Ngāti Tara Tokanui Claims Settlement Bill

I present a legislative statement on the Ngāti Tara Tokanui Claims Settlement Bill.

ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Greg O’Connor): That legislative statement is published under the authority of the House. It can be found on the Parliament website.

Hon PAUL GOLDSMITH: I move, That the Ngāti Tara Tokanui Claims Settlement Bill be now read a second time.

Tihei mauri ora!

Te Whare e tū nei, tēnā koe, te papa i waho nei, tēnā koe, te mana whenua o tēnei rohe, tēnā koutou, te hunga mate, haere haere haere. Haere ki te whenua o ngā tūpuna.

Te hunga ora tēnā tātou katoa. Ka mihi ki ngā māunga kōrero ki ngā awa rangatira, ki te whenua taurikura o Ngāti Tara Tokanui, e ngā kāwai rangatira, tēnā tātou katoa.

[‘Tis the breath of life!

The House that stands, greetings, the land we are on, greetings, the protectors of this region, greetings to you all, the deceased, farewell. Farewell to the homeland of your ancestors.

To us, greetings to you. I acknowledge the many speaking mountains, the many formidable rivers, and also to the cherished lands of Ngāti Tara Tokanui, dear esteemed leaders, salutations to you all.]

This bill gives effect to the deed of settlement signed by Ngāti Tara Tokanui and the Crown in July 2022. The deed of settlement resolves all the remaining historical Treaty of Waitangi claims of Ngāti Tara Tokanui, who are an iwi centred around Paeroa in the Hauraki/Coromandel region.

The historical claims of Ngāti Tara Tokanui relate to Crown purchases of their land, and the operation of the Native Land Court. The cumulative effect of the Crown’s actions and omissions had a devastating effect on the economic, social, and cultural development of Ngāti Tara Tokanui, leaving the iwi virtually landless by the 1920s. This bill comprises three parts, detailing, firstly, the historical background; secondly, Crown acknowledgments of and apology for breaches of the Treaty of Waitangi; and, thirdly, cultural and commercial redress. I look forward to providing greater details about the redress at the bill’s third reading.

The pathway towards settlement for Ngāti Tara Tokanui whānau, hapū, and iwi has been a long one. The Waitangi Tribunal heard the Hauraki claims, including the Ngāti Tara Tokanui Wai 714 claim lodged by the late Hone Tewaewae Williams, from 1998 to 2002. The tribunal heard 24 hearings and completed its report in 2006. The focus then turned to direct negotiations with the Crown, which concluded with the signing of a deed of settlement in July 2022. The first reading of the Ngāti Tara Tokanui Claims Settlement Bill was passed in June last year.

I acknowledge that the Ngāti Tara Tokanui has lost many members who were part of the settlement journey, but are not alive to see this day. I acknowledge those tīpuna and all iwi members who have participated in this process, whether they were collating evidence, attending hui, being witnesses in the Tribunal, supporting leaders and negotiators participating in iwi discussions, or voting on whether to support the settlement.

For more than 25 years, Ngāti Tara Tokanui has pursued acknowledgment of their Treaty claims and redress for current and future generations. I acknowledge the Ngāti Tara Tokanui Trust and your negotiators Amelia Williams and Russell Karu. Your dedication and determination have been vital in achieving this settlement for all. The Ngāti Tara Tokanui Trust will be the post-settlement governance entity that will receive the settlement assets on behalf of Ngāti Tara Tokanui and will represent the iwi in its future dealings with the Crown.

On the Crown side, I acknowledge the work of chief Crown negotiators Michael Dreaver and the Hon Rick Barker, who have been well supported by Te Arawhiti throughout this process. I also acknowledge my predecessors the Hon Chris Finlayson and the Hon Andrew Little, who both made significant contributions to this Treaty settlement.

This Government is continuing the bipartisan effort to restore the Crown relationship with iwi by settling historical Treaty grievances. There have been many other Ministers and Crown agencies involved in this settlement, and I thank you for your contributions.

The bill was referred to the Māori Affairs Committee on 29 June 2023. The committee received and considered 15 submissions on the bill. Based on the submissions and advice received, the committee does not recommend making any significant changes to the bill. The committee recommended some minor and technical amendments to ensure consistency with other Hauraki iwi settlement bills. I thank the committee for their diligent work in the consideration of this bill. I’m satisfied with the committee’s recommendations, as they will ensure the redress agreed in the Ngāti Tara Tokanui deed of settlement can be properly implemented through this bill.

I look forward to the final steps towards settlement for Ngāti Tara Tokanui, and it will be my great pleasure to host them and all their supporters for the third reading of this bill. I commend this bill to the House. Nō reira, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa.

The question is that the motion be agreed to.

Tēnā koe e te Māngai o te Whare. Ngā mihi o te wā, o te Pīpiri e haere mai nei i tēnei pō.

[Thank you, Mr Speaker. Acknowledgments of the month, particularly as the month of June nears us this night.]

It’s an honour and a privilege to stand today to speak to what is an important part of the history of not only Ngāti Tara Tokanui but all members of the Hauraki, of uri who whakapapa to what is a shared set of interests and shared tūpuna in the Hauraki region, and for Māori to celebrate an opportunity for the Crown to atone for those things in this historical account that we say today were wrong and should never have happened.

The Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations is right to acknowledge the work that has gone into this, and the first acknowledgment that I wish to make is to those tūpuna and esteemed members of Ngāti Tara Tokanui who have since passed on and who are not with us at this time, when the bill is progressing through the House. There are members who have contributed to this piece of legislation who will be proud today to have reached the second stage in the legislation, and who will be looking forward to the third reading, when it will pass into law. I know that there are members who will be watching today who will hold their contributions in their memory and at the front of their minds as this progresses through the House, and I acknowledge them.

I also want to acknowledge those Crown negotiators, who have worked very hard to make sure that the Crown’s history and the agreed account is something which is enduring and which captures those not only oral histories but written histories, which are available in this region because of successive Waitangi inquiries into the history here, and that is recorded in the legislation today. Those are the chief Crown negotiator, Mike Dreaver, and also the Hon Rick Barker, who worked through this settlement with Ngāti Tara Tokanui and, indeed, the Pare Hauraki settlements, which were treated as a large national grouping and were progressed as such under both Labour and National administrations in the large national groupings approach to these settlements.

It was hard work to progress these settlements with the Hauraki iwi. I want to thank not only those negotiators but also the Ministers who were involved with the Crown agencies for providing the support that was required to achieve these settlements, and this settlement with Ngāti Tara Tokanui, in particular.

The negotiations with Ngāti Tara Tokanui began at Ngahutoitoi Marae in 2011. It gives you a sense of what it takes, even for a settlement of this size—which is deeply important in its historical nature, but is not large in quantum—when members formally hand over the power to their negotiators to represent their interests on their behalf with the Crown and when they then work through a process, for their negotiators to build a sort of consensus around these areas which are dealt with in the settlement. The agreement in principle was reached in that same year—in 2011—and that’s a tribute to those negotiators, who were able to quickly work through the issues which needed to be put to the Crown. Then, to get to this stage, is quite a quick settlement process, and it’s a tribute to their work.

I just want to touch on how this is an area of the country as somewhere where the Crown has a lot to apologise for. The history here, which is recognised in this bill and the other bills which have come before this House already for Pare Hauraki, are an account of the historical injustices that the people of the area faced.

A lot of that is recorded in the Native Land Court records of this time, and so it provides a useful historical touch point for this House to consider—records, like the letter of 1869 written by Te Keepa Raharuhi, which he wrote to the Native Minister and the Crown’s representative in Hauraki, asking them to honour undertakings negotiated by them. He wrote, “E hoa mā tēnā kōrua. He kupu tāku kia kōrua, ko mātou whakaaro kua tūturu ki runga ki o tātou whakaaro. E hoa mā, tera pea mātou e mate i te Hauhau, e ngari kei a kōrua te whakaaro kia mātou. Kāore hoki e tahi o mātou i whiwhi i te tika, i enei mo te wahi, e kino ai Te Hauhau kia mātou. E hoa mā, tēnei ano tētehi o a mātou kupu kia kōrua. Kō matou pīhī whenua i roto i te rohe a te Kawana, i te takiwā o Katikati i tukua e mātou kia Te Maki i mua. Whaka-ae ana ia i tēnei ra ka tukua atu e mātou kia kōrua, ma kōrua e whakaputa mai kia mātou. He oi ano te kupu kia kōrua.”

