Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Ranginui Claims Settlement Bill

I seek leave to present a legislative statement on the Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Ranginui Claims Settlement Bill.

ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Teanau Tuiono): Leave has been sought for that course of action. Is there any objection? There is none. That legislative statement is published under the authority of the House and can be found on the Parliament website.

Hon PAUL GOLDSMITH: I move, That the Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Ranginui Claims Settlement Bill be now read a second time.

Tihei mauri ora!

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

Ka mihi ki ngā maunga kōrero, ki ngā awa rangatira, ki te whenua taurikura o ngā hapū o Ngāti Ranginui, e ngā kāwai rangatira, tēnā tātou katoa.

[The breath of life!

The House that stands here, the Beehive, greetings. The land outside, greetings. The mandated authority of this region, greetings. The dearly departed, farewell, farewell, farewell. Farewell to the land of the ancestors. To the living, greetings to you, to all of us.

I acknowledge the storied mountains, the noble rivers, the bountiful land of the hapū of Ngāti Ranginui, the lines of noble descent, greetings to us all.]

This bill gives effect to the deed of settlement signed by Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Ranginui and the Crown in June 2012, which settles all the historical Treaty settlement claims of Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Ranginui. It is a privilege to welcome everybody here this morning to Parliament to host you for the final readings of the bill, and it was a wonderful opportunity to meet earlier and to have some kai together.

Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Ranginui is an iwi based in the Tauranga region, one of three Tauranga Moana Iwi alongside Ngāti Pūkenga, and Ngāi Te Rangi. Their area of interest extends from Ngā Kuri o Wai Whare, north of Tauranga, inland of the summit of Mount Te Aroha, extending south-east along the Kaimai range to Pūwhenua and reaching south into the Mangorewa River.

Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Ranginui are hapū-centric and this is the source of great pride to them. The primary hapū affiliated with Ngāti Ranginui are Pirirākau, Ngāti Taka, Wairoa hapū, Ngāti Hangarau, Ngāi Tamarāwaho, Ngāi Te Ahi, Ngāti Ruahine, and Ngāti Te Wai.

According to the 2023 census, 9,967 people, precisely, affiliate to Ngāti Ranginui, and their historical claims relate to the war and raupatu in Tauranga, Crown purchasing of the Te Puna-Katikati blocks, and the operation and impact of the native land laws and land loss. The quantum in the financial commercial redress is $38 million.

I draw members’ attention to the Order Paper and note that the third reading of the bill is scheduled to come next, when we’ll speak more about the hapū and the significance of the settlement. In this reading, I just want to focus on the relevant procedural matters enabling the bill today.

The bill had been part of an omnibus bill, along with the Tauranga Moana Iwi Collective Redress Bill, which was introduced into Parliament in November 2015 and read a first time in April 2016. In 2016, the omnibus bill was considered by the Māori Affairs Committee, which included public submissions. The committee received and considered seven written submissions and three supplementary submissions and reported back, but Parliament did not consider it because Ngāti Ranginui asked for the progress of the bill to be paused to enable them to address overlapping claims with the Hauraki iwi.

In late 2022, Ngāti Ranginui approached the Crown about finalising their Treaty settlement as soon as possible. This proposal was discussed with the other two Tauranga Moana Iwi who are party to the omnibus bill—Ngāi Te Rangi and Ngāti Pūkenga—and they agreed that the omnibus bill could be divided so that Ngāti Ranginui could proceed while the Tauranga Moana Iwi Collective Redress Bill continues to be held for a second reading. The previous Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations, Andrew Little, agreed to propose the division of the omnibus bill to Cabinet so that Ngāti Ranginui could move to the second and third readings and on to enactment, and in September 2023, Cabinet agreed to this. I’m pleased to be able to pick up this work and to progress this bill today.

Two Amendment Papers were drafted by the Parliamentary Counsel Office, one to divide the omnibus bill and the other to make minor technical changes required to reflect changes that have occurred since then. I want to thank the Parliamentary Counsel Office for doing that. On 21 March 2024, I moved a motion in the House to discharge the omnibus bill from the second reading and to refer it to the Māori Affairs Committee to consider Amendment Papers. The Māori Affairs committee has considered those Amendment Papers and reported the omnibus bill back to Parliament as two separate bills: Tauranga Moana Iwi Collective Redress Bill and Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Ranginui Claims Settlement Bill. The committee has agreed to their recommendations and updates technical terms.

The most substantial change over time is the relationship redress in cultural and heritage sector agencies. Up to 2016, the Crown offered a taonga tūturu protocol which was solely with the Ministry of Culture and Heritage. In 2017, a collective relationship agreement, Whakaaetanga Tiaki Taonga, was developed to provide a relationship with the wider range of cultural agencies, and the Amendment Paper makes these changes. I thank the committee for its consideration.

Ngāti Ranginui has worked tirelessly with my officials to bring the settlement to this point. I look forward to speaking about the particulars and the details of the bill in the third reading speech coming up soon. So, Mr Speaker, I commend this bill to the House. Nō reira, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa.

Kua tāngia tēnei tauākī ā-ture i raro i te mana o te Whare, ā, ka kitea ki te paetukutuku a te Pāremata. Ko te pātai kia whakaaetia te mōtini.

[This legislative statement is published under the authority of the House and can be seen on the Parliament website. The question is that the motion be agreed to.]

Ko te mihi tuatahi ki te Atua nāna nei ngā mea katoa. Ko te mihi tuarua ki te Whare e tū nei, tēnā koe. Āpiti hono, tātai hono, te hunga mate ki te hunga mate. Āpiti hono, tātai hono, te hunga ora ki te hunga ora.

Ko tēnei te mihi ki a koutou o te iwi, ngā hapū o Ngāti Ranginui. He mihi mahana ki a koutou katoa i tēnei rā whakahirahira. Nō reira tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, huihui mai tātou katoa.

[The first acknowledgment is to God, to whom all things belong. The second acknowledgment is to the House that stands here, greetings. As the lines of descent connect us all, the deceased come together. As the lines of descent connect us all, the living also come together.

