Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa Claims Settlement Bill

I move, That the Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa Claims Settlement Bill be now read a third time. In doing so, I express my warm greetings to the people of the North who have travelled here today. Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa. A very special welcome to Pita Pangari, who bears witness to the culmination of his hard work, and to David Manuel, the chair of the Kahukuraariki Trust.

The people who are in the gallery today have travelled almost 20 hours, from buses in the North, and there are those who have come from elsewhere, to witness and support the third reading, and I say welcome to all. I hope you enjoyed the new roads that have been built over the last few years—the Kapiti Expressway and all the other ones that Simon Bridges has been so busy with. They would have made the travel slightly more enjoyable.

It is an honour to welcome so many kuia and kaumātua here, and I want to acknowledge the patience and fortitude that has been shown over the many years that you have waited for redress for Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa. It really is a privilege to stand here before you today, in what we call in the House extended hours. That is why the House is not full of members: because everyone is doing lots of things in the last few days of this parliamentary session. But I can assure you that the House of Representatives, to a person, sends you all its very best wishes.

You cannot see him, because he is down the very back of the Chamber, but on this, the last Treaty day before the House rises, I want to acknowledge a very fine member of Parliament from the North, David Clendon, who leaves us at the end of this session. He has always paid a lot of attention to Treaty bills, and has been a source of wise counsel. He is a very fine man of principle. Although we have different political colours, I want to acknowledge you, Mr Clendon, and thank you for your wonderful contribution to Treaty work in the time that you have been in Parliament.

I cannot think of a better reason for extended hours than to ensure that within a few months, this wonderful iwi will have achieved what many generations of tūpuna have sought, and that is the return of Crown land from the Whakapaku, Taemaro, Waimahana, Taupō, and other blocks—the return of lands the Crown wrongly acquired and has held for far too long.

Just over 24 years ago, in May 1993, and in the presence of Matiu Rata, several of you stood united before the Waitangi Tribunal and presented the historical grievances and claims of the people of Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa, the descendants of Kahukuraariki. They told of how the people had protested from the moment they knew the Government claimed their land. From 1876 there were at least 19 petitions to Parliament or the Crown protesting those claims, asking for an investigation into the loss of land and asking to be granted land because they were landless. Hēmi Paiara, who had a particular grievance because he had been left off the grant for the little land the Crown reserved for Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa, led many of those petitions, but, as you know, he did not act alone. The numerous whānau of Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa were persistent in calling on the Crown to investigate and to uphold their claims. There were a number of inquiries into those petitions over the years, and, as we know, without a positive outcome for the people.

I want to acknowledge that the case for Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa was informed by oral evidence gathered from some of the elders, some of whom were among those who signed petitions presented to Parliament or the Crown earlier in the century. They hunted down and deciphered what remained of patchy and incomplete Crown records. Their evidence was painstakingly compiled, on what was probably less than a smell of an oily rag, and supported by their kuia and kaumātua.

The Muriwhenua Tribunal noted the Crown generally left no stone unturned in testing the claimants’ case, but it found the evidence compelling. The tribunal found numerous Crown actions had breached the Treaty, causing significant prejudice, including land loss, tribal dispersal, the attendant social collapse, and the burden of grievances borne down through the years. To redress that, the tribunal recommended the Crown should return Stony Creek Station and other lands to Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa, and that is what this settlement does, after all these years.

It is more than a generation since those tribunal hearings, and as time passes, it would be very easy to forget that when the opportunity came to give evidence, the claimants did not focus on one or other hapū. The tribunal, led by the chief judge and Bishop Bennett, undertook a significant and well-informed inquiry devoting significant time to these issues, and this settlement follows the tribunal recommendations and provides redress to serve the many, not the few. The tribunal did not investigate the Crown’s taking of land from the Taupō and the Ngāti Karaka blocks. It was up to Mr Wake Tua and others of the Kaitangata hapū to call the Crown to account for that sorry history, including the needless taking of pā and urupā during negotiations around 2006.

The Crown’s actions caused hurt to the people across the rohe, ultimately affecting a claimant group of now over 3,000 people and an area of over 50,000 hectares, and I am so pleased that through this settlement Ranfurly Bay and the Kōwhairoa Peninsula, as well as the Thomson and Clarke blocks, and many urupā and pā sites are at last being returned. The people of Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa will once again be able to exercise their kaitiakitanga over their land, and the $6.2 million in financial redress will enable them to repair the deteriorating state of the farm, a situation that simply cannot continue.

There are so many people who should be acknowledged for their contributions over the last 16 years: all of the chairs of the Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa Trust Board, the trustees of the Kahukuraariki Trust, your legal counsel and negotiators. All have worked so hard and selflessly in very, very difficult circumstances. I also want to acknowledge my ministerial colleagues and Government and other agencies who have contributed to this bill, and, in fact, all the House, because the members of the Māori Affairs Committee looked at this bill very, very carefully indeed. Together, they have helped place the future of Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa in the hands of its own people.

Let us be perfectly blunt about this—getting to this point was not easy. It is well known that for a number of years some members of the Ngāti Aukiwa hapū have occupied Stony Creek, and it is well documented that numerous attempts have been made to reach a resolution. I certainly want to acknowledge Mr Korako and the members of the Māori Affairs Committee for their very hard work on this issue and their exploration of the issues raised in submissions.

We know from history that the problems in this region have been caused by the Crown picking winners. That is why I am reassured that the trust, wish some assistance over the last few months, from independent facilitators—and I acknowledge Peter Douglas and Ken Mair—is working hard to provide a pathway for Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa members to resolve these issues between themselves. That will involve a number of steps, including bringing forward elections for marae-based representatives to replace the current trustees, and work in the post-settlement era, establishing a commercial enterprise to restore and repair the farm, and bringing forward the comprehensive process involving all parties to determine the future ownership of the station. So they are not easy issues but I am certain that given the hard work to date we will find success.

I was not aware that there had been a bell, but I see that the time is drawing to a close, so I will jump a few pages. The Deputy Speaker is retiring in a few days and he is obviously starting to slip up. [Bell rung] Ah, there we go. That gives me 4 seconds to wish Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa all the very best for the future. I am so delighted we have reached this stage, and I commend the bill to the House.

“Ā, tuku mauri ora ki te whai ao, ki te ao mārama, tihewā mauri ora!” Ki te kaiwhakarite i tō tātau ata nei, e kara, e Te Ururoa Flavell, e mihi atu ana ki a koe i whakaritea mai tō tātau nohoanga i te rā nei, kia tutuki pai ai ngā kaupapa kei mua i te aroaro, mai i te tīmatanga o tēnei rā, tae noa atu ki tōna otinga, tēnei e mihi atu ana ki a koe! Huri tū ngā whakaaro ki ngā aituā maha o te wā, ngā aituā maha i pīkauria mai e Ngatikahu me ōna hapū katoa ki te tāhūhū o tō tātau Whare. Nā, kia tāpae atu ki ngā aituā maha kei runga i tēnā, i tēnā, i tēnā o mātau e noho mai nei, kia kotahi ai te tangi atu, kia kotahi ai te poroporoaki atu ki ngā mate, haere, haere, haere! Ko te whakataukī o te kāinga e kī pēnei ana: “He rāngai maomao ka taka i tua o Nuku-taurua e kore e muri a hokia.” Nō reira koutou o Te Pō, haere, haere, haere!