[“Friends, greetings. I have a message to you both, our thoughts, we have agreed to what us and you suggested. Friends, we may die at the hands of the Hauhau, but we will leave our decisions to you. Not one of us received any rights to this block where the Hauhaus may not like us. Friends, this is another message to you. Our piece of land within the boundaries of the Government, in the Katikati district, we gave to Mackay before. He agrees on this day to give over to you, for you to hand back to us. This is all we have to say.”]

What he was saying there was that he was appealing to the Government to honour the agreements that they had made, and he refers to them over and over as “my friends”. He was offering a peace there for what was an injustice of land being taken away by the Government but also of boundaries being violated by successive Governments in the Katikati District. He had already appealed to Mackay before, and he refers there to the injustice which had been done over and over by a Government which was refusing to negotiate with the people who occupied that land at the time.

The historical account of any settlement legislation is one of the most important parts. At this second reading, it’s my privilege, as the chair of the Māori Affairs Committee when this went through that select committee, to inform the House that we delved deeply into the historical issues. We heard from the 15 submitters about how this would affect them and how having access to an agreed history would allow them to move forward. It is something which I am proud that our Treaty settlement process in Aotearoa allows us to do—to have these historical touch points on the record as part of the shared knowledge that we can then build from.

In conclusion, may I thank everyone who has worked on this bill, and I thank Minister Paul Goldsmith for continuing to advance it at pace. It is something that I am proud that New Zealand legislators all agree on, and may that long continue.

Thank you, Mr Speaker. In the heart of the rohe of Ngāti Tara Tokanui is the Waihou River, and that river has a particular significance in the history of colonisation of our land, not just for the Hauraki and the Waikato but, indeed, for the whole nation, because in 1769, when Joseph Banks and James Cook anchored off what became Thames and took a longboat up the Waihou, what Banks recorded in his journal was essentially a plan for how the lands could be acquired, how they could be cleared of their forests, how they could be drained, and how they could be farmed. It was a plan for colonisation.

When both Banks and Cook saw the magnificent kahikatea forests of the Hauraki Plains, they were deeply impressed by them. Banks said that the “immense quantity of Woodland, which was yet uncleard, but promisd great returns to the people who would take the trouble of Clearing it … Swamps, which might doubtless Easily be draind, and sufficiently evincd the richness of their soil by the great size of all the plants that grew upon them, and more particularly of the timber trees which were the streightest, cleanest, and I may say the largest I have ever seen … I may have seen several times single trees larger than any I Observd among them, but it was not one but all these trees which were enormous, … we rowd for many miles between woods of these trees, to which we could see no bounds. The River Thames”—as Cook named the Waihou River, for political reasons, to convince England that this was the right place to colonise—“is indeed in every respect the properest place we have yet seen for establishing a Colony;”.

We know that from 1865, shortly after the occurrence of the invasion of the Waikato, the confiscations of the land began in the Hauraki, as well. The land was taken. It was acquired by hook or by crook, and, as Philip Steer said, “If a lesson emerges, it is that nature’s death occurred not only by grand confiscations and conflagrations, but also by innumerable small bureaucratic concessions and oversights.”

Those magnificent forests where Ngāti Tara Tokanui had their livelihoods—those forests were dense with native birds that were snared for food. The koroī berries, as the berries of the kahikatea were named by Māori, were harvested by the skilful ascending of the sleek trunks of these enormous trees. The kahikatea is the largest native tree—not the kauri, but the kahikatea—and, for context, these trees are so ancient ecologically, they are 160 to 180 million years old, which is to say the kahikatea tree came into existence before there were even birds on Planet Earth. It is the pterodactyl that would have originally eaten the berry of these trees, and who were kaitiakitanga of this magnificent natural heritage of Aotearoa? It was Ngāti Tara Tokanui and the other iwi around the nation, who also had such magnificent forests.

Within a few decades, they were almost entirely cleared. If you travel across those Hauraki Plains, those green, flat, drained plains with their dairy farms, you may see gentle little pockets of beautiful conical trees in areas of swamp. Those are the regenerating echo of what was there. Those are young trees, but are 100 or 150 years old, at most.

Those huge, ancient forests were primarily burned. In 1882, when refrigeration was invented, much of the remnant was cut down to make butter boxes for export of our butter and our dairy products to Britain. Indeed, the Bagnall family set up a mill for harvesting the kahikatea trees to make the butter boxes.

In the years between 1909 and 1917 alone, the remains of kahikatea were reduced by 63 percent. In 1913, a royal commission was asked to determine how areas of New Zealand still remaining under forest should be dealt with. It said, “As is well known, the soil of the white-pine swamps, when drained and the trees removed, forms one of the richest agricultural land, which when grassed is [extremely useful] for dairy farms.”, and thus the remnant of those magnificent forests were milled. The Bagnall brothers’ riverbank mill at Turua cut down the trees, and the descendants of that family would lament their loss. In 1937, a woman reported in a newspaper article “Where the Village slew the Forest”, about a grand and noble forest, that it was “the beginning of the end for the feathered world that inhabited its depths.”, and in 1984, in her book about Turua, Shirley Bagnall wrote of her deep sorrow at “the death of the trees that had taken such ages to grow”.

I tell all this because one of the untold stories of colonisation is the massive destruction of nature—the massive destruction of the extractive industries that were brought by the coloniser. Those industries destroyed the actual livelihood of tangata whenua Māori, the traditional life and culture, and the means of food acquisition and propagation that had sustained those iwi for many years, and here, in the Hauraki, Ngāti Tara Tokanui are a glaring example of it. Also, when the goldminers came, they poured the cyanide into the Waihou River, so it is accounted that 300 iwi lost their source of water. These are the impacts of this sort of extractive and destructive colonisation, aside from the injustice of the very theft of the land—the utter destruction of the ecological structure of it. This is a loss for all humanity, I would say—those magnificent forests—but it must be such a bitter loss for the iwi who were the kaitiaki of those forests.

I note that Andrew Little said that the Crown will apologise for confiscating large tracts of land, as well as for the policies and laws that were designed to dislocate Ngāti Tara Tokanui from their land, to erode their tribal structure—and, rightly, that is a just apology for a terrible loss—and, also, I would add, to destroy the ecological basis of the society and the culture of the livelihood of those people. So we support this settlement; it is never enough. It is irreplaceable what is lost.

We do not, as Te Pāti Kākāriki—as we have articulated before—support the idea of full and final settlements. It seems, in a sense, to be adding a final insult to injury to suggest that they should be full and final.

If we are to have a just basis for society and our land, it must be based on a recognition of the history of the means of our presence here as tangata Tiriti. It must be based on a reciprocal recognition of the right to self-determination of tangata whenua Māori, of upholding of Te Tiriti o Waitangi, and of a seeing and a sighting and a knowing and a remembering of the history that has befallen the people—the proud indigenous people—of our land. So, in that regard, we commend this bill to the House. Thank you, Mr Speaker.

The ACT Party is pleased to support this bill. It restores the property rights and provides compensation for an iwi which had their property taken in an unjust way, and it was in breach of the Treaty of Waitangi. So the ACT Party is very pleased to support this bill as reported back.

I want to acknowledge that Ngāti Tara Tokanui have suffered significant harm as individuals, as an iwi, and as the people of the Hauraki Plains, and that resulted from the confiscation of a large tract of land by the Crown in the Tauranga area which included their traditional lands. It was not clear to me from reading the summary—the historical account—what the role was of Ngāti Tara Tokanui at the time that led to their lands being confiscated. It’s not clear.

