whanganui.

I want to mention here a man whom I came to respect and admire—albeit some of his ways left me scratching my head a bit, as I am sure I did the same to him at times—and his name is John Maihi and he sits up there in the gallery today. I say kia ora to you, John, because you helped me see what Whanganui whānau had been seeing most of their lives, which I did not see: a regard for a body of water that flowed from the mountain to the sea, just like the blood that courses through the whānau veins, like the air they breathe, like the life they live and have lived. The stories John shared with me, without him ever realising it, told me many things that my Whanganui w’ānau went through to retain their rights to their awa. From times when w’ānau lived solely from the spoils the river produced to the way the river was used and abused over time to the settlement along its banks, where the door to the whare faced the river, and to today, the infamous annual te Tira Hoe Waka.

My realisation of the meaning of those words in that whakataukī came when I stood on the river bank at Pūtiki Marae a few years ago at 5 a.m. listening to the karanga and the karakia starting puanga, and I began to understand what those words “Ko au ko te awa; ko te awa ko au” really meant. For me, they represent the past, the present, and the future. They are life itself. The karanga that morning crystallised why the awa holds so much mana and, in many ways, why I have not yet journeyed along this sacred taonga of Whanganui.

Today is only the second reading of the Te Awa Tupua (Whanganui River Claims Settlement) Bill, but for me it is more than that. It is an acknowledgment that Whanganui iwi were right all along. This is not about giving back; it is about righting history of what has always been. Tēnā koutou katoa.

Tēnā koutou katoa e Te Whare. I just want to lend the Green Party’s support to the second reading of this bill. I am pleased to have the opportunity to do so. I want to follow on from what Nanaia was talking about. This is another bill that gives the environment legal status, a legal identity, and it is—in New Zealand at least—a new and very innovative way of considering how the environment needs to be protected and restored, that it is entitled to its own integrity, and what the role of the community is in protecting that environment. I think it is a really exciting development in New Zealand law.

It is the right thing to do, for a start, but what it does is it clearly puts humans in our rightful place in terms of the environment. We are not the masters of our environment; we are its servants. We are a hundred percent dependent on the health and the nurturing that the natural environment gives us for our lives and for our futures. So there really is no alternative. It simply is not negotiable to protect our natural environment for ourselves and for our kids and for our grandkids.

The legislation that we see here today and the previous legislation we have had in the House has given us an opportunity to think about how to give the environment legal status, a set of legal rights, and the obligation and responsibility on the people around that environment to then work for its protection and restoration. It accepts that the environment—whether we are talking about a river or a forest or a lake or something bigger—is entitled to its own integrity for its own sake. That is at the core of iwi Māori, of tikanga Māori, and it is at the core of the environmental movement, and these things are finding their way together.

It is a lesson though that has been taught to the dominant culture—Pākehā culture—by indigenous people. We are seeing, all across the world, indigenous communities that are standing up for the protection and restoration of the environment, using all the tools they have—their bodies, their words, the law, and the systems—to demonstrate that value. It is kaitiakitanga in our case; other values described in other ways in other indigenous people’s cases. We are using all of the tools we have to put that value into our structures so that there is a sense of legitimacy, particularly to Pākehā communities—dominant cultures—around the world.

Bolivia is a very interesting example. In 2010 it passed a law for the rights of mother Earth, and that law, from that cultural point of view, put the Earth—the planet, and all its resources—at the forefront of its law. Those rights include the right of the Earth and its resources to life, the rights of water, the rights of the air, the rights of restoration, and the right of the environment to be free from contamination. So it was a huge commitment to the protection of the environment in a legal way—in a constitutional way, in Bolivia. It gave the country a framework on which it would make all the decisions—its social decisions, its economic decisions, its resource use decisions—and it put right at the heart of all those decisions the right of the environment to be protected and restored.

We have been seeing over the last few months another fight around water: “Water is Life” and the Standing Rock protests that we have been seeing in North Dakota in the US. Again, that is the indigenous people of that country actually putting their lives, their bodies and their lives, on the line for the water resources that are their life. From their point of view, water is not just a resource to be used, to be exploited, to be bottled and sold off; water is life, water is us. I think there is a real connection between iwi Māori and Whanganui, the iwi of this legislation, and the Standing Rock conception about water, because both treat water as the protection of our whakapapa, as the carrier of our whakapapa into the future. So there is this huge network of indigenous communities around the world, of which iwi Māori are a part, that recognises how critical water is not just to us but to the future of the planet and to the future of our communities.