Ka whakahokia mai ngā rārangi kōrero ki a tātau te hunga ora, tēnā tātau! E ōku tini whanaunga o te kāinga ka kite atu ahau i a koutou, ka whakaaro ake mō ngā tamariki, mokopuna ā taihoa ake nei. Ka whakaaro anō hoki mō ngā tini kaumātua, mō ngā tini whāea, pakeke o te kāinga kua ngaro atu ki Te Pō. Mahara atu ana au i te tāima i tupu au ki roto o Waimahana, i tae mai te nuinga ki tetahi huihuinga ki runga i te marae. I reira ngā kaumātua puta noa i Te Tai Tokerau ki te tautoko i tēnei kaupapa. Ko reira te amuamu, ko reira anō hoki ngā nawe a tēnā, a tēnā. Hei te otinga ake, ka kī mai te hui me anga whakamua. Nō reira, ka kite atu ahau i ngā kōhao kei roto i a koutou, ka whakaaro ake ki a rātau kua ngaro atu ki Te Pō, ā, ko tetahi e mōhio ana koutou, ko tōku pāpā, ko tōku tupuna i ngaro atu i te tau kua pahure ake ne. I tēnei wā e takoto mai ana ki roto i te kāinga o Waimahana. Ko reira mātau, otirā, tātau e tangi hotuhotu ana mōna kua ngaro atu ki Te Pō.

Kāti e ōku rangatira, kua tae ki te wā kua kōrero mai Te Minita mō te huarahi i takahia e koutou ki tēnei tāima, mai i te pānuitanga tuatahi tae noa mai ki te pānuitanga tuatoru o tēnei pire. Kua kōrero mai Te Minita mō ngā take e pā ana ki te pāmu e kīia nei ko Waikōhatu—e aua! I a au e tamariki ana, ka huri mai i te rori matua anga atu ki Waimahana anā, ko te wāhi tērā o Akatere. Anā, ka piki haere i ngā maunga, heke iho ki roto i a au i Te Whanga o Kōkori, anā, heke atu ki roto o Waimahana ki Ōmata, ki tērā taha o te whanga. Nō reira, ka whakaaro ake i ēnei kupu ki roto i te pire nei: a Waikōhatu, a Stony Creek—e aua! I a au e tamariki ana, rawa au i rongo atu i tērā ingoa a Stony Creek, a Waikōhatu. Ko reira ngā ingoa o ngā mātua, o ngā tupuna—koia rā tāku e mea atu ana. Nā, i te wāhi e tū ana te kāinga o Waikōhatu, anā, ko Akatere. Nō reira, e mihi atu ana ahau ki a koutou kua tae mai nei.

Kua kōrero mai Te Minita mō ētahi o ngā raruraru kua pā ki tēnei kaupapa. Kua kōrero mai anō a ia mō te rahi o te pūtea ka tukuna ki a Waikōhatu, ki te whakatikatika i te āhuatanga o tērā pāmu. E mihi atu ana ahau ki a ia engari, he pātai nui kei runga i waku ngutu i tēnei wā. Mehemea i tūkinohia e Te Karauna tāua a te Māori, he aha te take kua—he aha nei nā te kupu? Kua tukuna mai i tetahi kōnae pūtea iti nei, ki te whakatikatika i tetahi āhuatanga i tūkinohia mai e Te Karauna i a tāua Te Māori engari, koinā tāku i te tīmatanga o tēnei kōrero. Ka whakaaro ake mō ngā tamariki, mō ngā mokopuna ā taihoa ake nei, me te hiahia kia kite atu i ngā tamariki, mokopuna o te hau kāinga ki ngā wawata i wawatahia e ōku mātua, e ōku tūpuna o te kāinga, mō rātau te take. Kaua mō rātau, mō ngā tūpuna engari, mō ngā tamariki, mokopuna. Mahara atu ana au i ngā tāima i kai rama he tōku pāpā me ngā kaumātua o te kāinga o Waimahana. Ko te nuinga o wā rātau kōrero, e hāngai pū ana ki wā rātau mokopuna, tamariki, me te hiahia, kia kaua e noho pōhara wā rātau tamariki, mokopuna, me te hiahia kia kite atu i ngā uri whakatupu e tū pakari nei ki roto i te ao, kaua mō rātau anake, engari mō te painga o te katoa.

Nō reira e mihi atu ana ahau ki a koe e Te Minita kua whakaritea mai i tēnei pire kei mua i te aroaro o Te Whare i te rā nei. E tautoko atu ana i ngā mihi kua kōrero mai nā e koe mō ngā āpiha o tō tari, i whakapau werawera mō te kaupapa nui o te wā nei. E tautoko atu anō au i ngā mihi i ūhia e koe ki runga i a mātau Te Komiti Whiriwhiri i ngā take Māori. I kai parakuihi mātau i te ata nei, e whakaae ana mātau katoa, ko ngā kaupapa ka tau ki mua i te aroaro o Te Komiti Whiriwhiri i ngā take Māori, ēhara i te mea māmā, ēhara i te mea māmā, he uaua! He uaua te kawe ake i ngā kaupapa Māori ki roto i tēnei Whare kua whakatūria e te mana o Te Pākehā, o Te Kāwanatanga engari, i tutuki i a mātau, Te Rōpū Whiriwhiri i ngā take Māori, e te heamana o taua rōpū, e mihi atu ana au ki a koe, e Tutehounuku Korako.

E aku rangatira, ki roto i ngā meneti e 2 e toe ana, ka whakaaro ake mō ngā whakapapa kai roto i a au o Ngatikahu, me ōna pānga katoa ki ngā iwi puta noa i Te Tai Tokerau. Ka tīmata pēnei: ko Muriwhenua tāna, ko Tamatea tāna, ko Kahungunu tāna, ko Kahukura-nui tāna, ko Kahukura-ariki, i whakaritea mai e tēnei pire ko ngā uri o Kahukura-ariki. E Ngatikahu, i kōrero mai Te Minita mō te rīpoata a Te Taraipiunara e pā ana ki a Muriwhenua. I taua tāima, i noho kotahi Te Hiku o Te Ika mō tēnei take. Kua kite atu ahau ki roto i ngā tau 10 kua pahure ake, kua wāwāhi nei tātau e te ture. Kua wāwāhi nei te ture i a tātāu! I kite atu ahau i te tau kua pahure ake nei, i tutuki te kerēme a Te Rarawa, i tutuki te kerēme a Ngāti Kurī, a Te Aupōuri, a Ngāi Takoto. I tēnei wā, nā ka eke mai ngā uri a Kahukura-ariki ki tēnei taumata, arā, te pānuitanga tuatoru o tēnei pire i te rā nei.

E āhua rangirua ana ahau i tēnei wā. Ko tētahi taha o te ngākau e pōuri ana, ko tētahi taha o te ngākau e harikoa ana. Ko te manako, kia piri ngātahi te pōuritanga me te harikoa, nā runga i te whakaaro nui ki ngā mokopuna, tamariki ki roto i ngā tau e tū mai nei. Nō reira, ko tāku atu ki ōku whanaunga o te kāinga, kia kaha rā koutou. Kaua e tukuna mā te ture tātau e wehewehe. Ko te manako, kia tau anō ngā kōrero e pā ana ki tēnei pire ki runga i ngā marae puta noa i te kāinga. E aku rangatira, koutou kua heke iho mai ki tēnei pito o te whenua, ko te manako, kia tau iho mai ngā manaakitanga o Te Kaihanga ki Runga i a koutou e hoki atu ana ki te kāinga. Ko tāku atu ki a koutou ki roto i ngā marama me ngā tau e tū nei, ka tūtaki anō tātau ki runga i ngā marae o te kāinga. E te pāpā, e Pita, mihi atu ana au ki a koe, otirā, ki a koutou e ōku mātua, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā tātau katoa!