However, confiscation, or raupatu, was a common punishment for rebellion under the British and under other empires, and not just in New Zealand. It was common, going back to medieval times in Britain, for example, that rebellions were punished by confiscating land. The difference between medieval times and now, though, is that New Zealand is a country which believes in the rule of law protecting property rights, although they have been severely eroded. There is an opportunity to address the wrongs of the past, and that’s what this settlement bill does in some small way.

As the previous speaker, Steve Abel, mentioned, it’s not possible to restore Ngāti Tara Tokanui to their previous status. It’s not possible to return all the land. In fact, the historical account indicates that after having land confiscated, and after selling a large amount of land—although it’s not made clear, it appears that that was to pay bills—they were left with only 232 acres of land by 1995.

I think what’s also important to acknowledge—and it’s stated very clearly here in the historical account—is that the iwi were seeking to develop their land. They had signed an agreement with the Crown to establish a goldfield. They were supporting the investigation of goldmining on their land because goldmining at that time—in 1870—was seen as a fantastic contributor to economic and social development where it occurred, and iwi like Ngāti Tara Tokanui could have benefited from it. But it appears that the iwi never got to benefit from it, because some of the commercial arrangements that they entered into were all cost and no reward.

It appears that their property rights have been infringed many times over the years. That’s why the ACT Party is pleased to see this settlement bill come before the House. It upholds the property rights, restores the mana, and provides for this iwi to grow and develop their lands and to attain some kind of economic sovereignty within the laws of New Zealand. With that, the ACT Party commends this bill to the House.

Mr Speaker, thank you. I rise to speak to the Ngāti Tara Tokanui Claims Settlement Bill, and it is very good to see this claims settlement legislation being advanced. We’ve seen a number of claims settlement bills advanced this year, and it’s good to see that, because it helps us to move through the process of setting right some of the wrongs which have been done in the past and being able to move forward together as a united nation.

We heard the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations say that this process has been going on—well, I guess, from the perspective of the iwi, this process has been going on for 180-odd years. But in terms of the actual response to the legislation, or to getting a settlement process under way, it’s been a good 25 years, and 13 years since the negotiations began. Like others, I want to acknowledge all the iwi members who have been part of this who are, sadly, no longer with us, because these things do take a long time and it means that some of the people who start out leading these processes at the beginning—and I know; I’m aware of some of those processes in the Wellington region—are, sadly, no longer with us at the end of these processes. So I salute all of those members of the iwi—the tīpuna who are no longer with us.

I also, like others, want to acknowledge the negotiators and the officials who’ve been involved in this process, because I know that a lot of work goes into it. It’s actually been really, really interesting to just listen to some of the history that we’ve been hearing today, because that history is rich. It’s sad, it’s challenging, but it is history none the less, and it is good to have that history brought to our attention.

Also, while we don’t have members of the iwi here with us in person, I hope that some are watching tonight, and I do hope—

Hon Scott Simpson: They’ll be watching.

ANDY FOSTER: —they’ll be watching—that, as we have seen in the past, when we get to that final reading, the galleries are indeed full and there is a sense of celebration.

Ngāti Tara Tokanui is a small iwi, we hear, of less than a thousand members, but that doesn’t mean it is not important, and I’d just like to point out that we are also a small nation, but that doesn’t mean that we don’t think that we’re important. We are the centre of our own universe, and for Ngāti Tara Tokanui, that is the centre of their own universe, as well. So it is a really important piece of legislation.

We know that there are three parts of the Treaty, and when you look at those three parts, you can see the way in which those three parts were breached. Establishing British Government and laws and protections—those protections, clearly, were breached. The agreement to the rights of undisturbed possession of lands, forests, and fisheries—well, quite clearly, the confiscation of most of the iwi’s land was a breach of the Treaty. Thirdly, the rights of equal citizenship—well, I didn’t see the Crown in those days doing the same to British or other settlers as they did to the iwi.

So this bill is clear that the Crown—the Government—breached these obligations of protection and these obligations of the right to undisturbed possession of lands, forests, and fisheries. We’ve heard from the ACT Party how important property rights are, and I just would say to the whole House that sometimes the greatest protections we actually need are not from foreign powers or anyone else; they are from our own Government. We do not have many checks and balances in our system, and it’s something that we should be giving a lot of attention to so that we have protections and balances against all of us and the decisions that we might make going forward.

The bill tells the history, and the apology is a really, really important part of this bill, going forward. It provides for the return of some land under cultural redress—we’ve seen nine specific sites—and it also provides for some financial redress. It’s only $6 million, but, again, it’s a small iwi, and it’s a small compensation for the wrong that was done. It also provides for the recognition of some important associations with some important places.

It also provides for some ongoing relationships going forward. So it’s not only looking backwards and providing compensation but also saying, looking forward, that there is an important ongoing relationship with the Department of Conservation Te Papa Atawhai. It was good to hear that very sad story that Steve Abel has just been telling about the destruction of the natural environment that was here long before human beings even existed—millions and millions and millions of years before the destruction that was done. In fact—

Carl Bates: It was good to hear it.

ANDY FOSTER: Well, it was good to hear it, but it was also bad to hear it—but we know that. Since human beings have arrived in this land, it has been a disaster for the natural environment, and our responsibility is to try and turn that around and make it better rather than worse. If we can make it better than we found it, then we’ve done something that is worthwhile doing.

Just to finish off with, these settlements are really, really important for all of us to help us move forward together as a united people—a united people in all our rich diversity. I’m just going to finish off by saying some of the principles that New Zealand First holds which I think are relevant to this. First of all, we’re standing behind those principles of fairness, of justice, and of upholding the Treaty of Waitangi. We also know that we need to right the wrongs of the past and we need to ensure that all New Zealanders, regardless of their ethnicity, are treated equitably under the law—and, clearly, that didn’t happen in this case in the past. Our party also stands for being committed to fostering strong relationships based on mutual respect and on understanding between the Crown and Māori. These things are essential as we go forward.

So why do we support the bill? It is about restorative justice, and that is a really, really important principle. It is about honouring the Treaty. It is about fostering trust and cooperation and building a more inclusive society.

In conclusion, New Zealand First strongly supports this bill. Again, we thank all the people who have put so much effort and so much mana into this, and we look forward to it progressing through the committee stage, and then to a final reading. Then, truly, the iwi can celebrate the return of their mana, and the return of these significant cultural areas of land and some small financial compensation. Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa.

This is a five-minute split call.

Tēnā rā koe, e te Pīka. Otirā tēnā rā tātou e te Whare. E tū ana ahau ki te waha i ngā kōrero mō te Pāti Māori i tēnei pō. Heoi anō, hei tū hei māngai hoki mō tōku rohe o Hauraki Waikato. Inā te maringa nui.

Kei aku parepare, kei aku whakaruruhau tēnā rā koutou katoa kua whakarauika mai ki rō Pāremata i te pō nei. Āio nuku, āio rangi, āio te pou herenga tangata o te motu a Kingi Tūheitia, rirerire hau pai mārire.

E tangihia ana ki ngā mate, tāruru nui o Pare Hauraki o Pare Waikato kua hoki atu ki te parekawakawa o Pareārau ki reira rātou ka tangi ki konei ō rātou uri mokopuna, e waha i ngā kōrero mō tēnei pire.

Pare Hauraki, Pare Waikato nei rā te tū, nei rā te mihi ki a koutou e whakarongo ana i te kāinga, ki tēnei o ngā pouaka whakaata, ā, kua tū mai mātou ki te tautoko katoa i tēnei o ngā pire. Ko Pare Hauraki ko Ngāti Tara Tokanui he uri rātou nō ngā kāwai whakapapa o Whatihua rāua ko Ruapūtahanga. Ko tō rātou Rangatira ko Te Keepa Raharuhi. E mihi ana, ka nui taku reo whakamiha, ka nui taku reo maioha e tuku karere atu ana ki a koutou ngā mana whenua o tēnei o ngā pire.