The iwi here have worked with the Government to put that principle into this legislation, and I think that is enormously empowering. It is really exciting for all of us who believe that our natural resources deserve protection and restoration in their own right. So I want to congratulate and thank the iwi of Whanganui for taking this approach to the protection of this awa. As I said, I think, in the first reading, my grandma is from there—she was born and raised in Jerusalem; she is buried at Pūtiki—Piupiu Turei, so I have spent, especially as a kid, lots and lots of time up around there with my dad, Richard. So there is that real sense of pride at how the Whanganui iwi have used the law to put this core tikanga Māori value at the forefront of the work that they are doing.

I am not going to belabour the second reading. It will be good for us to get on and be able to complete this legislation as soon as we can, but I think it is a very, very exciting development in law. I think the next step though—I would just say this—is that this concept moves away from just being in Treaty settlements, that it moves away from just being part of iwi Māori / hapū Māori approach to the protection of natural resources, and becomes a much more dominant tool in the protection of our environment. There is no reason why we cannot use this principle of giving our environment legal protection, legal status, as a way of giving us the structure in which we make decisions about water use, for example, which will continue to be a major issue for iwi Māori but also for New Zealanders in general.

Giving legal protection to our atmosphere would be one way that we could have a structure, a framework, for thinking about the pollution, particularly the climate pollution, that this country engages in and the increasing climate pollution that we engage in. This is not a tool that should be isolated only to Treaty settlements or isolated only to the work of iwi Māori. It is actually a tool that we should be using much more broadly to protect our environment. These are lessons that Pākehā Governments all around the world should be taking from indigenous people all around the world. Thank you.

Ā, tēnā anō koe, tēnā anō hoki tātou e hui tahi nei i roto i Te Whare. Te mea tuatahi, kei te tautoko i ngā mihi i mihingia e taku tuakana a Peeni ki a koutou o Whanganui i haere mai nei ki te mātakitaki mai i te urunga mai te whakaturengia o tā koutou pire e pā ana ki Te Awa o Whanganui. Nā reira, nau mai, haere mai! Waihotia ngā kōrero mō rātou ahakoa kei te maumahara ana au i a Te Atawhai i te wā e ora ana, ko ia tetahi i tōna wā, e hiahia ana kia kite mai i te hua i puāwai i te rā nei, nō reira tēnā koutou.

[And so thank you once again, and also to us all gathered here together in the House. The first thing is to endorse the tributes accorded by my senior kin Peeni to you collectively of Whanganui who came here to observe the entry of your bill about the Whanganui River into the ratification process, so welcome, come hither! Leave the contributions about them aside, despite the recollections I have about Te Atawhai when she was alive. She was one who really wanted to see the outcome that blossomed on this day, therefore congratulations to you collectively.]

Can I say that it is a real pleasure to be part of the debate regarding this particular bill because it is a unique one. It sets out a new framework that encapsulates Māori tikanga, and I think that, if I can recall correctly, my comments during either the first or second reading it seemed that the law was catching up with Māori tikanga, and this bill certainly reflects that.

My tuakana also made reference to the whakapapa that this bill is all about. It mentions a number of entities all with Māori names and all with specific duties towards the maintenance not only of the health but of the mana of the Whanganui River, and I think that that contributes to the uniqueness of this bill.

The bill recognises that Te Awa Tupua is an indivisible and living whole and comprises the Whanganui River from the mountains to the sea, incorporating all its physical and metaphysical elements, and it is declared a legal person with all the rights, powers, duties, and liabilities of a legal person. So therein is the point of difference from all those other earlier attempts as to how we address such an important issue as the maintenance and the health of the river, and other elements of our environment. The earlier speaker from the Greens certainly touched on that, and I certainly would share those same sentiments.

The bill refers to Te Pā Auroa, which is the Te Awa Tupua framework and comprises the legal status of Te Awa Tupua and the intrinsic values that represent the essence of Te Awa Tupua. It also refers to Tupua te Kawa—the intrinsic values that represent the essence of Te Awa Tupua, and included in these important values is the iconic maxim: Ko au ko te awa; ko te awa ko au. I can recall as a young person when I first heard that saying, and I thought just how relevant it was in terms of connecting the person who said that to the river, which is essentially a major part in that person’s life, and that saying certainly reflects that.