I hereby greet you of the people, the hapū of Ngāti Ranginui. A warm greeting to you all on this important day. And so, greetings and thanks to you, and all of us assembled here.]

I stand today to speak on the Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Ranginui Claims Settlement Bill, a bill that marks both an end and also a beginning. It marks the end of a long and painful chapter in a history that we need to acknowledge, and that is part of what we are doing today. Also, I would like to think, and I hope, that it’s a beginning in a new relationship between the Crown and Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Ranginui—one grounded in acknowledgment, one grounded in redress, and also one grounded in a hope for a better future for both parties to this agreement.

The suffering endured by Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Ranginui was not incidental. It was not accidental. It was systemic, it was targeted, and it was unjust. This is reflected accurately in the Waitangi Tribunal’s report, Te Raupatu o Tauranga Moana. It lays out clearly the devastating impact of the Crown’s actions. Actions that stripped over 290,000 acres of land from hapū, undermined hapū authority, and led to generations of marginalisation. These breaches of Te Tiriti o Waitangi, especially article 2, which guaranteed tino rangatiratanga, were profound.

The raupatu of Tauranga Moana followed the Crown’s aggressive military campaign. It included the infamous battles of Gate Pā and Te Ranga. Under the shadow of the Crown’s New Zealand Settlements Act 1863, the Crown labelled the people of Ngāti Ranginui as “rebels”, as it tried to justify the seizure of their whenua. But history shows us clearly that these were not the actions of what the Crown called “rebels”. These were the actions of a people defending their homes, their whakapapa, and their sovereignty. In this bill, the Crown formally apologises for those actions. That apology is not symbolic; it is a necessary act of recognition, and without that acknowledgment, there can be no hope of reconciliation. Without truth, there can be no justice, and this bill reaffirms both.

Labour has long upheld Te Tiriti o Waitangi as the foundation of our land, our country. Not just historically, but as a living, breathing document. It is a covenant. Te Tiriti speaks not just to the rights of Māori but also to those responsibilities of the Crown. Those responsibilities were clearly broken for Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Ranginui, and this bill seeks to redress some form of justice.

In doing so, we must recognise the context from which it has emerged. Originally, part of the Tauranga Moana Iwi Collective Redress and Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Ranginui Claims Settlement Bill, this settlement was designed to address the shared and overlapping interests of Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Ranginui, Ngāi Te Rangi, and Ngāti Pūkenga through collective redress. But as the process evolved, it became clear that unity did not equate to uniformity, as often is the case with the Treaty settlements process. Each iwi and hapū has its own kōrero, its own priorities, and its own pace. The decision to divide the omnibus bill, made by the Māori Affairs Committee after careful consideration, allowed the bill to proceed independently, reflecting the readiness and the mandate of Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Ranginui to move forward. This was the right decision. No settlement should be delayed because of complexities elsewhere, and every hapū has the right to see its own journey to justice recognised on its own terms.

This bill has been shaped by many years of negotiation and refinement. It reflects not just the endurance of Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Ranginui but also advice, advocacy, and the courage of all those who have worked to bring it to this point in time. I would like to acknowledge the negotiators, those who worked in the Office of Treaty Settlements, and all of those whānau and individuals who have supported behind the scenes, whether it be preparing kai, organising papers, or doing all of the endless hours of work to bring this claim to this point in time.

The Treaty settlements process is far from perfect. It does not even equate to a drop in the bucket to what has been taken and lost. But I genuinely hope that this process paves a way of hope, opportunity, for the next generation to take this land of ours and to make it into something that recognises who you are, what you can become, and what we can share together.

Nō reira, he mihi mahana ki a koutou i tēnei rā. Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā tātou katoa.

[And so, warm regards to you all today. Greetings one and all.]

Kia ora, Mr Speaker, and kia ora, Ngāti Ranginui. We stand in these settlement speeches to acknowledge the harm caused to your iwi in the process of colonisation and raupatu—the injustice of the way that the Crown treated Ngāti Ranginui and the people of Tauranga Moana.

I have some of my earliest memories of travelling with my parents down from Tāmaki-makau-rau, in a little Mini, on gravel roads, through the Karangahake Gorge, to Tauranga, where my grandmother lived. She lost her first husband in the Hastings-Napier earthquake in 1931 and travelled with two young children to Tauranga to start a shop in Cameron Road—a florist and antique shop. When I was a kid, I didn’t know the meaning of this word “Cameron”. We now know the weight and gravity of the history associated with that name and the impact on your people and the people of the Waikato and the people of the Bay of Plenty.

My mother was born in 1938, in Tauranga, and she spent her childhood raised in the Bay of Plenty. On her deathbed her older brother John called me—she’d lost her ability to speak—and he said, “Recall to your mum how, when we were kids, we would take the horses down to Pāpāmoa Beach, and we would take off the saddles and the bridles and we would ride them bareback into the breaking waves, and we’d shriek with laughter. The horses loved the sea, and we loved the sea.” I recounted that story to my mother, and she smiled, and she wept—that was her memory of her childhood, her most precious memory.

We, as tangata Tiriti, me as a Pākehā, come to understand that the blessing of the life that we enjoy in these lands, and the “haere mai, haere mai, haere mai” that we were offered when our ancestors first arrived—that is what we must make account for, in understanding the atrocities and the horrors of the history that led to our presence in these lands, that led to my mother’s childhood in Tauranga. Here today, for us to account for that history and to make good that history in so far as we can—because there is no recompense, there is no compensation, there is no satisfactory acknowledgment of the impact of the raupatu and the loss of lands and the loss of the ability to exercise self-determination and the rangatiratanga. But here, today, the purpose of this bill and the settlement is to take that step towards fulfilling the ability of Ngāti Ranginui to express their rangatiratanga as mana whenua, as mana tangata, as mana moana of your part of the world.