Ko Ngāti Tara Tokanui tētahi o ngā iwi i muri rānō ko tō rātou nei ingoa ko Ngāti Koi, i tēnei wā tonu kei te tuku au i te aroha. Nōku te maringa nui nōku te haepapa nui i roto i a Pāremata i tēnei wā tonu. Kua kōrerotia e au ki ngā pire e whā i roto i tōku ake rohe ki roto i tōku ake iwi. Ko Ngāti Hei tēnā, ko Ngāti Paoa tēnā, ko Ōrākau tēnā. Ā, i tēnei pō ko Ngāti Tara Tokanui tēnā. Nō reira ahakoa tōku wā iti ki konei, ka nui taku maringa nui ki tēnā.

Nō reira ki ngā pāti katoa o tēnei Whare ahakoa noho mai ki konei, ahakoa noho mai ki konā. Kua tautokotia katoa e rātou ēnei pire katoa, nō reira koinei te reo mihi o tōku iwi ake o tōku rohe ki a koutou i tautoko i tēnei o ngā pire.

Te kau mā rua o ngā iwi ki roto o Ngāti Tara Tokanui, ki roto mai o Hauraki. Ko te pokapū o tōna rohe whai pānga, ko Paeroa. Whakateuru atu i reira ki te Manaia o Hauraki, whakateraki anō hoki ki te pūtake o te tara o te ika a Māui, ki Wharekawa. Nō reira, te kau mā rua o ngā iwi ki roto mai o Hauraki, ki roto mai o Ngāti Tara Tokanui.

Ka nui taku mihi ki ngā rangatira kua whakawhāriki i tēnei pire, ki a Russell Karu rāua ko Amelia Williams nā koutou anō tēnei pire, tēnei take raupatu i kuhu mai ki rō Pāremata. I roto i tāku titirohanga ki roto i tēnei take raupatu take kereme, ka tiro au ki te nui o ngā hua i a Ngāti Tara Tokanui. Pēnei i te koura, pēnei i te kōhuke, minerals, pēnei ki te huhua o ngā kai me te wai.

[Greetings, dear Speaker. Also greetings to everyone here in the House. I stand to represent Te Pāti Māori this evening. However, I also stand to represent my region of Hauraki Waikato. A huge honour.

My dear esteemed, my dear formidable, salutations to you all who have assembled here to this Parliament this evening. Peace to the land, peace to the skies, and peace be to what ties us people all together, King Tūheitia, rirerire hau pai mārire.

We mourn for our dead, the many of Pare Hauraki of Pare Waikato who have returned to Pareārau, in which their descendants are here representing them in this bill.

Pare Hauraki and Pare Waikato, I stand to acknowledge you who have tuned in from your home television, and, we are all here to support this bill. Pare Hauraki and Ngāti Tara Tokanui are descendants of Whatihua and Ruapūtahanga. Their prominent leader is Te Keepa Raharuhi. I have immense respect, and acknowledge with these words the home people in which this bill pertains to.

In times of old, Ngāti Tara Tokanui’s name was Ngāti Koi, and so right now I would like to send my love. It is my honour and my responsibility within this Parliament right now. I have spoken to the four bills within my own region and people. Ngāti Hei, Ngāti Paoa, and Ōrākau. And this evening, it is Ngāti Tara Tokanui. And so despite the little time I have here, it is still a huge honour for me.

So to all the parties of this House no matter if you sit on this side or on that side, we all are supporting this bill. And so this is the heartfelt acknowledgments of my people to you all supporting this bill.

There are 12 subtribes that make up the Ngāti Tara Tokanui confederation in Hauraki. The centre of this region is at Paeroa. To the west from there is Manaia of Hauraki, to the north as well is the centre of Te Tara o te Ika a Māui, at Whakarewa. So then, 12 subtribes within the Hauraki region, Ngāti Tara Tokanui.

I immensely acknowledge the esteemed leaders who helped with this bill: to Russell Karu and Amelia Williams, this is your bill, the confiscation made by this Parliament. What I observe within this claim are the many assets within Ngāti Tara Tokanui. Like gold, like minerals, like all the food sources and water.]

I have been doing multiple hakas, mōteatea, and waiata in Parliament, but that’s my way of expressing and articulating the best form that I know on how deep—and no Pākehā words can articulate, for me, Treaty settlements. So I must end with this waiata apakura a tā Kīngi Tāwhiao mōtōna uri [song of lament of Kingi Tāwhiao for his descendants], which clearly reflects this Treaty settlement bill of Ngāti Tara Tokanui.

Ka mātakitaki iho au ki te riu o Waikato

Anō nei he kapo kau ake māku ki te kapu o taku ringa

Ka whakamiri noa i tōna ara tau

E tia nei he tupu kua hou

[I look down on the valley of Waikato

As though to hold it in the hollow of my hand

And caress its beauty

Like some tender verdant thing]

Ko tēnei waiata tangi nā Kīngi Tāwhiao i waiata, i tangi mōteatea.

[This is a song of lament sung by Kingi Tāwhiao as he grieved.]

This was Kingi Tāwhiao’s tangi to his land on the return to seeing his land confiscated, and it talks about the many different resources, arā te rarirari o Waikato, and it’s plentiful. So ngā mihi ki a tātou e te Whare.

E mihi ana ki a tātou i tēnei pō. He reo mihi tēnei ki ngā whanaunga o Ngāti Tara Tokanui. Ko ngā uri o Tara, te hononga o Te Awapū, he mokopuna o tēnei tupuna, o Tara, ka moe i a Te Rae, nō Ngā Mārama anō hoki. Ka puta ko tēnei iwi rangatira o tātou, ko Ngāti Tara Tokanui.

E mihi ana ki ngā rangatira o tērā rautau, arā ko Taiwhakaea, ko Matarehua, ko Tikitearoha, me Te Whakamaromaioro. Ēnei o ngā rangatira i whakapaua te kaha mō te ora o tēnei iwi o tātou, o Ngāti Tara Tokanui.

[I greet us all this evening. This is a voice of greeting to the relatives of Ngāti Tara Tokanui. To the descendants of Tara, the connection of Te Awapū, a grandchild of this ancestor, of Tara, who married Te Rae, who was also from the Ngā Mārama people. From this union emerged this noble people of ours, Ngāti Tara Tokanui.

I acknowledge the leadership of last century, Taiwhakaea, Matarehua, Tikitaaroha, and Te Whakamaromaioro. These leaders, who expended their strength for the wellbeing of this iwi of ours, of Ngāti Tara Tokanui.]

I wish to acknowledge those tūpuna of the times of the 1800s that saw the confiscation of large blocks of their whenua, sold by others to the Crown, and, as I heard from my colleague, the way with which the map was already laid out for how colonisation was to roll out in Hauraki—thank you, Banks. Thank you, Banks, for what you did in mapping out how you were going to raupatu whenua for our people of the Coromandel. Why do I say thanks? I don’t say thanks happily; I say thanks, because that’s what we got.

We have an iwi that lost 290,000 acres around the Tauranga Katikati rohe. It was sold by others to the Crown, and this is not something dissimilar, because the Crown had a kaupapa of individualisation of title and seeking to purchase large tracts of our land out from underneath the iwi who actually lived there. That is the experience of Ngāti Tara Tokanui.

As I read the history and I reflect on even the marine and coastal area claims—the takutai moana claims that this iwi has currently live for their rohe moana—I think of the gestures of mahi tahi, and it is true: they tried to engage in an economy which was not ours, aka those minefields. In the 1860s, we saw rangatira try to align and work with the Crown to establish minefields in their tribal rohe. Now, again, we see the individualisation of title as a means to alienate the whenua from this iwi rangatira, and while we might reflect and say, “Well they’re a small iwi. They’re doing pretty good, and this settlement is about fairness and justice and honouring Te Tiriti.”, well, I argue it isn’t, because I want to mihi to the Red Book. For those of you that don’t know the Red Book, that’s the Crown rule book for Treaty settlements, and this iwi, Ngāti Tara Tokanui—as in the tribes of Hauraki—have done their best according to the rules set by the Crown.