One of the most unique things of any settlement that has ever come before this House is the distinction and the acceptance of those things Māori. As many of us know, within the Māori world everything has a wairua, everything has a mauri, and everything has a spirit. Bearing those concepts in mind, this bill actually recognises those values, and I think that is one of the things that makes it so unique, and I think it is a real privilege to be part of this process today and see such intrinsic values come into legislation. It also sets up a framework for future legislation. My tuakana Peeni made reference to one of our rivers in the north, and we both know that there are several rivers that are very important to us. When we are able to reach that point of settlement, we will certainly use this as a blueprint for protecting our own rivers.

I think one of the other unique things about it is that it accommodates the partnership. It is not just restricted to iwi Māori. It includes and embraces all those who have a connection with the river, who also have a responsibility for its care and maintenance. We talk about the health of our rivers and this settlement bill provides the financial base from which the respective groups, particularly, Te Awa Tupua, can start on this journey of cleaning up and maintaining the health of the river.

I do not think there is too much more that I can say other than to acknowledge those from the iwi who have been responsible to have this concept, first of all, recognised by the Crown and to have it included in this settlement. I just want to mihi to them. Nā reira koutou mā, kore mimiti te kōrero mō koutou ēngari, taku kōrero whakamutunga haere mai, haere, haere i runga i te rangimārie o tō tātou Matua Nui-i-Te Rangi, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, kia ora mai anō tātou.

[Therefore to you collectively, a tribute for you will never end, but my concluding statement to you collectively is welcome, journey on, and go forth upon the peacefulness of our Almighty Father in Heaven; congratulations and well done to you collectively, and to us once again.]

Tēnā koe e Te Mana Whakawā, otirā, ki Te Whare, anei te mihi atu ki a koutou, āe, he maha ngā kōrero kua puta mai i ngā rangi kua hipa atu i ngā tūru e wātea nei. Kei hea rā te hunga o Pāremata nei ki te whakarongo ki tēnei kōrero, tēnei kōrero hōhonu nei, tēnei kōrero tuatahi nei? Well, kei konei a Māori mā, wētahi o ō tātou whanaunga o tēnā, o tēnā o ngā pāti, heoi anō rā, koirā te wero ki a tātau katoa!

[Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker, but at the same time to the House, here is a congratulatory remark to you collectively, and, yes, many comments have been made over the past days about these empty chairs. Where, indeed, are the ones of this Parliament to listen to this address of depth, and a first-time one? Well, Māori members are here, some of our relations of that one of the parties and of that one of the parties are here, but, once again, that is the challenge, indeed, for us all!]

To understand who maintains the mana of the Whanganui River, one must return to its source to hear the ancient first. Pūhaina a Tongariro e rere nei i W’anganui, ko te wai inu tēnā o Ruatipua inu ai!

[Tongariro erupted where W’anganui flows. That is the water that Ruatipua consumes!]

The wisdom of the river is found through two primary tūpuna, Ruatipua and Whairangi-i-Te Whare Toka. Ko ngā wai inuinu o Ruatipua ēnā, ngā manga iti, ngā manga nui e honohono kau ana, ka hono, ka tupu hei awa, hei Awa Tupua.

[Those are the drinking waters of Ruatipua, small and large streams that join together to become a river as Awa Tupua.]

For many New Zealanders, a connection to our rivers is a treasured part of our identity. It reminds us of summers gone by, of recreation and pleasure, and of childhood memories and adventures on rapids. But to the people who fill our galleries today, there is something more. A river runs through their veins: a river of whakapapa, of sacred significance, a river that brings together the genealogies and legacies of a people who have swum, washed, played, prayed, dived, paddled, and travelled Te Awa Tupua as the central artery of their tribal heart.

The people are drawn to the river to cleanse and purify, to bless and heal, or to give strength and resolve: “For Te Kuia Peeti, while growing up [she stated that] the river was ‘the life-blood of my life’.” It had a wairua, and she contended that it healed, purified, and sustained. Today, then, marks a significant day, because it recognises the significance of the dual-ownership of this spiritual connection to Te Awa Tupua, an ownership located in two key principles. “Te Awa Tupua mai i te Kāhui Maunga ki Tangaroa—an integrated … view of Te Awa Tupua … from the mountains to the sea;” and “Ko au ko te awa, ko te awa ko au—the health and wellbeing of the Whanganui River is intrinsically interconnected with the health and wellbeing of [its] people.”