[“’Tis the growth of life towards the glimmer of dawn and the bright light of day, behold the breath of life!” To the one who organised us this morning, friend, Te Ururoa Flavell, I commend you who gave the prayer for our sitting on this day so that matters before us are completed well from the beginning of this day until its conclusion, I salute you! Thoughts turn and stop at the many deceased of the moment, the numerous deaths borne here on the backs of Ngatikahu and all its hapū to the ridge pole of our House. And now I add the numerous deaths that are upon that one, that one, and that one of us seated about here, so that we mourn and farewell them as one, oh the deaths, depart, go forth, farewell! The aphorism of home goes like this: “A shoal of blue maomao fish passes around Nuku-taurua rock will not return.” So you collectively of the void, go forth, depart, farewell!

Therefore, I bring the lines of conversation back to us the living, greetings to us! To you my countless relations of home, when I see you collectively I reflect on the children and grandchildren still to come. I also think about the many elders, mothers, aunties, and adults of home who are lost to the void. I think about the time I grew up in Waimahana, a large majority arrived at a gathering on the marae. The elderly were there from throughout Northland to support this matter. Complaints were there and so were grievances as well as different ones. At the end of it all the gathering said let’s go forward. Therefore, I see the gaps amongst you and think about them who are lost to the void, and one of whom you know was my dad and my ancestor who died in the year just past. At this very moment he is lying there in the Waimahana settlement. We were there but at the same time all of us were lamenting and sobbing for him who has gone to the void.

Enough my esteemed ones, we have arrived at the moment when the Minister talks about the route you collectively travelled to this moment from the first reading until you arrived at the third reading of this bill. The Minister has spoken about the issues relating to the farm called Waikōhatu—I don’t know! When I was little, one turned off the main road facing Waimahana there, and that place was Akatere. It was there then that one climbed one’s self up the mountains, and then dropped down to within Kōkiri Bay, and then down into Waimahana at Ōmata on that side of the bay. And so, I reflect on these words in this bill: Waikōhatu and Stony Creek—I don’t know! When I was a child, I never heard the name Stony Creek, Waikōhatu. The ancestral and parental names were there—that’s what I’ve been saying in the place where the settlement of Waikōhatu is standing is Akatere. Therefore, I acknowledge you collectively who have arrived here.

The Minister has talked about some of the problems that have impacted on this proposal. He has also spoken about the size of the funding given to Waikōhatu to rectify the situation concerning that farm. I commend him, but I have a big question on my lips at this point in time. If the Crown has mistreated you and I, the Māori, what’s the reason why—what’s the word? A really small basket of funding has been provided to rectify a situation of maltreatment by the Crown of you and I, of Māori, but that’s what I alluded to at the start of this address. I think about the children and grandchildren in the future, with the desire to see them feature in the aspirations yearned for by my parents and ancestors from back home, and they being the reason. Not for us and for the ancestors but for children and grandchildren and their children and grandchildren. I recall the times when my dad and elders of the settlement of Waimahana consumed rum wrongfully. Much of their conversations focused on their children and grandchildren and that they don’t end up impoverished and that they see descendants well established in the world, not for themselves but for the betterment of all.

And so I commend you the Minister for this bill you have considered and placed before the House on this day. I endorse the tributes you accorded to the officials of your office, who expended perspirations upon the important matter of the moment. I also endorse the thanks you showered upon us the Māori Affairs Committee. We had breakfast together this morning and agreed totally that proposals that come before us in regard to Māori matters are never easy, not at all, they are difficult. It is always difficult handling Māori matters in this House under the Pākehā and government autonomy, but we the Māori Affairs Committee did it and so I commend you Tutehounuku Korako, the chairman of the group.

In the remaining 2 minutes that I have left before me, my esteemed ones, I will recall the Ngatikahu genealogy that I have within me and all my connections to the iwi throughout Northland. I will begin like this: Muriwhenua has a connection, so has Tamatea, Kahungunu, Kahukura-nui, and Kahukura-ariki, and this bill gives due consideration to the descendants of Ngāti Kahukura-ariki. Ngatikahu, the Minister spoke about the tribunal report concerning Muriwhenua. At that time and for this matter Northland was one. I note that in the past 10 years, we have been fragmented by law. I note that in the year just past, claims by Te Rarawa, Ngāti Kurī, Te Aupōuri, and Ngāi Takoto have been passed. And now at this very moment, the descendants of Kahukura-ariki have reached this summit, in other words, the third reading of this bill today.

At this moment I am somewhat confused. One side of me is saddened, and the other side is extremely happy. The hope is that sadness and elation remain stuck together, based upon the great regard there is for the grandchildren and children in the years to come. And so mine to my relatives of home is that you need to be strong. Don’t let the law divide us. The desire is that comments relating to this bill that are settled here will apply to all marae throughout at home. To you my esteemed ones who came down here to this end of the country, the wish is that the care of the Creator above be upon you collectively as you return home. And furthermore, mine to you collectively in the month and years that are ahead is that we meet again upon the marae of home. And so I acknowledge you my father figure, Pita, but at the same time, you my grown-ups, acknowledgments, accolades and congratulations to you collectively, and to us all!]

Ā, tēnā koe e Te Mana Whakawā. Huri noa i Te Whare nei, e mihi atu ki a koutou katoa. Tēnei te mihi ki ngā iwi o Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa. Nō reira, mauria mai ō whakaako ki te kaupapa e nunui, nō reira, ki a koutou rā, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou. E mihi atu ki a koutou katoa.

[I acknowledge you all throughout this House. I pay a tribute to the people of Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa. Therefore, bring forth your teachings in regard to this policy of huge significance, so accolades and acknowledgments indeed to you collectively. I commend you all.]

Thank you for the opportunity to speak in the third reading of the Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa Claims Settlement Bill. It was in December 2015 when I had the honour of accompanying the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations to Te Tai Tokerau to witness the signing of the Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa deed of settlement at Ōtangaroa Marae.

This has been a challenging settlement to negotiate. As we all know, there are longstanding divisions within Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa and certain elements within the iwi that have made this process a challenge for them. But I want to say here today, as chair of the Māori Affairs Committee, is that one thing is that we are not a committee that only listens to the submissions from those on any bill who are actually in agreement with it. We also obviously listen very, very closely to the dissenters—to those who do not agree with the settlement. One of the situations here is that we did listen very, very closely to those who were not happy with this settlement, in the various stages of its journey through the House.

The main issue is in regard to the ownership of Stony Creek Station, as we have heard from previous speakers, and it is something that the Māori Affairs Committee looked into very, very closely. It was very clear that, contrary to some of the claims that have been made, almost all of Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa members have a historical connection or ownership claim to Stony Creek Station. Therefore, it is very important that this piece of land be available as redress to the whole iwi.

However, disputes still remain and it is not the Crown’s role, I believe—and we believe as the Māori Affairs Committee—to settle an internal dispute. After the settlement, the post-settlement governance entity will be responsible for carrying out an open and transparent process within the iwi to determine the final ownership of Stony Creek Station and what that actually should look like.

I look forward to seeing the situation where the iwi is able to move on—not only from their disputes with the Crown, but from the internal disputes that might threaten their future development. I do have confidence that the hapū and the iwi leadership will be able to negotiate these very difficult waters at this stage.

I think enough has been said now about the recent history and the internal disputes that have made this settlement difficult. But I want to reflect today, at this third reading, on the history of Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa and the disputes with the Crown that have made this settlement necessary. This is an iwi that has had its lands systematically alienated through multiple Crown actions. In seeking to settle a dispute between two rakatira, the Crown simply acquired their land interests, including Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa ancestral lands.