Because the Crown sets the rules, the Crown negotiates, and the Crown seeks to save a dollar and not spend a dollar, there is no justice for this iwi. They are trying to rebuild their iwi. The $100,000 offered to them for revitalisation—when you are stripped of your land, your language and culture, and $6 million is offered to you as your settlement, full and final, for all your losses for 184 years? Meinga meinga, nā wai i tika. Tēnei mahi he mahi rangatira nā te Kāwanatanga? Kāhore, kāhore. E mihi nui ana ahau ki tēnei iwi o tātou e noho pōhara nei mō te wā roa.

[Is that so? According to who? Is this a prestigious effort made by the Government? Incorrect, incorrect. I acknowledge this nation of ours who have been in poverty for a long time.]

But within the rules of the Red Book, they did their best, and they’ve negotiated this very small settlement—because, you see, $1.6 billion was offered to South Canterbury Finance. If we want to do what’s right, then there is plenty of opportunity for a willing Crown to do what’s right and support Ngāti Tara Tokanui to truly re-establish their tribal footprint in their tribal rohe. This is about raupatu, this is about tāhae, and if we want to really honour Te Tiriti, look at offering a genuine compensation package that can re-establish this tribe, tēnei iwi rangatira o tātou ki runga i tō rātou ake whenua [this esteemed nation of ours on their own land].

So thank you for Paeroa School—that’s a good contribution. Thank you for the seven properties that are being offered to Ngāti Tara Tokanui. But, as an uri of Hauraki, I say, wow! When will we, as this House, genuinely uphold Te Tiriti o Waitangi? When will we come as negotiators and look at something that is a redress package that will uphold the mana of these tribes who have lost so much? Nō reira e te Whare, tēnei taku īnoi ki a tātou te Whare Pāremata. Kia ora. [So, dear House, this is my plea to us, the parliamentary House. Kia ora.]

Kia whakakorōriatia te ingoa o te Atua, te putanga mai o te rā, tae noa ki tōna torengitanga. E te Māngai, i te putanga mai o te rā i tēnei ata i au e oma ana, he momo ona, ki ngā mārā hua ota i raro te menemene o Tama nui te rā.

Ka huri ōku whakaaro ki te mahi e whai ake nei. Ki te mahi ā muri ki tōna torengitanga. Ki tēnei kōrero ki te āheitanga te tū anō i roto i tēnei Whare whakahirahira te tautoko he pire whakataunga kereme anō kia whai atu te whakarauora o te mana Motuhake o te tino rangatiratanga o he iwi anō. Ā, te korero e pā ana ki tēnei Kaupapa i te reo o te whenua, hīkaka au. He piki te ora. Ehara au i te matatau o te reo, heoi he hōhonu taku aroha mō te reo o te rangi. He whānui taku wawata mō te whakapūāwai anō te reo o ngā atua. Nā reira, ka whakahua te nuinga o ōku whakaaro i te reo taketake.

Ko tōku tumanako he tīno whakaute ki ngā tāngata o Ngāti Tara Tokanui. Ka whakamana te pire nei i ngā ritenga e tika ana kia whakaturetia i roto i te whakaetanga whakataunga i waitohua rā i te 28 o Hūrae 2022 i te Karauna me Ngāti Tara Tokanui. Ko Ngāti Tara Tokanui he iwi e tau ana ki ngā whenua huri noa i Paeroa i te rohe o Hauraki. I te tatauranga 2018 he 830 ngā uri o Ngāti Tara Tokanui, nui taku mihi ki a koutou katoa. Ko Ngāti Tara Tokanui tētahi o ngā iwi me ngā hapū 12 e whai pānga ana ki te rohe o Hauraki.

I te tau 2009 ka piri tahi ko te Pare Hauraki Collective, ko te whiriwhiri whakataunga tiriti te take. Ka oti i te Karauna me te Kāhui nei te whakaetanga te waitohu i te tau 2018, ā, tēnei te pire kei te aroaro o te Whare nei. Ka whai te pire whakataunga kereme a Ngāti Tara Tokanui ki te whakatau i ngā kereme Tiriti o Waitangi hītori a Ngāti Tara Tokanui mā te whakamana i ngā puretumu ā-iwi tonu e tika ana kia whakaturetia.

Kei te wāhanga tuatahi o te pire ko ēnei. Tuatahi, ko tētahi whakarāpopoto o te takinga kōrero hītori o roto i te whakaetanga whakataunga. Ko te mahi tino, te mahi o te hītori kia kore ai tātou te hītori o tēnei whenua o tēnei iwi. Tuarua, ko ngā whakapuakanga, ngā wāwāhitanga a te Karauna i te Tiriti me ōna mātāpono e pā ai ngā taumahatanga ki kō. Ā wairua hoki ki a Ngāti Tara Tokanui. Ko te whakapāha a te Karauna mōna i kore rā i tiaki i a Ngāti Tara Tokanui i te rironga o te whenua. Te peinga o te iwi o rātou pā, me ō rātou kainga, me te tūkinotanga ā-taiao ki ngā awa e rua. Te mutunga kē mai o tērā momo tūkino, tā te kōrero a Steve Abel.

Kei te wāhanga tuarua ngā ritenga puretumu ā-tikanga tae atu ki te whakahokinga o ētahi wāhi whakahirahira, iwi ki te iwi. E rua o ērā ka whakahokia tahitia ki ētahi atu iwi hoki. Ko ētahi o ngā wāhi nei ko ngā Uritara ko Mimitu Pā ko Tāwhiti Paraia me Karangahake. Kei te wāhanga tuatoru ko ētahi ritenga puretumu ā-tauhoko.

Kāore ētahi wāhanga o te whakaetanga whakataunga e herea kia whakamanatia ā-turetia me te aha kāore e takoto mai ki te pire. Ko ēnei, ko te puretumu ā-pūtea, ā-tauhoko, hoko 6 miriona. Ko te kupu taurangi kia uru ki tētahi whakaetanga whakahoanga me te Papa Atawhai. Ko ētahi reta takawaenga, reta whakatakinga rānei i ētahi Kāwanatanga o te motu, o te rohe hoki. Ko te tauāki piringa ki Moehau maunga ki te taone o Te Aroha hoki, ko te puretumu ā-tikanga e $444,000 te nui mō te whakarauoranga o te ahurea me ētahi atu take hoki me āta whakatakoto.

Kīhai te kōrero o te Minita o mua, te Minita Ānaru Paku, ahakoa e kore rawa e taea e tētahi rahinga puretumu te utu anō ngā mahi kino a te Karauna i mua ki a Ngāti Tara Tokanui, ka whakaratau te tūāpapa te puretumu i tēnei whakaetanga hei whakapakari i te taha ohaoha o Ngāti Tara Tokanui ki anamata. Ka whakarite anō hoki ka āhukahukatia te hononga ahurea i waenganui i a Ngāti Tara Tokanui me ngā wāhi ahurea whakahirahira mō ngā whakatupuranga kei te heke mai nei.

[Glory to God, the rising of the sun to sundown. At the break of dawn this morning as I was out running—well, sort of running—to the gardens whilst the sun was smiling below.

My thoughts turn to the matter that is at hand, and to its completion. To this debate and the honour to stand within this formidable House and support the settlement claim bill to ensure the restoration of their nation’s sovereign and independence, and to speak to this bill in the language of the land, I am delighted. It is a blessing. I am not competent in the Māori language. However, I have deep admiration towards this language. I have huge aspirations to see the language of the gods thrive again. Therefore, the most part of my speech will be spoken in the indigenous language.

My hope is to show much respect towards the Ngāti Tara Tokanui nation. This bill honours to correct the wrongs in this settlement claim that was signed on 28 July 2022 between the Crown and Ngāti Tara Tokanui. Ngāti Tara Tokanui are the people that stretch from the Paeroa area towards the Hauraki region. According to the 2018 stats, there were 830 Ngāti Tara Tokanui descendants, salutations to you all. Ngāti Tara Tokanui is one of the 12 nations that relate to the Hauraki region.