E ngā iwi o Whanganui, we are truly making history. This will be the first time that this nation has, by legal definition, as has been stated here today, recognised the Whanganui River, Te Awa Tupua, as a legal identity, reflecting an indivisible and living whole. That history we make today reflects the courage of those champions of the Wai 167 claim: the late Hikaia Amohia, the late Sir Archie John Te Atawhai Taiaroa, the late Joan Akapita, and many more—Rangipō Metekīngi and others, but if I go into them, I will be here all day, so: others! But it is a history that stretches way beyond any other settlement or legislation that has ever been heard in this House. The Wai 167 claim tabled on 14 October 1990 was the latest in over a century of petition and submission, dating back to 1887. That is right—1887, when Paora Tūtaawha and 66 others petitioned the Parliament of that day, complaining that steamers were destroying their fisheries and their eel weirs. The legacy is with us today in every word.

The whakataukī that I spoke of earlier refers to the drinking fonts of Ruatipua, the small and the large streams that flow into one another and continue to link and swell until the river is formed, Te Awa Tupua. At the second reading, one can truly feel the river flowing through the submissions we heard and the synergy created by many voices coming together as one. One of the truly awe-inspiring features of this bill is to bring so many often contrary voices into one unified chorus. We heard from the mayors and chief executives of the Whanganui, Ruapehu, and Stratford district councils and the Horizons Regional Council. They told us of a willingness of local government to work collaboratively with the Whanganui iwi and the Crown, with each other, and with the communities, giving effect to the bill collectively. They welcomed the innovative nature of this legislation, particularly the river as an entity, represented by Te Pou Tupua.

The Quaker settlement told us that it was truly significant to have formal recognition of the Whanganui iwi’s world view at the heart of the Awa Tupua bill. It encouraged us to remember the promises of Te Tiriti o Waitangi, and it set out an expectation of coexistence, living together, acknowledging our differences but sitting together side by side, the foundation of a plural society. We were told that “We now have the opportunity to make this shared quest a lived reality.” The New Zealand Conservation Authority promoted the value system of Te Awa Tupua as being able to inform and strengthen the collaborative management of the national park as a living cultural landscape. Ngāti Rangi Trust celebrated the fact that once enacted into law, Te Awa Tupua (Whanganui River Claims Settlement) Bill, in its view, set a new global benchmark for the restoration and preservation of significant waterways. It concluded that it looked forward to supporting the Whanganui iwi relations in the years ahead, to bring life to the aspirations of the many pakeke who have fought for the awa over countless generations.

Even Horizons Regional Council told the Māori Affairs Committee that its relationship with the Whanganui iwi has ebbed and flowed over time. As the settlement of the Whanganui River has developed, so, too, has their relationship. It told us that the bill speaks to the aspirations not only of Whanganui iwi but also of the communities that interconnect with the river and provide strong mechanisms to assure the mana of Te Awa Tupua is upheld and enhanced. These are but a selection of the 30 or so multiple voices singing as one to advance Te Pire o Te Awa Tupua (mō Te Whakataunga o Ngā Kerēme e pā ana ki Te Awa o Whanganui).

It is important that we acknowledge the sacrifice and suffering of Whanganui iwi, who have endured the sustained misuse and exploitation of their ancestral waters over several decades. Fourteen Whanganui chiefs signed the Treaty of Waitangi in May 1840, and since that time the Crown has systematically undermined the Whanganui River, the Whanganui iwi, and their interests in the management and use of the river. History will never be erased or forgotten. But today marks a significant turn in the tide of a new opportunity, a change to the lens through which people interact with, and make decisions affecting, Te Awa Tupua. The kuia Julie Ranginui told the Tribunal in 1994: “The river for me is like my mother, is like my father. The river is my grandfather, my grandmother, it’s my tupuna.”

In schedule 8 of the bill, we are introduced to more than 240 identified ripo, or rapids, their names protected and maintained by the hapū associated with each of those ripo between Taumarunui and the mouth of the river. We recall the connections to some 143 marae, once vibrant communities that shaped the river life and a life still cherished by their descendants. The people of the awa hold that each ripo of the Whanganui River is inhabited by kaitiaki that are particular to each hapū. The iwi and the hapū of the Whanganui look to these kaitiaki for guidance in times of joy, despair, and uncertainty for guidance and insight that they can provide—a sacred lineage, an intimate connection between the river and its people.