When the Crown purchased land and promised to set it aside as reserves, it later reduced the agreed size of those reserves. Even when reserves were agreed upon and set aside, the Crown awarded the title to individuals rather than the iwi. When Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa generously offered 10 acres for a public reserve, the Crown decided instead that it would take 706. More recently, the Crown retained ownership of land that the navy occupied during World War II and transferred it to the then Department of Lands and Survey in 1983. It was only returned to Māori in 1990. The Crown also purchased land at Matakaraka, for a scenic reserve, without the consent of all of the owners.

As a result of all of these Crown actions, Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa were left virtually landless. Many of their people have been forced to live outside of their rohe. These are the actions that the Crown has now apologised, unreservedly, for. Today we are giving legal effect to the settlement, which seeks not to compensate for all that was taken but to restore Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa, their connection to their land, and to provide an economic base for their future development.

This is the end of a long and particularly difficult journey for Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa. It is also the start of a new journey that will have its own challenges, but one that gives the iwi the opportunity to set its own destiny, to restore its rakatirataka.

It has been an honour to have some involvement in this process, as a witness to the deed of settlement signing, and as the chair of the Māori Affairs Committee. I acknowledge those who have had much more involvement than me, and in particular the Hon Christopher Finlayson as Minister and also the chief negotiator, Dr Ella Henry, and everyone else who has fought for this settlement over the many years. I would also like to acknowledge, at this third reading, my members of the Māori Affairs Committee.

We ensured, right up until the 11th hour of this settlement, that we had heard all of those who were still not happy with this settlement. I want to acknowledge also, at this time, the special advisers who have been brought on board to help facilitate post legislation, after this has actually been elevated to law: Peter Douglas and Ken Mair. They will assist the iwi and the post-settlement governance entity to find their way through that particular issue around Stony Creek Station.

Over the last 3 years we have received into the Māori Affairs Committee many Treaty settlement bills. That is a testament also, I believe, in looking at this today—that we have actually been very careful and have worked hard at being balanced as to what we have actually believed is the right thing to do. On that note, with all of those who are here from Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa, for all of those who are actually listening to this historic event today, we as the Māori Affairs Committee, in hearing all the submissions and going to the Far North and going to that beautiful area where your iwi actually resides, believe that the people of Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa will actually be able to find their way through and that the next stage of the development of your iwi is for those tamariki and mokopuna who are here today, but also those who are actually there and wanting this settlement.

Nō reira, Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa, kia kaha, kia kaha. Nō reira e koutou rā, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, e mihi atu ki a koutou katoa, kia ora.

[Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa, be strong and courageous. Therefore, to you indeed collectively, I commend you all, thank you.]

Tēnā koe e Te Māngai o Te Whare, otirā, tēnā tātou katoa, e tika ana kia tuku mihi atu ki a koutou mā, ngā whānau me ngā hapū katoa o Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa. Ko au tete’i o ngā uri o Kahukuraariki e tuku mihi atu ki a koutou katoa, nau mai, haere mai, whakatau mai ki te Whare Paremata nei, ā, tēnā koutou katoa! E tika hoki kia tuku mihi atu ki Te Minita a Te Ururoa Flavell, nāna i tuku atu Te Reo whakamoemiti i tēnei ata, nō reira, ngā mi’i nui ki a ia, otirā, tēnā tātou katoa.

[Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker, but at the same time to us all, it is fitting that I acknowledge you collectively and the others, all the whānau and hapū of Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa. I am one of the descendants of Kahukuraariki extending a welcome to you all, come forth, come hither and pay homage to this Parliament here, and so welcome to you all! It is apt as well that I pay a tribute to the Minister for Māori Development, Te Ururoa Flavell. He gave the prayer of thanks this morning, so a huge appreciation to him, but at the same time to us all.]

Third readings of any claims settlement bill are special days, and I want to acknowledge the journey and the destination, because today is not only a destination but the start of a new journey. I want to support the words of my colleague Nuk Korako, the chairman of the Māori Affairs Committee, who has done a wonderful job in chairing that select committee, and acknowledge all of the members as well for the collaborative way in which that particular committee works on settlement bills—actually, on all the bills that it considers. I think it is important to acknowledge those words, because it is the start of a new journey; one where Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa can be future-focused, and, as Nuk Korako mentioned, this, like all settlements, is the legacy for future generations. I want to support those sentiments.

In the second reading I spoke about the framework of the settlement process and all that that means, and I want to restate one thing that I absolutely believe in. That is that every—the Crown describes those who participate in the settlement process as being the claimant group. We call ourselves iwi, of course, but it is incumbent upon the claimant group to understand what this process can deliver, what it cannot deliver, and whether or not we can live with it. That is critically important because, by entering into the process, we are really saying that we accept the process, we accept what it cannot deliver, although we might not agree with that. But we have to accept what it can deliver, and we are saying that we can live with it. So I congratulate the negotiators and the entire iwi, who have had the courage to go down this pathway.

So why exactly would one do that? There have been many, many Treaty settlements that have come through this House, and you have to ask yourself why it is, if we all accept that it cannot deliver everything that we want, you would actually go down that track anyway. Surely, the answer is because of the opportunities that it will provide for the future generations. I have said before and I will say it again in this House, that I would be very disappointed if our future generations do not look back at what we have done for our respective iwi and do not re-examine exactly what has happened. I think that is a positive message about both the hope for the future and how we can address the ongoing issues of perhaps not being fully satisfied with the outcome. So I once again acknowledge the courage that Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa has in taking this settlement to this point.

Ngā mihi nui ki a koutou ngā whānau me ngā hapū katoa, Ngāti Aukiwa, Te Hoia, Ngāti Kaitangata, Te Pohotiare, Ngāti Rangimatamomoe, Ngāti Roha, Ngāti Rua, ngā uri katoa o Kahukuraariki, tēnei ahau e tuku mihi atu mō ō koutou māia, ō koutou kaha kia tae pai mai ki tēnei wā.

[Much appreciation to all of you the whānau and hapū, Ngāti Aukiwa, Te Hoia, Ngāti Kaitangata, Te Pohotiare, Ngāti Rangimatamomoe, Ngāti Roha, Ngāti Rua, all the relatives of Kahukuraariki, I extend an appreciation to you for your collective boldness and efforts to arrive here well at this point in time.]

I do want to also speak about the content of the settlement, because I think it is the content of the settlement that will provide ways of strengthening and developing further Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa. For me, the cultural redress aspects of this settlement are important in recognising the mana of Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa but also providing opportunities to re-establish the way in which it expresses who we are. I think that these cultural redress mechanisms are very good ones. For example, statutory acknowledgments that can be used in different fora to express the interest that Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa has within certain areas. Deeds of recognition, as well, the transfer of cultural sites back to the iwi, are important expressions of that.

As I stand here and speak about these things, even the terminology that we use within this process—redress. Redress is not compensation. Redress is about addressing the breaches of the Treaty, the acknowledgments from the Crown, and its apology to the people in a way that recognise that this is an avenue of address, not compensation. That goes back to my earlier comment about whether or not we can live with this.

So the cultural redress, I think, is a way in which we can express our hope for the future around our cultural integrity, our traditions, and the way we move forward. The commercial redress, of course, is about growing the asset for the future generations so that they are able to—in a very real way, in a very material way—be able to be Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa, and that the whole world will know it.

So I congratulate the negotiators for their tenacity in coming up with an agreement with the commercial redress that has been agreed upon. I think that, as mentioned by other speakers, it is also a pathway forward to address disagreement amongst the iwi, as well, and I am not going to relitigate everything that has been said in the House, but simply say to all of the whānau and all of the hapū that this is an opportunity for Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa to move forward, and that the answer lies within Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa, not within the Crown and not within Parliament. It resides solely within Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa.