I bumped into a gentleman that I met down in the Bay of Plenty, in Tauranga, actually, in the resistance against the Petrobras oil drilling. I was part of Greenpeace, and we stood with Te Whānau-ā-Apanui and Ngāti Porou and other iwi of the Bay of Plenty against that drilling there. Ngāti Ranginui sang a version of “In the Ghetto”, I believe, but changed all the lyrics to be about resisting the desecration of the customary waters of the peoples of the Bay of Plenty with oil drilling, and that resistance was effective. I would say that, in this reading, in this history, in this account, in this bill, we see the incredible resilience and dignity of Ngāti Ranginui, in your holding on to your rights of tino rangatiratanga in your rohe, in your lands, in your waters.

The infamous image of the kuia giving water to Booth at the Gate Pā battle. That image of the dignity of Māori in expressing aroha, even to their assaulter—this is something that we, as a nation, must recall. We must remember that it is tangata whenua Māori who have shown the generosity that embodies the core spirit of what makes Aotearoa what it is to this day.

I acknowledge the raupatu and the confiscation of the Tauranga district lands, that it had a devastating effect on the welfare and the economy of Ngāti Ranginui hapū and deprived those hapū of wāhi tapu, access to natural resources, and opportunities for development at Tauranga, and prevented Ngāti Ranginui from exercising mana and rangatiratanga over land and resources within the Tauranga Moana—a scorched-earth policy. Shameful—a shameful history. We thank you, Ngāti Ranginui, for being here today, because you go some way to restoring the honour of the Crown by your presence, so thank you for that.

As tangata Tiriti, we must account for this history, we must understand it, we must seek to step into it, and we must open our hearts to the generosity of the likes of Ngāti Ranginui in seeking reconciliation. But that must take serious account of the impact of colonisation. I echo the feelings of my colleague from the Labour Party that these settlements are never sufficient. They are, in a sense, less than a 1 percent offering of what is lost, and we, as Te Pāti Kākāriki, do not accept the principle of a full and final settlement. Whilst this settlement is that—because that is the current legislative structure, and we will be supporting this bill—we do not accept the principle as correct. The relationship between tangata Tiriti and tangata whenua is a living and eternal relationship. Te Tiriti o Waitangi is a living agreement. It is a binding contract which is the founding of the relationship with tangata whenua Māori and all those who came since, whether we are Pākehā or tauiwi. So the idea that we would settle the relationship makes no sense—it has no logic to it.

Hoki whenua mai [Land return] is a deeply held principle by Te Pāti Kākāriki. If we recognise that in the essence, the sordid land grab, in the words of Cameron himself—the sordid land grab—that was the raupatu in the Bay of Plenty and the Waikato and Taranaki, well, the obvious amends is to give back the land—return the land—and I’m glad to see that this bill goes some way to returning some of that land. But we must recognise and we must be welcome to step into the truth, that for us to truly make amends for colonisation and the impact of it, we must be prepared to return more land and allow tino rangatiratanga, in the terms of tangata whenua Māori—in their terms—to be expressed, as was the contract, as was the agreement that we, my ancestors, signed up to in 1840.

We today commend this bill to the House. We thank you, Ngāti Ranginui, for being here, and we acknowledge your dignity and your mana. Kia ora koutou katoa.

Thank you, Mr Speaker. Tēnā koutou Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Ranginui, Ngāti Te Wai, Pirirākau, Ngāti Taka, Ngāti Rangi, Ngāti Pango, Ngāti Kahu, Ngāti Hangarau, Ngāi Tamarāwaho, Ngāi Te Ahi, Ngāti Ruahine, and all your tīpuna and all your ancestors that you represent here today and your descendants to come.

I have stood and spoken in this House on behalf of the ACT Party on a few Treaty settlement bills. In the 18 months since I’ve been elected, I’ve been privileged to speak on the Whakatōhea Claims Settlement Act—close to home—and, recently, the Te Ture mō Ō-Rākau, Te Pae o Maumahara 2025/Ō-Rākau Remembrance Act 2025, the history of which touches deeply in some of the history outlined in the Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Ranginui Claims Settlement Bill.

This is, for me, an emotional moment to speak on such a bill. I am a child of Pāpāmoa. I come from the Bay of Plenty; this is where I am from. I read about the history, and it’s history that I know quite well—as much as one who didn’t descend from it and live part of it can hope to know. These acknowledgments are long overdue. When I was a young fulla—I actually said something similar in the Ō-Rākau Act—I probably spent too much time wagging school, but I was doing some things. At one point, I drove over to the site of the Battle of Ōrākau by myself when I should have been at school, because I was interested in the history. But that history stemmed from a story that I have shared with some people, some who are even in this gallery today, where I went about trying to understand the history of my own area because I didn’t feel like I was learning it properly. I remember one day I left school—probably during English class—and got my way over to Pyes Pā and went looking for a battle site that I’d read about but didn’t know anything about and wasn’t being taught about.

Actually, first I should say, growing up, my generation started learning about Gate Pā, better known as Pukehinahina. We started learning about that, and it was talked about the way the toa and the wāhine treated with their enemy—there was a declaration on the way that Māori toa were going to treat with their enemies. I found the great line “If thy enemy hungers, feed him; if he thirsts, give him drink.” to exemplify what I’m trying to talk about here.

Pukehinahina was a known battle. It was sat there as a monument with an Anglican church on it, and we all knew it was there, but we didn’t know about Te Ranga. I went looking that day for the battle site. I had old maps that I’d found—God bless the internet for giving information out. I was trying to track the topography of the land and the rivers and the road, trying to find this place. So imagine a 15-year-old—myself—bashing through a bramble bush on the side of the road and finding this concrete plinth with old writing on it that could barely be understood. You know, it was not a well-kept mark of the site. But, for me, I could start to see the way things happened there, and it was deeply emotional for me sitting there—I mean, remember, I was 15 years old; this was quite a shocking thing to try and discover for oneself.

I’m glad and proud that today that site has been taken care of, acknowledged, and shown to the people of Tauranga and the people that travelled that road between Rotorua and Tauranga. But I recognise also the deep pain of the battle of Te Ranga, and the way that pain has carried on through the generations probably reflects why it was not in the state that it is now. It is a good thing that it is now being looked after, but I can completely empathise with those who would rather have just looked away and not thought about that particular site.