In 2009, Pare Hauraki Collective was established to work on the Treaty negotiations. The Crown and this collective signed the agreement in 2018, and so this is the bill before the House today. The settlement claim bill aims to address the obligations of the Treaty of Waitangi and the history of Ngāti Tara Tokanui by seeking to rectify iwi redress.

Here is in the first part of the bill. Firstly, is a summary of the history within the settlement claim. Its purpose is to ensure we don’t forget the history of this land. Secondly are the declarations and the breaches of the Treaty principles done by the Crown in which the people of that area were heavily affected, spiritually as well for Ngāti Tara Tokanui; the apology of the Crown for breaching its obligations to protect Ngāti Tara Tokanui from land confiscation; the banishing of the people from their villages, and their homes and the destruction made on the environment and the two rivers. Such a destruction was caused, said Steve Abel.

The second section seeks to redress the protocols and the return of some significant areas of the people. Two of those will be returned to other nations, as well. Some of these significant areas are Uritara, Mimitu Pā, Tāwhiti Paraia, and Karangahake. In the third section, it seeks to redress the economy.

There are some parts of the settlement claim that aren’t to be made legislation; as a result, that is not supported in this bill. This is the financial redress of $6 million. There is a promise made to enter a partnership with Papa Atawhai. There are negotiating letters, and introduction letters as well throughout the councils of the land and the region. The promise of Moehau maunga and the town of Te Aroha as well—it’s the cultural redress of $444,000 to revive the culture and other promises also should be set forward.

The former Minister Andrew Little said that although the redress cannot completely pay for the destruction to Ngāti Tara Tokanui caused by the Crown, this redress sets the foundation for this settlement to strengthen the future economy of Ngāti Tara Tokanui. This sets to recognise the cultural connection between Ngāti Tara Tokanui and the significant places for the future generation.]

Let me finish my thoughts now in te reo Pākehā. As the previous Minister has said, while no redress can fully compensate for the Crown’s past injustices against Ngāti Tara Tokanui, the redress in this settlement does provide a foundation for the economic future of Ngāti Tara Tokanui to build upon, and it ensures that the cultural relationship between Ngāti Tara Tokanui and sites of cultural significance is recognised for generations to come. It’s a beginning.

Secondly, this settlement serves as a vital step towards healing the deep wounds inflicted upon Ngāti Tara Tokanui. This is about recognising the mamae that has echoed through generations, and it seeks to restore the mana motuhake that was compromised. This acknowledgment is not merely a formal gesture; it’s a profound acceptance of historical truths. That’s what I spoke about earlier: historical truths that pave the way for genuine reconciliation.

Thirdly, this settlement reinvigorates the rangatiratanga of Ngāti Tara Tokanui, allowing them to chart a course towards a future defined by their aspirations. It’s about more than compensation. It’s a restoration of sovereignty over their resources, enabling them to decide how their lands are nurtured and how their people are sustained.

Finally, the resilience and unwavering advocacy of Ngāti Tara Tokanui reflects their deep commitment to returning to their ūkaipō—their place of origin. Their journey through the complexities of negotiations demonstrates a profound dedication to reclaiming not just land but a sense of home and belonging, and of re-establishing their physical and spiritual connection to the whenua that breathes life into their stories and into their traditions. I commend this bill to the House.

Ko te mihi tuatahi ki te Atua, nāna nei ngā mea katoa. Ko te mihi tuarua ki te Whare e tū nei, tēnā koe.

Apiti hono, tātai hono, te hunga mate ki te hunga mate. Apiti hono, tātai hono, te hunga ora ki te hunga ora.

He mihi mahana tēnei ki te iwi Ngāti Tara Tokanui. He mihi mahana ki a koutou katoa. Nō reira, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, huihui mai tātou katoa.

[My first acknowledgment is to God, who is the creator of all. My second acknowledgment is to this House; I thank you.

Those who have passed on, to those who have passed on. We the living, to the living.

I extend my warm greetings to Ngāti Tara Tokanui. My warmest greetings to us all. I thank you all who have gathered here.]

It has taken many years for Ngāti Tara Tokanui to reach this point on the long road which is the settlement journey. First, I would like to acknowledge those tīpuna of the iwi who have since passed away, who have given many hours and many days of their lives for this settlement process to reach this point in time.

I want to acknowledge the negotiators Russell Karu and Amelia Williams for their dedication to their people, and also for being part of the settlement since it began back in 2011. I’d also like to acknowledge those trustees of the Ngāti Tara Tokanui Trust, and also those who will have a pathway in administering the assets and the cultural redress that this settlement package delivers. On the Crown side, both Rick Barker and Michael Dreaver have had a key role in negotiating over the many years that have passed.

The deed of settlement itself with Ngāti Tara Tokanui began at Ngahutoitoi Marae when, in 2011, iwi members formally gave the mandate to begin negotiations, and the path then began. An agreement in principle was then reached in 2011 and the deed of settlement was signed here, in Parliament, in 2017, and the first reading of this bill was around Matariki last year.

The deed of settlement itself records the Crown’s acknowledgment and apology for its breaches of the Treaty in relation to Ngāti Tara Tokanui, and I think it’s worthwhile to go through a few of those in order to understand what is the purpose of this redress in terms of the grievances that are being attempted to be resolved. Between 1865 and 1868, the Crown confiscated 290,000 acres around Tauranga, including lands in which Ngāti Tara Tokanui had interests, and then, from around 1868, the rangatira Te Keepa Raharuhi entered agreements for gold prospecting and mining on Ngāti Tara Tokanui lands in the hope that they would be able to retain some ownership over those lands and also potentially gain some income from the leases in the mining agreements. But, instead, as with similar iwi around the Hauraki area, that was not the case, and this is a common tale in the story of colonisation in New Zealand. The Native Land Court processes left this iwi in debt and the Crown’s lease arrangements for mining at Ohinemuri did not provide Ngāti Tara Tokanui any income from the goldmining on their lands.

Later, the Crown purchased the operation of the Native land laws, and the Public Works Act took further land, alienating the iwi further and fragmenting Ngāti Tara Tokanui. The land was divided up so they could not stay in one place together. Then, in 1865—and this is, I think, an important thing to note—the Crown authorised discharge of the mine tailings, which included cyanide-treated waste, into the Ohinemuri and Waihou rivers. Ngāti Tara Tokanui used the rivers as water sources for washing, for drinking, and for using on their crops, and those poisons that were discharged into the natural environment caused illness and death within that community.

The Crown actions and omissions caused harm to Ngāti Tara Tokanui communities, whānau, hapū, and iwi, and left Ngāti Tara Tokanui virtually landless by the 1920s. In the deed of settlement, the Crown acknowledges that until now it has failed to address the longstanding grievances of Ngāti Tara Tokanui in an appropriate way and that the recognition of and provision of redress for these grievances and the breaches of the Treaty of Waitangi are long overdue.

I would just like to pause for a moment and reflect that it is over 120 years ago since the Crown rode roughshod over the environment and breached the Treaty of Waitangi in order to mine natural resources. As I say those words, it’s great that here, in the House today, we’re all singing off the same song sheet, but it is important to note that there is legislation within this very House now that proposes to do those same wrongs that have been done in the past. There is no difference in what these breaches were in our history 120 years ago to what is proposed: to ignore the Treaty, and also to ride roughshod over environmental protections for mining and natural resources. The Ngāti Tara Tokanui Claims Settlement Bill will give effect and will give compensation for the wrongs of the past, and maybe we will be here in another 120 years, redressing the wrongs that will go on in the next few years here in New Zealand.

The final redress of $6 million is a small amount, as noted, compared to the losses sustained by this iwi, but it is important to note that I really hope that it provides some certainty and foundations for the iwi to move forward in the future. The vesting of seven sites of cultural significance in Ngāti Tara Tokanui, including Mimitu Pā and Tawhitiaraia—two sites are jointly vested in the iwi Hako and Ngāti Tamaterā, including Karangahake. The Karangahake area is especially important as this holds special significance to Ngāti Tara Tokanui. It has been described by the people as their heart—manawa—of their rohe, and I’m pleased to see that the relationship with this area will be recognised by the redress provided through the bill.