Nō reira, anei ahau e tuku mi’i atu ki a koutou katoa anō, ā, ko te tūmanako kia ūhia mai e Te Runga Rawa ōna manaakitanga ki runga ki a koutou, kia kaha, kia māia, kia manawanui i roto i ēnei āhuatanga katoa, nō reira, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, kia ora mai tātou katoa.

[Therefore I once again extend a tribute to you all in the hope that the Almighty above throws his generosities upon you. Be strong, bold, and stout of heart in all these circumstances, therefore greetings and salutations to you collectively, and my appreciation to us all.]

E rau rangatira mā, e ngā iwi, kia ora mai tātou.

[To the esteemed ones and others, to the iwi, acknowledgments to us all.]

It is a pleasure to rise and speak to the Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa Claims Settlement Bill. I would like to start by acknowledging the Minister and his team, the Office of Treaty Settlements, the negotiators, and the select committee for their diligence.

As the MP for Whangarei, Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa sits not in my electoral responsibility, but in my regional responsibility. I am very pleased that today they become another Northland iwi to settle. Today they show iwi on their boundary how to progress. This settlement today endorses the process and the representation of Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa in the eyes of this Government. This settlement process has been robust. I believe the settlement process has been robust: 7 weeks of ratification process; four ratification hui; voting for 10 weeks and 5 days; advertisements in local papers, national papers, on local radio, and in email lists; 2,426 voting packs were sent out, with 750 returned—for a participation rate of 30.9 percent, which sits mid-range for Treaty settlements and for post-settlement governance entity participation. The Māori Affairs Committee heard 18 submissions, and brought deep bipartisan parliamentary exploration to the settlement process. Their decision was: “Keep moving.”

I also acknowledge the challenges over many decades, especially Stony Creek Station—as has been mentioned here by my colleagues today. But I believe that if every party here today wants Māori to progress, if every party here today wants Northland Māori to progress, and if every party here today wants Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa to progress, then when the 12th speaker finishes, and the Speaker in the Chair says, “All those in favour, say Aye,” do not refrain. Do not tilt at leadership, but be leadership. Raise your voice in unison with us. Say “Aye”. Say “Aye” to the historical account, to the acknowledgment, and to the apology. Say “Aye” to the cultural redress. Say “Aye” to the financial and commercial redress, and say “Aye” to a new future for Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa. It is a privilege to stand and commend this bill to the House. Kia ora mai tātou.

Tēnā koe e Te Māngai o Te Whare huri noa ki a koutou katoa; ki a koutou o Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa, ngā uri, ngā mokopuna, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou. Pai te kite i a koutou katoa i tēnei Whare Pāremata, nā, uru mai, kia ora. Nei rā te mokopuna o Te Tai Tokerau, o Ngāpuhi, o Te Rarawa, nā reira, tēnā koutou ōku kaihana. Ā, kia ora koutou katoa. He mihi anō ki a ia, Te Minita, ko Te Ururoa Flavell i tōna whakatau mai i tōna whakaminenga mai: kia ora koe.

[Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker, and to you all throughout; to you of Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa, to the descendants and grandchildren, acknowledgments and salutations to you. It is nice to see you all in this House, so come in, hello. Here indeed is the grandchild of Northland, and of Ngāpuhi and Te Rarawa; hello there, my cousins. Greetings, indeed, to you all. I also acknowledge the Minister, Te Ururoa Flavell, in terms of his formal welcome and prayer: thank you very much.]

I rise, certainly as an honour, to be able to speak in the third reading of the Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa Claims Settlement Bill. It is not so much a pleasure, I think, as it is a question for all of us in this House and for the Crown to consider what our role is as representatives in this House of Representatives for iwi like Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa, for the future of Treaty settlements, and for the role of the Crown, and to consider how we can do better in dealing with the historical raruraru the Crown has created—the wedging that its process has created—for our whānau and hapū and iwi.

The question that I think has to be acknowledged is how we can rectify the historical injustice that has created so much of the raruraru today. When we feel love for everybody who is feeling both the mamae and the celebration of today, and when we stand here as Māori members of Parliament and feel both the celebration and the acknowledgment of the years and years of hard mahi that has been done by our people—the people who have to bear the brunt and the burden, and the future celebrations for all the work that has been done—where is the leadership and where is the ball in our court, as the House of Representatives, to really address the injustice and to really uphold a process that is not full and final? It is not full and final. Te Tiriti was never supposed to be full and final. It is an enduring, enduring relationship to seek Treaty justice.

I firstly want to make it very clear that I am here with aroha and admiration and respect for the raru and the difficulties and the leadership that Ngatikahu have displayed—that Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa have shown us. I am also here with a rumbling puku, not just for Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa but for ongoing Treaty settlements that have happened and that are yet to happen—my goodness, I am from Ngāpuhi.

So, you know, how can we do better? How can the Crown, which controls the timeliness, or the time framework, of the settlements and what the settlements look like, and controls what is given back from what was stolen—it was stolen. We use words like “extinguishing customary native title”. We use words like “taking a little bit more than what was offered in the first place”. Our whenua around the motu was stolen, and in most of the cases, the Crown lied to do it. My understanding from recent events is that our country is outraged by lying and thieving, but, apparently, not when it comes to Tiriti settlements.

So Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa, and all of the hapū and iwi who have had to be a part of this process, I salute you all. I salute you all for bearing the brunt of what the Crown has done to your people, to your mokopuna—kei te haere mai. Today is not at all the end of anything. It is the start of hard roads, and we wish you all the kaha—all the kaha.

I think if we are asking ourselves as representatives of this House how we can do better, we cannot overlook the historical accounts of what has happened. We cannot overlook—because this is why we are here—that the Crown created further disputes, and wedged in writ our whānau and iwi and hapū. In its actions, the Crown did that. For example, when the Crown was meant to investigate the legitimacy of transactions in the 1840s that had happened within the Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa rohe, in most cases it failed to do that. It set up some seedy deals. The Crown set up some seedy deals to get its hand on whenua and, purposefully and intentionally, it did not investigate the raru that was created from those seedy deals.

Clause 8 of the bill says: “In the 1850s, the Crown investigated some Mangonui land claims, but did not investigate others. Though Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa occupied many of these blocks, the Crown failed to adequately consider their customary interests.” It did not fail; it was a proactive decision. Let us be very clear about that.

I have talked previously about extinguishing customary title. Clause 8 says: “The Crown considered all customary title was extinguished if a land commissioner confirmed the transaction. It assumed ownership”—it assumed ownership; that is called stealing land—“of an estimated 11 000 acres of Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa ancestral lands through its ‘surplus’ land policy.” It assumed ownership. I am pleased to see that the bill outlines—that was a small, little smidgeon of what has happened historically to Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa, including what happened with Stony Creek and Ngāti Aukiwa. I acknowledge Ngāti Aukiwa, and I acknowledge the raru that has been there for a long time.

The Greens are very clear that these settlements should not be full and final. We are very clear that we must undertake a comprehensive review of Te Tiriti in Treaty settlement processes. We are very clear, for example, that when we say that iwi have the right of first refusal, it should mean the right of first refusal, not second or third. The Green Party is very clear that we should allow settlements to be revisited where situations have changed or claimants have been shut out of original negotiations, and, once again, we are very clear that Treaty settlements should not be full and final.

We are also concerned—and this I think goes to the heart of this particular settlement—that claims should be settled with the definition term “large natural groupings”. This goes to the very heart of the raru in this settlement and most other settlements. That is a Crown power definition. That is how the Crown upholds its definition and its power—through choosing whom it gets to settle with.