The raupatu and confiscations are something that Tauranga was—you know, reading Victory at Gate Pā?, Buddy Mikaere’s book, you can see the constraints on the descendants. You know, moving into areas like Judea, in Tauranga—“Ju-daya”, I suppose, if anyone else is reading it—how that was marginal land, and how they no longer had access to places like Kōpūrererua and the fertile places around to harvest kai and grow. It was not a great—“not great” is an understatement; it was a horrible, horrible situation for a century, for decades and decades. But today, this House starts to recognise, by going through the motions of passing into law, the deed of settlement. That has, as we’ve heard, been a long time coming back from the splitting of the Tauranga Moana Iwi Collective Redress Bill.

Also, I note that in some of the settlement, there is land to be returned. A lot of people outside of the Bay of Plenty know about Mount Maunganui—Mauao—know about the hill that sort of sits there and is the symbol of our area and a sacred hill to Ngāti Ranginui. There’s also hills like Pūwhenua and Ōtānewainuku getting returned in this settlement in a way—still with access to the public, but returning.

Talking to my wife this morning, I asked, “What are you doing today, darling?” She said, “I’m going to go and get the bloody stoat that I’ve heard is running around in Ōtānewainuku right now.” So as I stand here speaking about the settlement and how Ōtānewainuku is being returned, my wife is currently out there trying to eradicate pests on that very piece of whenua, and I felt that was quite a poetic situation to find myself, and ourselves, in.

My children are being raised in the area. They’re learning about where all the reefs are. They learn where the hills are and the rivers. I don’t shy back from telling them about the history of Tauranga, but I also tell them that this is their place. This is where they’re from. This is where they’ll always be able to come back to. We know the rivers, as much as I can discover them and my family can discover them. We know the waters, the hills, and the bush as much as we can. It probably was a bit too much as a young fulla trying to get out and go places that perhaps weren’t always public access, but I wanted to experience everything that our beautiful rohe, your beautiful rohe, has to show.

Tauranga was supposed to be a safe harbour. It was discovered by Tamatea-arikinui and the waka Tākitimu, eventually opening up for your people to settle. Te Awanui, Tauranga Harbour, was supposed to be—and it is—a safe harbour. Te Awanui was supposed to be a safe harbour and it was not. The Crown ships came in, opened up another front of the Waikato Wars, and that’s where this pain starts. Today, we’re not finishing the pain but we’re taking another step on that path of sorting it out. I thank you very much for listening to me ramble on. Ngā mihi. Thank you, Mr Speaker.

Kia ora. Tēnā koutou katoa. Forty-five years ago, in a meeting of the National Party caucus, a then young MP with a Māori background, one of only four who had won a European seat since 1854, raised the contrast of Arthur Allan Thomas getting a $1 million while the Māori in Tauranga were being offered $200,000. There are some people here who remember that.

The reality is that we were the beneficiaries of the representation from the Tauranga Māori of a man called “Ed” Morgan, a brilliant legal scholar from Oxford University who spent four years in Changi prison and yet went down to Tauranga to practise law and acted for the Māori at the time. He came before the then select committee and he said this to the members of Parliament representing this issue, in which a pittance was being paid to the people of Tauranga. He said to the members of Parliament: “You sit here in the seat of princes. May you treat this matter in a princely fashion.”

Well, that did not happen. It’s the last thing that happened. But times move on and, four years later, someone who had a connection because some of his relations are buried at Matakana Island became, in the snap election, the MP for Tauranga.

Hon Members: Who was that?

Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: And happily said, in all those years, “I’m entirely happy to be the MP for Tauranga”, as all sorts of aspersions were being flung at us. So this is a great day, delayed though it may be, but one should remember the facts of the matter and how sometimes one is able to help. Do you remember: it’s 1990—one—and we have a situation where the kiwifruit ownership by Māori in Tauranga is over 10 percent of nationwide and it’s indebted to the tune of $92 million, all occasioned by Treasury and the Ministry of Māori Affairs making the decision and not the local Māori themselves. Then, the MP for Tauranga, as you will recall, started an action against the Minister of Finance, saying, “You have failed to exercise a duty of care, and we’re going to take you to court.” Well, they caved in and that $92 million was written off. Sometimes things do work out.

Can I say to the people of Tauranga that it’s great to see you here today and, so late in the piece nevertheless, in a settlement that is much more acceptable. I didn’t come down to speak today until I was watching on television and I saw you all here, and I thought I’d better get down and put this story right. The last thing is that you are in the area where one of the most significant ports coming into the future still remains to be Tauranga. Could I just say, from this far away still, don’t let that be sold to someone else. Make sure it remains in local control. It will be far more valuable in the years to come if people have the foresight to see the shape of transport and shipping in the future, going forward. It will be seriously, seriously important, and at a critical time, as I’m watching from this far away, I see that some want to sell it. Make sure, whether you’re European or Māori in Tauranga, that that doesn’t happen.

Kia ora tātou. Thank you very much.

Tau ake au ki te tau nei ko Rua-tipua ko Rua-tawhito

Ngarue i runga, ngarue i raro

Ngarue i Te Iho a Tāne, Te Iho a Tāne ko taku waka ko Takitimu.

Rere mai te maramara, ko Ihinui, ko Ihiroa, ko Te Āwhiorangi

E ko wai kei runga nei, e tū pā-whaiake

E ko au ko Uenuku, e tū pā-whaiake.

E Rata, e Rata! He aha tāu e hanga, e tū pā-whaiake

Inumia te kawa—tākina te kawa!

Te kawa tūānihinihi te kawa

Te kawa tūārangaranga te kawa

Te kawa o wai? Te kawa o Takitimu

Inumia te waka o Tīrari, inumia te waka o Tīrara

Inumia te waka o Rongokako, inumia te waka o Tamatea-ariki-nui

Turuki turuki, paneke paneke

Turuki turuki, paneke paneke

Haramai te toki, haumi e, hui e, tāiki e.

[I recite the recitation, it is Rua-the-powerful, Rua-the-ancient

Reverberation above, reverberation below

Reverberation upon the essence of Tāne, the essence of Tāne, my ancestral canoe is Takitimu

The woodchips fly, it is Ihinui, Ihiroa and Te Āwhiorangi

Who is this above me, launch the canoe

It is I, it is Uenuku, launch the canoe

Rātā, Rātā! What have you constructed, launch the canoe

Internalise the ceremony—recite the ceremony!