The redress includes relationship protocols with Crown agencies, and also it provides the ability for statements of association with 14 areas of significance, including the very river I spoke about—the Ohinemuri River, and its tributaries—and that is enhancing Ngāti Tara Tokanui’s ability to participate in resource management processes, providing a strong partnership for working together in the future. It is providing an overlay classification, or whenua rāhui, which provides for the Crown to acknowledge iwi values in relation to Karangahake Scenic Reserve, and also a cultural redress payment for Ngāti Tara Tokanui cultural revitalisation.

In conclusion, I’m always kind of sad and happy on these bills. I’m sad to see the hurt that has been done, but also pleased that this gives iwi an opportunity. It gives Ngāti Tara Tokanui an opportunity to have some more determination around their own future and to make decisions that can benefit their people in the way that only they know how. While no settlement package can ever, ever fully compensate the magnitude of loss, suffering, and prejudice, it is my real hope that this package provides some comfort, future hope, and sustenance to this iwi going forward. Nō reira, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā tātou katoa.

Thank you, Mr Speaker. It is an honour and a privilege to rise and take a call on the second reading of the Ngāti Tara Tokanui Claims Settlement Bill. May I first off please acknowledge the next significant step for the people of Ngāti Tara Tokanui, for the tīpuna who have long hoped for redress, and for all those who might be watching from home as we discuss and support the passing of this legislation that is aimed to finally bring some closure to the considerable and extraordinary acts of the past.

The area that is covered by Ngāti Tara Tokanui covered a good section of the southern Coromandel, and extended from Thames across to Whangamatā, south to Paeroa and Waihī, including a large area of the northern Kaimai ranges. Negotiations with Ngāti Tara Tokanui began, as other colleagues have said earlier this evening, at Ngahutoitoi Marae in 2011, when iwi members formally gave the negotiators, Amelia Williams and Russell Karu, the mandate to negotiate a comprehensive historical Treaty settlement with the Crown on behalf of the iwi. An agreement in principle was reached in 2011, and a deed of settlement was initialled in 2017 and then signed here at Parliament in July last year. We acknowledge, of course, the work done by the negotiators, the Ministers Chris Finlayson and Andrew Little, Te Arawhiti, and all of those who have in some way contributed to the finalisation of this bill.

The deed also includes a Crown apology to Ngāti Tara Tokanui for its acts and omissions which breached its obligations under Te Tiriti o Waitangi, and for the damage those actions caused to Ngāti Tara Tokanui. These include the promotion of laws and policies in Aotearoa New Zealand that led to the alienation of land, caused environmental damage to the Waihou and Ohinemuri rivers, eroded Ngāti Tara Tokanui tribal structures, and dislocated them from their pā and their kāinga.

When we read the accounts of the Crown’s actions of the past, it really does bring home the considerable mamae and ongoing angst that this iwi and hapū went through as they watched their livelihood and ability to sustain meaningful lives literally drain away before their eyes. We must always, when speaking on these issues, acknowledge the patience and the ongoing commitment that the people of these iwi have demonstrated as they’ve fought for their right to redress.

I wasn’t part of the Māori Affairs Committee that gathered the submissions on this piece of legislation in the past parliamentary term, but I have read the submissions and the reports to ensure I could at least make some meaningful contribution to this debate, and it is indeed hard to fathom the continued persecution the people of Ngāti Tara Tokanui experienced as they traversed the 19th and 20th centuries. As mentioned, it all started in 1865, when the Crown confiscated 290,000 acres of land in which Ngāti Tara Tokanui had an interest; from an ill-fated leasing arrangement of its land in the 1870s, which subsequently removed any income from gold and mineral mining for the tribe, to the next event which saw the Crown awarded 31,700 acres of land following those leasing issues.

In 1895, the Crown authorised the discharge of mine tailings, including cyanide-treated waste, into the Ohinemuri and Waihou rivers. Ngāti Tara Tokanui had used the rivers as water sources for washing and drinking, and it’s alleged the discharges, of course, caused illness and, in some cases, death. In the early 1900s came the development of the Hauraki drainage system, designed to create farming land and prosperity, but not for Ngāti Tara Tokanui. The Crown drained the land in the swamp, and then, to add insult to injury, took the remaining land under the Public Works Act in between 1978 and 1995. That, effectively, saw the iwi landholdings diminished to a mere 232 acres. As part of this bill, the Crown has made several acknowledgments about its failure to deal with the longstanding grievances of Ngāti Tara Tokanui in an appropriate way, and that recognition of and provision of redress for these grievances is long overdue.

In my early career, I worked for a very fine establishment called the Hauraki Herald, and, as part of that, there were many trips across the Hauraki rohe which included some of the significant sites of importance to this iwi. It is indeed a beautiful part of the world, and I have this week reflected on how we must take time to understand the landscape, the rivers, and the potential that was lost for this iwi.

The Karangahake Gorge is now a cycleway and a tourist route. The area is especially significant to Ngāti Tara Tokanui. It has been described as the manawa, or heart, of their rohe, and I’m pleased their relationship with this area will be recognised by the redress through this bill. It would once have been a jewel in the crown of Ngāti Tara Tokanui, and I’m hopeful that the iwi narrative of this part of the country will be well told going forward.

This claim settlement bill will give effect to the package, which includes financial redress of $6 million, the vesting of seven sites of cultural significance, and two sites jointly vested with neighbouring iwi Hako and Ngāti Tamaterā, including Karangahake. The redress also includes relationship protocols with Crown agencies and various other aspects of it as well, including an overlay classification, or whenua rāhui, which provides for the Crown to acknowledge iwi values in relation to Karangahake Scenic Reserve. We also note that Ngāti Tara Tokanui is a member of the Hauraki collective and will receive collective redress through the Pare Hauraki Collective Redress Deed.

There is nothing that any of us can say that will make up for what happened in the 19th and 20th centuries. To these people, the devastation of their whenua and their awa, and the lack of understanding of an iwi’s connection to the land and what it means, will look beyond the physical and tangible nature of resources.

This settlement serves as a vital step towards healing the deep wounds inflicted upon Ngāti Tara Tokanui. It’s about recognising the mamae that has echoed through generations and it seeks to restore the mana motuhake that was compromised. This acknowledgment is not merely a formal gesture but a profound acceptance of historical truths that pave the way for genuine reconciliation.

This settlement reinvigorates the rangatiratanga of Ngāti Tara Tokanui, allowing them to chart a course towards a future defined by their aspirations. It’s about more than compensation. It’s a restoration of connection to their resources, enabling them to decide how their land is nurtured and their people are sustained.

Whilst after everything they’ve been through, it seems simple to stand here and speak on a bill that, by all accounts, I’ve only just become acquainted with. I genuinely want the people affected here, both past and present, to know that we hope the redress will go some way to providing hope, clarity, and aspiration for what they can now achieve with careful stewardship. Along with my colleagues, I urge the people of Ngāti Tara Tokanui to embrace their future, to see a way forward, and to ensure that whatever they do post-settlement, they set themselves up for future security and enduring sustainability so that they can share their stories in a meaningful way and the small amount of pūtea in this settlement can be the start of something great.

There were a number of submissions that were sent in for this, and only one speaker wanted to be heard, but I think it’s worth just thinking about a couple of those. The Thames-Coromandel District Council supported this bill and wanted the council to continue to develop an ongoing relationship with the iwi and the people of Hauraki through a multiplicity of formal and informal interactions. Ngāti Paoa Iwi Trust—whom we just spoke about a couple of weeks ago in this House for their own Treaty settlement claims—submitted, saying that they recognised the years of hard work, including by the negotiators Amelia Williams and Russell Karu, required to progress the settlement to this stage.

But I think it’s fitting to finish and conclude my speech tonight as we look towards a new future for Ngāti Tara Tokanui with the words of the former Mayor of Hauraki District, the wonderful Basil Morrison.

Greg Fleming: Yeah, Basil.

DANA KIRKPATRICK: Ha, ha! In his words, he said, “They have simply waited far too long to have their grievances heard and settled.”