In my final mihi to you, Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa, I say that at the third readings, we often, I think, feel like this is our lot here, in this House. It should never be. We should be responsible. The Crown should remain responsible for seeking and ensuring that justice happens for Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa, for all the hapū and iwi concerned, and for generations to come. I look forward when the real leadership can come from this House, when we can maintain our journey—the Crown’s journey—to uphold its end of the bargain. Kia koutou katoa.

Ā, tēnā koe, Mr Deputy Speaker, tēnā hoki tātou o Te Whare. Te mea tuatahi, kei te mihi atu ki tō tātou kaiwhakarite, nāna i whakapūare tēnei wāhanga, kia īnoi atu ki Te Runga Rawa, kia hōmai wana korowai aroha kei runga i a tātou, i runga ake i ngā pire e pā ana ki a ngāi tātou, Te Iwi Māori, i te rā nei. Nā reira, ka mihi hoki ki a koe e Te Ururoa.

Ka hoki mai ki ngā mihi i mihingia ki a koutou o Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa. Kei te tautoko au i ngā mihi o te tuakana a Peeni, ki a koutou; e tika ana wana kōrero! Kei te mihi hoki ki tēnā o ngā hunga, ahakoa ki konei ā-wairua engari, horekau i konei ā-tinana, rātou i rūpeke ki tua o te ārai. Nā reira, e tika ana kia kaha ana i a tātou ki te mihi tonu ki a rātou.

Hoki mai ki a tātou te hunga ora, tātou o tēnei ao, nā reira, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou.

[So thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker, and to us, as well, of the House. Firstly, I commend our prayer maker, who opened this part and prayed to the Almighty above to give us his cloaks of empathy and throw them over us and the bills relating to us, the Māori people, today. Therefore, I pay a tribute to you, as well, Te Ururoa.

I come back to the acknowledgments that were accorded to you of Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa. I endorse the tributes of the elder sibling Peeni to you collectively; his comments were right! I pay a tribute to that one of the number, even though they are here only in spirit and not physically but have gone beyond the barrier. Therefore, it is fitting that we work hard to continue to acknowledge them.

Let us come back to us, the living and of this world, so acknowledgments, accolades and salutations to you collectively.]

I stand on behalf of New Zealand First to say that we have some disquiet about the bill—not the intent of the bill, because we certainly support the notion that a settlement should be made. During the process of reaching this point, there have been some members of the tribe who have expressed their opposition to the bill, and I think it is incumbent on us—certainly, we have taken the view—to articulate some of those concerns that they have. I know they realise that the bill will pass its third reading today and, therefore, the responsibility going forward will be left to the iwi; however, they have asked us, New Zealand First, to just have their concerns recorded in the record of the House. I ought to say that the comments that will be made on their behalf are what they have articulated to us. Some of those concerns have been articulated to the Māori Affairs Committee, and they have certainly had the opportunity to have further discussions with those who are involved in the future administration of this settlement. So I just want to place that on record in the first instance.

Before doing so, I want to reiterate just what this bill is all about. Fifteen cultural sites will be vested in Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa, totalling approximately 3,422 hectares. The largest is, of course, that area known as Stony Creek, which has really been the major area of contention—not only with Stony Creek but along with two adjoining farm properties that total 3,045 hectares. There is a financial redress of $6.2 million in lieu of the Crown’s 2007 commitment to maintain the condition of Stony Creek Station’s plant and stock until transfer.

If that is the total quantum that is being paid under this bill, then that suggests to us in New Zealand First that the quantum is only for, or in relation to, Stony Creek. Is there any quantum for the other areas of the claims for Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa? The settlement also provides a cultural fund of $300,000 for the development and implementation of a reserve management plan for Kōwhairoa Peninsula, 290 hectares of which transfers to Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa as a historic reserve.

Stony Creek has been, according to the Crown, illegally occupied for the last 10 years. The occupation results from a dispute about iwi boundaries and who should and should not be included as beneficiaries of the settlement redress. Therein lies the nub of the concern of those who oppose this bill. So it is on record. Whether it has substance or not, this is where we have some concern about the part that the Crown has suggested in this bill, which is that it should be left to an independent group to determine the ownership and all those issues surrounding Stony Creek.

I can appreciate the Crown and the Minister having a desire to see some resolution, but also I recognise that it is only fair to those who want to proceed that they should be allowed to proceed. But, at the same time, it should be left to those who have that concern to sort it out. I want to acknowledge Mr Peter Douglas and Ken Mair, who have attempted to be part of that process, to encourage a resolution prior to this day. Unfortunately, they have not been able to do so, but I understand they will continue to work in that vein.

One of the other concerns was from a hapū called Ngāi Takiora. Their points of objection for and on behalf of their hapū are: firstly, the lack of inclusion of Ngāi Takiora being the hapū of Rewiri Kaiwaka in the consultation process, when historical claims from the first initial claim by Rewiri Kaiwaka were included in the Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa historical account; secondly, the continued use of Ngāi Takiora claimants throughout history without consultation; thirdly, Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa and its hapū accepting settlement of Maunga Whakaangi when the historical evidence points to Ngāi Takiora being the hapū that has mana whenua; fourthly, the questionable constitution that Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa Trust engages to gain a majority and implement motions to favour Kahukuraariki Trust members; and, fifthly, the lack of transparency of information and process. Whether that is right or wrong, that is their interpretation of the process to date, and I just want to put that on the record on their behalf.

While this settlement bill addresses a number of claims on behalf of Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa, clearly there are some people within the iwi who do not support the bill itself and, therefore, the settlement. But I think it is important for the post-settlement group, which will be charged with taking this matter forward on behalf of its iwi, to ensure that as it moves forward, it takes along with it those people who oppose the bill at this stage. I ask that it give serious consideration to that. Do not read the comments of New Zealand First as opposing your settlement and your desire to move forward, but, rather, as wanting to remind those who will have the responsibility of taking your people with you. I often quote this example. When I was appointed the chairman of my particular iwi rūnanga, my dad told me: “Son, if you think you’re going to lead your people, never ever forget to look behind you, because if there is no one there, then you have to ask yourself: who you are leading?”.

So while we can commend the bill to the House, we do have some reservations about the intent of it. Tēnā koe.

Tēnā koe e Te Mana Whakawā. Nei te mihi atu ki a koutou kua hui nei i tēnei ata, tēnei rangi whakahirahira mō tātau katoa i roto i Te Whare Pāremata, ko ngā mahi nunui kei mua i a mātou, ko wēnei mahi, te tutukitanga o ngā nawe o ngā hapū, o ngā iwi i tae ā-tinana mai ki tēnei Whare. Nā reira, tēnā koutou, nau mai, haere mai ki tō koutou Whare; tēnei Whare āhua Pākeha nei ēhara mō Te Pākeha anake. Kei konei tātau, kei konei tātau mō ake tonu atu, me kaua e wareware kai konei mō ake tonu atu!

[I acknowledge you collectively, those who have assembled here this morning on this day of significance for us all in Parliament in regard to the major tasks that are before us, these tasks being the completion of the grievances that belong to the hapū and iwi who have arrived here physically at this House. So salutations to you collectively, welcome, come hither to your House, this House which appears somewhat Pākeha but is not for Pākeha only. We are here, we are here for ever, and don’t ever forget we are here for ever and ever!]

There is a famous quote by Sir James Hēnare that says: “It is preposterous that Māori should aspire to be poor pākehā.” By the actions of the Crown throughout the years that it has engaged with Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa, it is exactly that that it has wished Māori would aspire to. That is evident. That is evident throughout this settlement.