The ceremony is one of breadth

The ceremony is one of turbulence

Whose ceremony is it? It is the ceremony of Takitimu

Internalise the canoe of Tīrari, internalise the canoe of Tirara

Internalise the vessel of Rongokako, internalise the vessel of Tamatea-ariki-nui

Advance, advance, progress, progress

Advance, advance, progress, progress

The adze comes forth

It coalesces, it assembles, it is bound.]

Nō reira kei ngā hekenga o Tamatea-ariki-nui, heke rawa mai ki a Rongokako, ki a Tamatea-pōkai-whenua. Rere iho nei ko Ranginui tōmua, ko Kahungunu tōmuri. Haere mai, haere mai, haere mai.

Whakatau mai ki roto ki tēnei Whare. Kawea mai ngā nawe o rātou mā hei whakatutuki i roto i tēnei rangi. A rau mahara, a rau manako, ngā hiahia o te hunga kua ngaro nei i a tātou. Hoki nei ōku mahara ki tērā pāpā o koutou, he pāpā nō mātou, ki a Te Huikākahu mōna i tohe roa kia toitū te rangatiratanga o Ranginui, o Tauranga Moana ki runga ki te mata o te whenua.

Kei ngā mātua tīpuna i te pō, e ara. E ara, hoki wairua mai i roto i tēnei wā. E whai nei ngā mokopuna i te ara i parangia e rātou i roto i te wā i a rātou, kīhai rātou i eke ki te toi ora kia tae ki tēnei wā. Hoki wairua mai, hoki wairua mai, hoki wairua mai.

Kawea mai tō rātou ihi ki roto ki tēnei rā kia āta whakarongo ki ngā kōrero a tēnā, a tēnā, a tēnā i roto i tēnei Whare. Kāre au mō te tōwai i ngā mahi kua oti kē i a koutou te whakatutuki i roto i ngā rau mahara, i ngā tau maha. Tēnā koutou i ā koutou mahi.

He mahi ka haere ao te pō, pō te ao, whakatipuranga atu, whakatipuranga mai ka ea te kōrero, “hinga atu he tētēkura”; kua tae mai te tētēkura o tēnei rā. Haere mai rā.

Haere mai rā me te tini tūmanako mō te āpōpō. Kawea mai ō mokopuna i roto i tēnei rā kia titia te whatumanawa, te ngākau, te pātukitanga o te whakatipuranga ka heke mai, ka heke mai, ka heke mai.

Me tō tātou mōhio, tēnei tohe a te iwi Māori, e kore e oti i te rā nei. Ahakoa tērā taha o tēnei kōrero, e mea nei au ki a tātou i roto i tēnei rā, tauāraia te pō, tītoko ko te ao mārama. Kia whitikina ā tātou tamariki, ā tātou mokopuna ki ngā hihi o Tama-nui-te-rā, kia kaua rā e noho nei ko tātou i roto i te kupenga a te Kāwanatanga, engari kia ū tātou ki roto ki te kupenga o ngā mahi a ngā mātua tīpuna, tatū iho ki a koutou o Tauranga Moana i roto i tēnei rangi.

E hika mā, kia tika te whakahua o ō koutou ingoa i roto i tēnei rā. Māku te rārangi. Nō reira kei ngā hapū katoa o te rōpū whakamana i ngā hapū o Ranginui, arā ki a Pirirākau, ki a Ngāti Taka, ki a Wairoa hapū arā Ngāti Kahu, Ngāti Rangi, koutou tahi me Ngāti Pango, Ngāti Hangarau, Ngāi Tamarāwaho, Ngāi Te Ahi, Ngāti Ruahine, koutou tahi, tātou me kī, me Ngāti Te Wai. Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā rā koutou katoa.

Kotahi taku kōrero ki te Whare ki te reo Pākehā.

[And so to the descendants of Tamatea-ariki-nui, descending to Rongokako, and to Tamatea-pōkai-whenua. Flowing on to Ranginui first and Kahungunu later. Welcome, welcome, welcome.

Welcome into this House. Bring with you the grievances of those who have passed on to be resolved today. The many memories, the many hopes, the desires of those who have been lost to us. My memories return to that patriarch of yours, a patriarch of ours also, to Te Huikākahu, who fought for so long so that the sovereignty of Ranginui and Tauranga Moana would remain on the face of the earth.

To the forebears and ancestors in the darkness, arise. Arise and return to us in spirit at this time. The grandchildren are following the path that was blazed by them during their time, they did not reach the pinnacle of health in order to be here at this time. Return, return, return to us in spirit.

Bring with you their enduring power today to carefully listen to the comments of each of us in this House. I will not repeat the actions that you have already completed through the many memories and many years. I congratulate you on your work.

It is a job that continues by night and by day, and with each successive generation the saying is embodied, “as a leader passes”; the leadership of today has arrived. Welcome.

Welcome to you and your many hopes for the future. Bring with you your grandchildren today so that it may be embedded in the bosom, the heart, the heartbeat of the generations to come.

And we are aware that this struggle of the Māori people will not end today. Despite the opposing side of this discussion, I say to us today cross the threshold of darkness, the world of light rises. That our children and our grandchildren may be illuminated by the rays of Tama-nui-te-rā, so that we do not remain within the net of the Government, but we instead engage in the net of the actions of the forebears and ancestors, and including you of Tauranga Moana today.

My friends, let your names be pronounced accurately today. Allow me to list them. Therefore to all the hapū of the mandated authority of the hapū of Ranginui, that is to Pirirākau, to Ngāti Taka, to the Wairoa hapū of Ngāti Kahu, Ngāti Rangi, you along with Ngāti Pango, Ngāti Hangarau, Ngāi Tamarāwaho, Ngāi Te Ahi, Ngāti Ruahine, all of you, I should say all of us, with Ngāti Te Wai. My thanks, congratulations, and greetings to all of you.