In the 23 seconds I have left, I just want to quote this from Niko Tangaroa: “The river and the land and its people are inseparable. And so if one is affected, the other is affected also. … The river is the heartbeat, the pulse of our people. Without the Awa we are nothing, and therefore I am reminded of the korero when one of our elders Taitoko Tawhiri said of the river, if the awa dies, we die as a people. Ka mate Te Awa, ka mate tatou Te Iwi.” We have a chance to restore Te Awa Tupua to its life-giving essence and, in doing so, to gift back to the people their rightful obligations and responsibilities to the river that runs through their veins. The Māori Party is proud and, indeed, humbled to support this bill, respecting their vision, their generosity, and their remarkable persistence. We commend this bill to the House.

Ā, tēnā koe e Te Māngai o Te Whare, otirā, tēnā tātou katoa ngā mema o Te Whare nei. Tuatahi, ka tuku i taku mihi atu ki aku whanaunga kua tae mai ki Te Whare nei, nō reira, e ngā whānau, me ngā hapū o Whanganui, tēnei ahau e whakapiri taku mihi ki te tokorua nei ki a Metiria me Jo, ko mātou nei nō Te Awa o Whanganui. E tuku mihi atu ki a koutou kua tae mai i tēnei rā, nō reira, tēnā koutou!

[And so thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker, but, at the same time, to all of us members of this House. In the first instance, I extend an acknowledgment to my relatives who have arrived at this House, and so, to the families and hapū of Whanganui, I extend my tribute and include this pair, Metiria and Jo, as we three are indeed from the Whanganui River. We acknowledge you collectively who have arrived here on this day, therefore, greetings!]

It is an honour to speak on the second reading of Te Awa Tupua (Whanganui River Claims Settlement) Bill. As we have heard from all of the previous speakers, this is a unique settlement. The Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations used the word “innovative”. I also want to add my voice to what “Te Pā Auroa nā Te Awa Tupua” means to me. It is a rare occasion when the imperatives of the iwi and the people take precedence over the imperatives of the law and the Crown. I think this is an excellent example of how the imperatives of who we are, of Te Awa o Whanganui, have taken precedence in shaping the framework for us to move forward. So I join with others in the House who have congratulated all of the negotiators, both the iwi negotiators and the Crown negotiators, on bringing this framework together. I totally look forward to the day when this framework is fully operational. I think it is only then that we will see the fruits of the many days, hours, months, and years of work that have gone into creating this framework. I congratulate everyone who has been part of the development of this framework.

I want to join with the chair of the Māori Affairs Committee in acknowledging all of the submitters who had their voices heard during the select committee process. It can be a challenging process for those who are in support of the bill and those who have some reservations about it, but, in the end, I think it is a very good process to go through, and through it we, the Māori Affairs Committee, have made some recommendations to make the bill even better than it was, and to make some corrections as well. That is the fine-tuning part of the process, if you like.

I totally agree with the words of Tutehounuku Korako that he has presented to the House today. I think that the opportunities within this piece of legislation are huge for the future of the people of Whanganui, but, more importantly, for Te Awa o Whanganui. We have heard many quotes about the relationship between the people and the awa, and in the whakataukī that was first mentioned by Jo Hayes, and I join her in those sentiments. E rere kau mai Te Awa Nui, mai i Te Kāhui Maunga ki Tangaroa, ko au te awa, ko te awa ko au.

[The great river flows directly from the National Park to the sea, I am the river and the river is me.]

Hearing those words in this House so many times reminds me of being back at home, and I think of all of the tamariki and mokopuna who will inherit a new legacy, which this bill creates. It is a legacy enshrined in legislation, but also already existed and now recognised in law, so no one can ever touch that again. I am supremely happy about that. I think what the House should do is pass this bill as soon as possible.

I do want to mention the comments—I am probably going to get into trouble for this, but I will say it anyway—about empty chairs in the House. I just want to explain that the processes and everything about Parliament continues on during extended hours. The reason for that is so that we can get these bills through the House in the most expeditious way that we can. The alternative to having a full room would be considerable delay—and I am talking at least 3 months per reading.

💬 Hon Ruth Dyson: Oh, more.

Or more, as my colleague has said. So I just want to put some perspective there. It is not being disrespectful to the iwi; it is merely saying that the processes of Parliament continue on, including the Māori Affairs Committee, which this week has heard other bills before it. It would be lovely to have the room full for these bills. But I would just like to say, on behalf of all Labour members, that all of the members of the Labour Party fully support this bill and are pleased to do so, and we commend it to the House.

Bill read a second time.

Waiata