Even in the documentation itself—well, let me go straight there. This is exactly what it says. It says that the Crown failed to consider customary rights. The Crown failed to assess the impact of alienation of these lands on Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa. The Crown failed to survey these lands. The Crown did not challenge the Native Land Court’s 1870 award of nearly 4,000 acres to Taemaro within the period provided in the native land laws, and it ignored their appeals. The Crown coerced them into surrendering the title for the block—failed, coerced. The Crown did not include all areas occupied and cultivated by Ngāti Kahungunu—sorry, that is me—Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa. See, that is our whakapapa link right there. The Crown failed to ensure that Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa retained adequate reserves.

The Crown went on. Lands were susceptible to partition, fragmentation, and alienation, and by the end of all the Crown’s efforts, even after the Second World War, Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa was left absolutely landless and was removed from their area, where most of the whānau lived outside—outside—those areas. They lost sites of significance, wāhi tapu, and urupā. Deprived owners—owners were deprived of significant income that they had expected to receive from the 30-year lease.

I think to myself, and I just imagine, that when people look at Māori and say “Oh my gosh, you’re at the bottom of every disparaging statistic.”, I think about how great our ancestors were and the dreams that they had for us, and how they tried to retain their land, how they protested at every turn, and how they set up farms and set up areas for cultivation to trade because they were entrepreneurial—the very first sort of bartering system and trading of goods came from Māori to these new settlers. I think of how you welcomed them in so you could take the technologies and trade. If that had been allowed to continue, what a different place we would be in today, and yet you come today to accept the pittance that the Crown has offered. I am not sure, but sometimes, for me, that feels like it is out of pure frustration that we have come so far, and yet we have to accept so little, but we must go on.

Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa, you guys have waited a long time to come to this point, and it has been held up for a time to consider the petition and the struggle of Ngati Takiora. Yes, I travelled there. Yes, I went to listen, because that is our job—to listen and to take things into account. But what is not our job is to determine whakapapa, determine who has the most say, or to determine whether or not people are talking to each other. I am sorry, but that is now your job, and it always has been.

We recognise that that is difficult, and all of us i roto i a Aotearoa katoa [throughout New Zealand totally] come to this point. There has not been a Treaty claim in this House where there has not been a dissenting voice, where there has not been a group of people who feel that their words have not been articulated in the settlement, and where there has not been a hapū who felt that their interests had been ignored. And they ask us, as the Māori Affairs Committee, to make the right decision. And who does that? Not you—the Crown.

The Crown, over hundreds of years, has come to this place and asked us to be poor Pākehā. I cannot sugar-coat it. That is exactly what it asked us to do in legislation, by law, in this country. It left it up to us to prove to it that it did not. It left it up to yourselves to prove to it that its records were wrong, that its actions were wrong. Overwhelmingly, the evidence—which you have to go and search out yourselves, because nobody gives you a hand up in that area—is that it has mistreated Māori for generation after generation after generation.

The list of failures that I started to read—they continue right up until 1958. We can say that, actually, they probably continue today. And yet we come with an eye looking to the future to say “OK. We are where we are, and we’re willing to move on, because we’re resilient, and we’re Māori, and we’re strong, and we thrive, and no matter what happens to us we still stand up and we still take the reins and we still show them that if you have a little bit of faith—just an inch—faith as small as a mustard seed, if you are a biblical type of person, you can move mountains.” And when our people are united, we can overcome all things.

I put it to you Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa that the time is now, and it is within your hands to settle whatever issues are in front of you so that, as a people together, unitedly, you can be strong and move forward and take the reins—for these ones, as Peeni talked about, our tamariki/mokopuna. Too often in this House I see decisions made for the next 3 years, just so we can get popularity points and continue to be the Government—or change it; one or the other. We get sick of one and kick them out; we get sick of them and kick them out. It is the ever-revolving door of the blue and red. But the opportunity is within your own hands to take your own grasp of the future and make decisions for our grandchildren’s grandchildren.

Sometimes I think this House forgets that the decisions we make need to be enduring. The decisions we make need to be looking ahead. We will not be the beneficiaries of this settlement. You and I will not be the beneficiaries of this settlement—they will, and their mokopuna who come after them, for our posterity.

So it is a hard day, it is a good day, and we have finally got to this point. And so quickly, over and over again, we have seen many of our people come through this House and they go from grievance to future, from protest to progress, and switch their eyes to the future for the beneficiaries of tomorrow, our tamariki/mokopuna. So I mihi to you. I mihi to all of you for all of the efforts that you have made on behalf of them, despite the Crown. Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, kia ora mai tātou katoa.

Ki a koutou ngā whānau, ngā hapū o Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa, nau mai, haere mai.

[To you, the whānau and iwi of Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa, welcome, come hither.]

I stand to take a very short call on the third reading, the final reading, of the Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa Claims Settlement Bill. I too was one of the Crown representative MPs who came for the signing of your deed with the Minister and with my colleague Nuk Korako. I came out to Ōtangaroa Marae the day before to find the actual place that we were coming to, and it was a beautiful day, and the evening was just as beautiful. The next day we came out and it looked like “Hurricane Husqvarna Chainsaw” had come to your shores, because we had seen some trees that had been cut down.

I suppose that, for me, showed the determination of the many people who are part and parcel of the Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa, who did not like what was happening within the claim bill itself and started to continue to show their objection. I say “Well, good on you.” because, you know, when you get a bill—and it has got to be a hard-fought bill—there will be people in the iwi who will not want to support it. They will want to have their voices heard. When I saw that tree down that somebody had neatly cut into little bits on the side of the road to let our Crown cars through, I looked and I thought: “Well, good on you. Good on the whānau who actually continued on and fought for the people who wanted this bill to go through.” So I want to take my hat off to you, those who were in dissension on the bill and those who continue to carry on—the descendants of Kahukuraariki, iwi, and tribe members and family members. So I just want to say thank you.

I want to say too to the mokopuna of Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa that today is, basically, the day that your mātua, your koro, your kaumātua have done the work in behind for, and today we see the handover to you—the future of Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa. You will lead the iwi into wherever it has good futures and happy futures for you. And I say to you: “Kia kaha, kia māia, kia manawanui.”

As I close my korero to Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa, I want to say: “Go well, be well, and invest well in the future of all of your people.” Kia ora koutou.

Ā tuatahi, ka tika me mihi atu rā ki Te Minita i tuku i te īnoi ki tō tātou nei Runga Rawa, hei whakatau i a tātou nei wairua, ngā kōrero mō ngā āhuatanga kei mua i te aroaro. Ā, ki a koutou o Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa, tēnei te tautoko i ngā mihi ki a koutou i tēnei wā.

[And so, firstly, it is apt indeed that I acknowledge the Minister who delivered a prayer to our Almighty God to compliment us spiritually and the comments relating to the circumstances before us. And so, to you of Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa, I endorse the tributes to you at this point in time.]

It is difficult, when Treaty settlement bills come into the House, to be dispassionate to the extent that the process that the members of the Māori Affairs Committee are a part of is scrutinising and, to some extent, trying to understand agreements and negotiations that have already taken place. The process also lends itself towards an opportunity to give all sides of the debate a good hearing, from the first reading to the select committee and those committee stages where submissions are called for. You hear from the negotiators and those who may have dissenting views, and then you try to understand and break down the extent to which those views become critical in order for the bill to proceed. I know that in the way in which the Māori Affairs Committee works there is the genuine intent of utilising the select committee process for the best outcome, given that what we are considering is a negotiated outcome formalised through legislation.