I have one comment to make to this House in English.]

To the Government: this apology is in your name. I hope that from today, this afternoon, and every day into the future, you treat Ranginui with the respect, the sanctity, the honour, and the mana that is in this apology. E te Pīka, tēnā koe.

E te Māngai o te Whare, nei rā te mihi ki a koe.

Ki te hunga mate, koutou ngā tūpuna o Ngāti Ranginui kua rere atu ki tua o te ārai, koutou i patua ai e te Karauna i te pakanga o Pukehinahina me te pakanga o Te Ranga, moe mai, moe mai, moe mai rā.

Ki a koutou, ngā hapū o Ngāti Ranginui kua tae mai i tēnei rā, kei te rere ngā mihi maioha ki a koutou katoa. Kua roa te haere engari kia mataara, kei te tata tonu te whakatau, kei te tata tonu te iti Kahurangi.

[Mr Speaker, I acknowledge you.

To the dearly departed, the ancestors of Ngāti Ranginui who have gone beyond the veil, you who were killed by the Crown in the battle of Gate Pā and the battle of Te Ranga, rest in peace.

To you, the hapū of Ngāti Ranginui who have arrived here today, warm regards flow to all of you. It has been a long journey but remain alert, settlement is close, the valued treasure is close.]

I wish to acknowledge the descendants of Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Ranginui, those who have made the long journey today to be here, whether in body or in spirit. I wish to acknowledge those who did not make it, those who began this long journey many, many years ago, and who now watch from above as stars in the great cloak of Ranginui. They have returned to the final resting place of our ancestors but their legacy and their spirit lives on.

It is my great pleasure as always to rise in support of a bill such as this. Of course, the passing of legislation is a crucial step in the process of redress, as is the issuing of a formal apology by the Crown, an accurate historical record, a recognition of the Crown’s failings and violence, a return of lands, and a payment of compensation, but it could never truly be enough to compensate for the immense loss and pain suffered at the behest of the Crown.

As long as the web of colonialism exists in Aotearoa and around the world there is little justice for indigenous peoples. This means there is still work to be done to transform our society into one which recognises the unique place and experience of tangata whenua in Aotearoa as the original custodians and descendants of this land.

This day marks a milestone in that journey for the Crown and Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Ranginui. But we still have so far to go. Nā reira, e tika ana te kōrero i ō tātou tūpuna “Titiro whakamuri, kōkiri whakamua”.

[Therefore, the saying of our ancestors is true “Look back, go forwards”.]

I commend this bill to the House.

Tihei mauri ora!

E ngā mana, e ngā reo, e ngā iwi, e rau rangatira, mā tēnā koutou katoa. Te Whare e tū nei tēnā koe. Te papa e takoto nei tēnā koe. Kei ngā mate haere, haere, haere. Nau mai haere mai ki te Whare Pāremata.

Ko Dan Bidios tōku ingoa. Ko Tainui te waka, ko Waikato te awa, ko Kakepuku te māunga, ko Ngāti Maniapoto te iwi. Ko Ngāti Huia te hapū. Ko Te Kauwae te marae. Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa.

[’Tis the breath of life!

To the esteemed, the many voices, the people, and the distinguished leaders, greetings to you all. The House standing, greetings to you. The ground we are upon, salutations to you. To our departed, farewell, farewell, farewell. Welcome here to the Parliament.

My name is Dan Bidois. Tainui is my canoe, Waikato is the river, Kakepuku the mountain and Māniapoto is the nation. Ngāti Huia is the subtribe. Te Kauwae is the marae. Thank you all.]

It’s a pleasure to speak in what is the second reading of the Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Ranginui Claims Settlement Bill. I wish to acknowledge the journey that Ngāti Ranginui has been on for 161 years to get acknowledgment from the Crown, from this House, for the wrongs that have been done and to redress for those wrongs, and, most importantly, to pave way for the future. It is a great privilege to speak in this debate.

I don’t have a direct connections to the Tauranga, Bay of Plenty area, but my tūpuna do. Often I get asked if I’m related to the Bidoises of Te Puna, and I have to say, “No, unfortunately, I’m not.” I am actually related to the Bidoises in Te Puna, but the Bidoises that came from France had 14 children, so we all go back to that strand of one of those 14 children.

It is a fantastic part of New Zealand, a fantastic part of Aotearoa, and a great privilege to have played a small part in this bill in my role when I was on the Māori Affairs Committee. This bill has been backwards and forwards some times since it was originally introduced in 2012. One of the first steps that the Māori Affairs Committee did was to divide this bill from the Tauranga Moana collective redress bill. It is great to see the willingness of the iwi to move forward. I certainly look forward to hearing the Tauranga Moana Iwi Collective Redress Bill in its final reading, as well.

This is an important day. It is a good day for the hapū and the iwi of Ngāti Ranginui. I will be speaking again in the third reading. So I will save a more fulsome debate around the purpose of the bill and our aspirations and our willingness to engage for the third reading. So I commend this bill to the House.

Thank you, Mr Speaker. E papaki kau ana ngā tai. He tai wiwi, he tai wawa he tai ki uta he tai ki waho. Ko tēnei te tai o te tangata e tau nei ki konei. Aku nui, aku rahi tēnā koutou katoa.

[The coast is clapping. They ascend and descend to the shores and out to the ocean. Here are the waves of people whom have arrived here. Dear esteemed, dear noble people, greetings to you all.]

I’ve often sat here in Treaty settlement bills and heard the readings and I’ve loved the experience, and I’ve often thought, what would it be like—what would it be like to see my friends in the gallery? I look up there and I can see so many of you up there today, and I’m getting emotional already and I’m still going to get through a third reading speech yet. But it is just so wonderful to see you here and to be part of the redress but also the celebrations and the moving forward at the same time, and I am so grateful that I have got the opportunity to talk with you, to talk around what’s happening in this process, but also to be part of your journey as well.