As mentioned, National is pleased to support this piece of legislation, and I commend this bill to the House. Nō reira, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā tātou katoa.

This is a five-minute split call.

Tēnā koe, otirā tēnā koutou katoa. Tuatahi māku he mihi ki te wāhi ngaro. Kua oti i aku hoa te mihi atu ki ngā tīpuna o Ngāti Tara Tokanui. Kaha rātou i whawhai kia tae mai tēnei pire ki mua i a tātou i tēnei pō.

Heoi anō, i runga i tērā kei te mihi hoki au ki tērā aku hoa, a Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke, nāna i whakahua i te whakapapa o tēnei iwi. Tuatahi kia mōhio ai mātou tō rātou kāwai whakapapa, tuarua kia rongo ai tātou kia kōrero atu ō rātou ingoa kia rongo ai tātou i tēnei pō.

Kua tae mai mātou ki te kōrero mō tēnei mea te whakapāhā.

[Thank you, and greetings to all. Firstly, I would like to acknowledge our departed. My friends have already acknowledged the ancestors of Ngāti Tara Tokanui. They have fought hard to get the bill before us this evening.

Furthermore, I would like to also acknowledge my friend Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke, who recited the genealogy of this nation. Firstly, to shed some light on their chiefly genealogical ties, secondly also so that we can hear their names before us this evening.

We have arrived here to speak to the apology.]

I just want to acknowledge the fact that we’re here to acknowledge an apology, and I had to actually google what the Māori word for “apology” was because I don’t often have to make one. Hoi anō—

Hon Willie Jackson: Don’t tell stories.

CUSHLA TANGAERE-MANUEL: Well, no, it’s true—I mean, I had to look up the English definition, as well, to be honest. You just text my husband—he’ll verify that. Hoi anō, all jokes aside, I think it’s important to acknowledge that. We’ve acknowledged those who, 15 years ago, started these negotiations so that we may arrive today. That’s such a long time. That’s about as long as it would take for someone to get me to apologise—hoi anō.

In acknowledging Ngāti Tara Tokanui, I thought there’s probably a generation who haven’t actually heard the apology. So for those who are probably watching at home or who may some point watch on social media, where most people seem to watch these days, I thought that for the benefit of the taringa of ngā mokopuna, I would read out that apology tonight: “(a) The Crown has prejudiced Ngāti Tara Tokanui by promoting laws and policies in New Zealand that led to the alienation of your whenua, caused environmental damage to the Waihou and Ohinemuri Rivers, eroded your tribal structures, and dislocated your people from their pā and kāinga. The Crown has failed to uphold its obligations under te Tiriti o Waitangi … and has caused physical and spiritual hardship that is deeply felt today. (b) For its actions, which have caused Ngāti Tara Tokanui prejudice, and its breaches of te Tiriti o Waitangi … and its principles, the Crown is truly sorry. (c) The Crown hopes that this settlement marks a new beginning in which the relationship that has been damaged can be restored, and that the Crown and Ngāti Tara Tokanui can begin anew in a spirit of mutual respect and partnership, guided by the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi”.

Willie Jackson is champing at the bid to take the second half of this call, so I will keep it brief. There is a lot of kōrero been had tonight about mana, and I want to be clear that this is not about restoring mana to Ngāti Tara Tokanui. In confiscating their land, their water, they retained their mana. We are here simply to redress what was done financially, fiscally, when their land was taken—that’s why we’re here—because they maintained their mana and they fought as kaitiaki of the whenua and the wai.

There have been comments about the amount of compensation being $6 million—kei a koutou tonu te mana mō tērā Ngāti Tara Tokanui [who still hold the mana for that, Ngāti Tara Tokanui.] But I just want to put that into perspective. You don’t have to look too far; you’ve just got to google to find a private property for sale for that amount. So to compensate a whole iwi—I just want to keep that in perspective.

Heoi anō rā, hei whakakapi tēnei te mihi atu ki a koutou Ngāti Tara Tokanui, ehara mā mātou tō koutou mana e whakahoki, kei a rātou tonu tō koutou ake mana. Koutou ngā kaitiaki o te whenua, ngā kaitiaki o ngā wai, otirā kei a koutou hoki te mana o tēnei Treaty settlement. Mā koutou e whakatau me pēhea koutou e haere ki mua. Tēnā koutou. E te Māngai o te Whare, tēnā tātou.

[However, to conclude my acknowledgments to you, Ngāti Tara Tokanui, it is not for us to return your mana, you already own your mana. You are the protectors of the land, the protectors of the water, you also hold the mana of this Treaty settlement. You can decide on what the future looks like. Salutations. To the Speaker, thank you all.]

Thank you very much, Mr Speaker. As the member of Parliament for Coromandel, much of the Ngāti Tara Tokanui rohe is encompassed by the existing Coromandel electorate. So even though—as others have already mentioned in this second reading debate—it is a small iwi, it is mighty in stature and it is proud in history and heritage, and they have indeed waited far too long.

Much has been said in this mostly respectful second reading debate of the history and the scars that have been vested upon the land, the rohe, of Ngāti Tara Tokanui. As people cycle through today’s Hauraki railway cycleway, which is one of the most ridden in the country, they traverse through the riverbanks of the Ohinemuri River and the beautiful native regenerating bush, but still the scars on the environmental landscape are still there—the remnants of mining, the rusting hulk of mining, that was taking place a hundred years or so ago—and, as the Green member Steve Abel so eloquently mentioned during his contribution about the mighty native trees that once stood so high, tall, and proudly in the rohe, most of them are gone. Fortunately, the bush is regenerating, but those scars are still prevalent, and as the former Mayor of the Hauraki District Council, the very venerable Basil Morrison, has said, these people have waited far too long.

In April of 2011, I think it was, I had the privilege of being selected as the National Party candidate for Coromandel, and people were saying to me then, “Get ready, Scott. Get ready, because these Treaty settlements are about to be done, and they’ll be done in about six months’ time. You’ve got to get ready for it because there’s going to be great change occurring, and it’ll be a good thing for the region.” Well, here we are almost—in fact, even a little over 13 years’ later, and we are still making slow progress to a small attempt to right the wrongs of the past. We can never right the wrongs of the past, because the measure we use today simply can’t account for what was done by our predecessors, and we look back askance on that now, often, at how that happened.

So I’m pleased that we’re now at the second reading stage. We’ve got the committee of the whole House to come, and then we have a final third reading on this piece of legislation.

When we go through these Treaty settlement pieces of legislation, for me, and, I know, for other members in this Chamber, they provide an opportunity for reflection and for an insightful analysis of this nation’s history but also, I hope, a small element of optimism for the future and what might come from them—inadequate as they are, and as small and modest as they are, still hope and optimism for the future. I want to congratulate members who have made that future, forward-looking, aspirational hope for Ngāti Tara Tokanui and their people as part of the debate tonight, and I for one am going to be looking forward to the third reading, and to being here in this Chamber when that occurs, for the optimism and hope that that settlement will bring.

I want to acknowledge, in the last few minutes of my contribution tonight, those who have gone before and who have made their contribution and have not been able to be with us to see it concluded. I want to acknowledge the negotiators and the officials that have got this piece of legislation to where it is, and the Ministers who have been involved from successive Governments who have worked diligently and carefully to get to the point where we are today. Too slow, too little, not enough, but, hopefully, a glimmer of hope for the future, and if we didn’t have that glimmer of hope for the future, we wouldn’t be pursuing this process, which has taken too long, so long, and has been so fraught for so many.

So I want to join with others in commending this second reading to the House. I look forward to the bill’s further progress and, ultimately, to third reading and passing it in the not too distant future. Thank you, Mr Speaker.

Hon Willie Jackson: Mr Speaker.

Sorry, the Hon Willie Jackson. You may need an apology from Miss Tangaere-Manuel about taking your time, because the time has come for me to leave. The debate is interrupted and is set down for resumption next sitting day. The House stands adjourned until 2 p.m. tomorrow.

Debate interrupted.

The House adjourned at 9.59 p.m.