And we are at the third reading stage so, for a large part, many people who come to the House are challenged by whether or not their Treaty settlement is fit for purpose, fully achieves the aspirations of what was intended, and restores hope that those historical interests and those breaches of the Crown can be somewhat remedied as a result of participating in this process. I cannot say it better than has already been outlined by my colleague Adrian Rurawhe: participating in a Treaty settlement process means that to an extent you accept that the process in itself governs some of the ways that iwi need to grapple with some of these issues. But what it can never do—what the legislation, what the Treaty negotiation process can never do—is actually resolve many of the issues that remain within iwi, across hapū, with hapū, and amongst whānau. I think that we would be creating a myth if we thought that the legislative process could restore things that exist outside of this Chamber—more appropriately, back on the marae within hapū and within the iwi.

There have been many times in this House where we have felt that we are ill-equipped to comment on matters of whakapapa. We tend not to comment on matters where there are internal disputes. We try to give people enough of a hearing to feel that they have been listened to within the context of our limitations in the process, but also to give people a sense that there is time within this process for at least iwi and hapū to work out those things, and that perhaps by the third reading we might be some way closer towards letting time take its course and letting those necessary actions that must happen amongst people create some kind of coming together, resolution, and reconciliation. Whether or not that actually happens in reality—and I make a very general comment, not one specifically related to Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa—we have to trust that, with the spirit of goodwill and common sense and pragmatism that exists amongst our people but, most importantly, aroha, aroha tētehi ki tētehi [empathy with each other], that there is a glimmer of hope that our good conscience as Māori will determine a better outcome than what a Treaty settlement or legislation could ever deliver.

This is one of the times when it is difficult to comment to a huge degree with any greater knowledge than the people whom I follow, because while I heard the first reading of the bill, I then left the Māori Affairs Committee. Much of the evidence was heard by my colleagues Kelvin Davis and Peeni Henare. But I do want to note a couple of things by way of recognising the nature of the challenge. There are a number of lands that are being vested back to Ngatikahu, and when you look through the list and then contemplate the potential opportunities for Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa, they look exciting. However, they require significant partnering and investment opportunities with either neighbours or other people who have a like and common cause with Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa. That will be a necessary outcome.

This is where, sometimes, the whole redress package may return a lot of properties, but the amount required to invest to get these properties up in a commercial setting requires some innovative thinking. The thing about Treaty settlements is that no matter how large or small they are, wherever they are in the country, the growing contribution of Māori to local and regional economies is being evidenced. So people—private sector, local government—are seeing that, actually, it is really important to try to understand the aspirations of iwi throughout the country, because they are long-term, committed investors in local and regional economies. So that should provide a little window—a small window—for those who are charged with the responsibility of taking the aspiration forward in this particular instance to go out and be assertive about what the opportunity could present if people think in a different space, and it is evident that the vesting of several of the properties could afford that.

In terms of the cultural redress, just looking at it, this secures an anchor for the iwi to be able not only to practically participate in the ongoing care, restoration, and protection of special sites of significance but to repatriate the story back to the whenua and ensure that the next generation, which carries these hopes and aspirations of kaumātua, mātua, and tupuna, is now part of embedding the Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa story within the local region in a way that will contribute to the way in which people think about that part of the world. I look forward to seeing the realisation of those opportunities.

Again, it is hard to be dispassionate in these particular bills. To an extent I have been, because I sense there are a number of things that still have to be resolved that remain outside of the context of Treaty settlement legislation. But I have faith that, actually, with goodwill, the spirit of goodwill, and, actually, whakapapa relationships, people will get there very quickly, because the next generation deserves it. The next generation deserves the leadership of today to get over those very significant mountains so that it can move into a more assertive engaging of aspiration in a rapidly changing world. If we do not do that today then we are dooming another generation to carry a burden far too great—far too great.

Nō reira, he iti nāku mō te kete kōrero i waihotia i mua i ō tātou nei i tēnei wā [So what I have left in the conversation kit for us at this point in time is but a mere drop]: tēnā tātou katoa.

Ā, kei te mihi nui, kei te mihi aroha ki ngā manuhiri, nau mai, haere mai ki Te Whare Pāremata, ā, Te Whare Raruraru o Te Motu. E ngā rangatira mā, kuia mā, e te mana o Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa, tēnā koutou katoa.

[A huge acknowledgment and a loving one to the visitors; welcome. Come hither to the House of Parliament and the Perplexed House of the country. To the esteemed ones, the elderly womenfolk, and to the integrity of Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa, salutations to you all.]

I had not intended to take a call in this debate. I have not followed this bill through the select committee process and other processes, but I did want to take a short call, in part just to acknowledge the kind words of Minister Finlayson when he introduced this debate. I am sure he very generously overstates my real contribution to the settlement process, but, nevertheless, over the last 8 years it has been a genuine privilege and a pleasure to be in this House when settlement bills have gone through.

It is of particular interest to me, of course, when bills have gone through for iwi and hapū of Tai Tokerau. We all look forward, I am sure, with longing to the happy day when Ngāpuhi finally settles in this House, and may that day be sooner rather than later.

But today is the day for Ngatikahu ki Whangaroa. This settlement, like all settlements, is necessary, but few would suggest it is sufficient. It is necessary because we must acknowledge the wrongdoing of the past, and, in the spirit of goodwill, we must seek to offer redress to put right what has been done wrong in the past.

There has never been a bill where the material return was sufficient—the land returned—and the pūtea is never more than a fraction of what was lost in the past, but, nevertheless, it is a commitment that wrong was done. I think, inevitably, that the most powerful and meaningful elements of settlement bills are the cultural redress and the acknowledgment of mana—mana that was never lost. It was not always acknowledged, but the mana was never lost over the land and the wāhi tapu and so on, which is so crucially important to the hapū and to the whānau. But even more so, perhaps, are the apologies—the printed apologies entered into the documents and entered into the Hansard—that the actions of the Crown were wrong and that the claims of the hapū and the iwi and the whānau over generations have been well-founded. Now, in the spirit of goodwill, it is our duty and our great privilege to be able, as parliamentarians and as a Parliament, to offer some redress. I think these settlement bills are often when you see Parliament at its best, because there is always that level of humility, I believe. And, believe me, humility is often a rare quality in this House. Nevertheless, it does express that we are returning something of what was taken, and it is necessary but seldom sufficient.

It is of particular interest that a lot of the wrong that was done relates to pre-Treaty deals that were done, I guess, and transactions that occurred. That is of particular interest to me because, of course, my own Pākehā ancestors were involved in land dealings well in advance of Te Tiriti. By 1830 my Pākehā tūpuna had taken title—had accepted title—to land at Ōkiato, at Manawaora Bay, and, later, in the Hokianga. So I think I have a reasonably clear view that there was often goodwill on both sides, but, equally, there was a lot of wrongdoing. There was a lot of taking, rather than gifting.

I think one of the most sad but also revealing stories within this document is the notion that the Crown at the time considered that the fact that Lord Ranfurly had graced a place with his presence to have a picnic meant that that gave that site sufficient mana to establish a reserve. The iwi generously offered 10 acres, and had 709 acres taken from them. It is incredibly revealing of some of the attitudes and belief systems of the time, and I do hope that is well behind us, and stays behind us, as part of a regrettable past as we look forward to a much better future.

I think that, as ever, these settlements are a gift from the elders, from those who have worked so hard over generations to bring back the mana, to bring back the recognition, and to bring back in some part some material benefit to the people who live in these rohe now and who will live there in the future. If I may be so bold as to lay down a wero—a challenge—to the young people, it is to use that gift well. I say to our young people who will be the beneficiaries of these settlements that if you are guided by tikanga and if you are guided by commitment to manaakitanga and to aroha, you may still make mistakes if you are so guided, but you will not do anything wrong. Nō reira, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā tātou katoa.