Now, I want to talk about my connections to Ngāti Ranginui, and I’ll start with where you came from. Ngāti Ranginui descended from Tamatea Arikinui, captain of the Tākitimu Waka, and when the Tākitimu Waka arrived at Tauranga, Tamatea Arikinui conducted rituals and ceremonies on Mauao to open the whenua for occupation. One such ritual which I have a deep connection with was the establishment of the two altars of Ahurewa. These were developed to establish centres of wānanga of learning. These were Rehutai on Mauao, and Hikutai on Tutara wānanga, and it’s the Tutara wānanga where my connection goes to, and I am for ever grateful that you wrap your arms around me in my journey when I was so fortunate to have the opportunity to have an impact on the lives of your mokopuna and your tamariki and your rangatahi.

I’m actually going to extend that a little bit: my husband Dave and I are forever grateful. I acknowledge that Dave is now at the Merivale Community Centre, and I’m doing a shout-out to them to get them on Hansard but also because they’ve got a watch party going on there today because they are so excited, and many of them couldn’t come down, but they are so excited to see this reading coming through.

The second reading of a bill is often around the process; the “what has happened to date?” This has been a long process, and settlement bills are a long process, but this one more so in many cases because there was the omnibus. There was the Tauranga Moana Iwi Collective Redress, and now we’re talking to the Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Ranginui Claims Settlement Bill, so that’s been part of that long journey as well. No journey and no redress is ever going to make up for the hurt and the long history of hurt that has been experienced, but, as I know, Ngāti Ranginui are resilient and are strong and fight their corner—gosh, do I know that really, really well—and that is why it’s just such an honour to be here speaking in the House today.

As many of the speakers have said here so far, we have the third reading coming up, and the third reading is where we will talk a lot more about some of the people in the journey along the way and some of the hurt that has happened in that journey along the way. But this, as I said, is a long history that you have had in the Tauranga Moana region, and that long history is being recognised here today. No longer are people now saying Tauranga is quite a new city; we are actually recognising you as the mana whenua, alongside the other two iwi of Tauranga Moana. You are being recognised here today, and we will talk further about that in the third reading.

I look forward to sharing that journey, and I look forward to hearing more of that. Nō reira, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā tātou katoa.

I rise today to speak in support of the Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Ranginui Claims Settlement Bill during its second reading. As the member of Parliament for the Bay of Plenty, I have the privilege of representing a region rich in history, culture, and significance to many iwi, including Ngāti Ranginui.

This settlement is not just words on paper or numbers on a ledger. It represents generations of patience, perseverance, and the pursuit of justice. The journey to this moment has been long and challenging. The original omnibus bill, the Tauranga Moana Iwi Collective Redress and Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Ranginui Claims Settlement Bill, was introduced in November 2015, nearly a decade ago—I had only just finished school at that time. It was considered by a select committee in 2017 and had been awaiting its second reading in the House since then. In 2022 Ngāti Ranginui approached the Crown about finalising their Treaty settlement as soon as possible. I’m pleased to note that the other iwi who are part of the Tauranga Moana Iwi Collective, Ngāi Te Rangi and Ngāti Pūkenga, agreed to the bill being divided so that Ngāti Ranginui legislation could proceed independently.

On 21 March last year, the House agreed that the omnibus bill be referred to the Māori Affairs Committee for consideration of two Amendment Papers, and after careful consideration the committee divided the bill on 3 April, allowing this Ngāti Ranginui settlement to progress while issues with the Tauranga Moana Iwi Collective continue to be resolved. This approach speaks to the balance we must strike in these matters, respecting the unity and shared interests of iwi while also acknowledging the autonomy and unique circumstances of each group. I commend the Ngāti Ranginui Settlement Trust and their negotiating team for their enduring commitment through what has been a lengthy process.

Today, as we debate this bill, we must reflect on the profound significance of what we are addressing. This settlement acknowledges the deep mamae, the pain and suffering, carried by Ngāti Ranginui since the raupatu of 1864. The Crown’s actions during this period, the unjust war, forced land takings, and scorched earth campaign undermined the mana and connection to whenua of these hapū. According to the 2023 census, 14,928 affiliate to Ngāti Ranginui, and 57 percent of them are under the age of 30—sorry to my friends Tamati Tata and Turi Ngatai, who are in the public gallery and who fall just outside of that age range.

Ngāti Ranginui’s historical Treaty of Waitangi claims relate specifically to war in Tauranga, Crown purchasing of certain land, the operation and effects of native land laws, Māori land legislation, and public works taking in the 20th century. These are not distant historical footnotes but lived realities that continue to shape communities in our electorate today. I acknowledge the hapū, who have maintained their tikanga despite generations of alienation and marginalisation in their own rohe. Your resilience is remarkable, and this settlement represents not just recognition of past wrongs but a foundation for future prosperity.

When I walk through the Bay of Plenty, I see the legacy of these historical injustices, but I also see the strength and determination of tangata whenua, who have never surrendered their connection to place and identity. This settlement, while it cannot undo the past, provides meaningful acknowledgement and redress. The bill before us includes significant elements: financial and commercial redress of $38 million, which will provide economic opportunities for current and future generations; the return of five sites of cultural significance; two properties of cultural significance vested jointly with other iwi; and relationship redress with key Crown agencies. The settlement also includes the vesting of wāhi tapu and a right of first refusal over certain Crown lands.

I’ve had the privilege of speaking with kaumātua and rangitahi from Ngāti Ranginui. What strikes me most is how they speak of this settlement not primarily in terms of financial compensation but as a platform for cultural revitalisation, a language-land connection identity and tino rangatiratanga.

I had so much I wanted to say. I have so many friends sitting in the gallery today who have rightly come to see not just the second reading but the third reading and this bill becoming law. I support this bill, not just as one of the Bay of Plenty MPs but as someone who believes deeply in the importance of addressing historical injustices. The passage of this legislation will mark a significant milestone for Ngāti Ranginui, for the Bay of Plenty region, for our nation. It demonstrates our commitment to honouring the Treaty of Waitangi and building genuine partnerships based on mutual respect and understanding. Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa.

Tēnā koe e te Māngai o te Whare. Rapua te huarahi whānui hei ara whakapiri i ngā iwi e rua i runga i te whakaaro kotahi. Tihei mauri ora! Kei aku nui, kei aku rahi. Ngā tāngata o te motu. Takitumu waka, ngā uri o Tamatearikinui, Ngāti Ranginui, tēnei te mihi ki a koutou i tēnei rā. Tēnei te mihi mai i ōku iwi Ngāti Whitikaupeka ki a koutou i tēnei rā, he rā whakahirahira mō koutou katoa. Nō reira tēnā koutou tēnā koutou, mauriora ki a tātou katoa.

[Thank you, Mr Speaker. Pursue the pathway that brings us two people together under the one thought. Greetings all. Dear esteemed, dear noblemen. The people of the land. Takitumu canoe, and the descendants of Tamatearikinui, Ngāti Ranginui, this is my greetings to you today. I acknowledge you on behalf of my people of Ngāti Whitikaupeka. This is a big day for you all. And so, thank you, thank you thank you, good health to us all.]

Whānau mā, can I acknowledge each and every one of you in the gallery today: those that can be with us and, of course, those that cannot be with us today. I want to acknowledge the Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Ranginui Claims Settlement Bill in the second reading here in te Whare Pāremata before us all today.

At the moment, it’s a bittersweet moment as we look back to the past and we look at where we are now. We also acknowledge the difficult and tumultuous times of the last 18 months. Today, we make an apology. We make an apology on behalf of the Crown to yourself, Ngāti Ranginui, but it doesn’t stop here. The values, the kōrero, that we all put into this House today, stand true. Those values are a way forward for all of us to acknowledge, to honour Te Tiriti o Waitangi, the partnership and the commitment that our whānau, Māori, and Pākehā alike signed up to back in 1840 in a kaupapa that we must honour now.

I’ve seen today, and as I look across the House, whānau, friends, ngā hononga katoa [all the relationships]. Whāea Ngāreta e mihi ana ki a koe, ki tō whānau hoki. Matua Turi tēnā koe i muri rā.

[Whāea Ngāreta, I acknowledge you and your family. Matua Turi, greetings to you at the back there.]

But, particularly, I think of many of my friends and hononga back to Waipapa Taumata Rau and Te Wānanga o Aotearoa. My friend Rohario Murray messaged me this morning because she’s stuck at the airport. She sent me some words that I want to put on record today for Hansard, because the small thing that we can do as members of Parliament is to represent those that we love, those that we have connection with in this House on their special day.

She said, “These words acknowledge that the Crown unreservedly apologises for not having honoured its obligations to the Hapū o Ngāti Ranginui under Te Tiriti o Waitangi, and regrets its failure to acknowledge the mana and rangatiratanga of Ngāti Ranginui for many generations. The Crown deeply regrets that, over time, its actions severed Ngāti Ranginui hapū from their traditional lands, deprived them of opportunities for development, caused significant harm to the social and economic development of Ngāti Ranginui, undermined the wellbeing of the iwi and its hapū, damaged the autonomy and ability to exercise customary rights and responsibilities, and marginalised them within their own rohe.” Rohario goes on to say, “E te whānau, the work doesn’t end today, but the vision carries on, brighter, bolder, and grounded in whakapapa.”

Tēnei te mihi ki a koutou katoa Ngāti Ranginui i tēnei rā. He kaupapa nunui he kaupapa roroa. Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, mauriora ki a tātou katoa.

[This is my salutations to you all Ngāti Ranginui. This is a big day and a long day for you. thank you, and good health to us all.]

Ki ngā hapū o Ngāti Ranginui, nau mai haere mai ki tēnei Whare Pāremata. Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa.

[To the people of Ngāti Ranginui, welcome to the Parliament. Thank you, thank you, thank you all.]

I want to acknowledge everyone here in the gallery. It was great to be here with you this morning for the mihi whakatau and some kai. I also want to acknowledge everyone who can’t be here: elders, tīpuna passed, and also everyone back home in Tauranga Moana. Kia ora to all of you on this historic day. It’s so good to have you here to be able to address the past wrongs that were done to your hapū and your iwi: the historic breaches of Te Tiriti, the confiscation of land, the loss of cultural sites, the loss of mana, the marginalisation—this is a step towards addressing all of that.

It is also an opportunity for all of you to move forward. We heard this morning about wanting to look forward. Acknowledging the past, yes, but also taking the opportunity of the future to build economic opportunities for you and your whānau. This is the launching pad for that, so I want to acknowledge that.

I want to also say that as the MP for Tauranga, I will work to engage as constructively as I can, not only with Ngāti Ranginui but with the other two iwi in Tauranga Moana, so I can filter back what you need from us and, also, to know that I am always there for you.

Look, there is so much more I want to say, and I will have that opportunity in the third reading. We do need to get this done because I know you will want this third reading to get done by 1 p.m. today, so I will leave it there. Kia ora.

Tēnā koe e te Māngai o te Whare. Kāti kia whakamārama atu ki wōku rahi, ki ōku tini whanaunga o Ngāti Ranginui hei te pānuitanga tuatoru ka whakaranea ake ahau i waku mihi me waku kōrero mō tēnei kaupapa te pire kei mua i a tātou. Me te mea anō hoki kia ea te amuamu a tōku matua a Willie Jackson he aha te take kāore kei a ia tētahi kāmeta kia kite atu ki runga i wā tātou hoa mahi ki roto i te Whare?

[Thank you, Mr Speaker. And so allow me to explain to my relations of Ngāti Ranginui that on the third reading I will elaborate my acknowledgments and my speech pertaining to this bill before us. And also to satisfy the arguments made by my uncle Willie Jackson. Why does he not have a camera to see our work colleagues above in this House?]

However, I do want to take a very quick opportunity in the second reading—as I scan the House, there are four members who were here at the reading of the bill that was done about 10 years ago with respect to the Tauranga Moana Iwi Collective, and here we are with Ngāti Ranginui.

What I observed this morning with Ngāti Hāua—who were the first bill this morning—was something I hadn’t seen before in my 12 years in the House. While I accept that the Business Committee is the way to look towards how we might finesse this tikanga of ours as we’ve all accepted with respect to Treaty settlements, I do want to put it on the record and on floor of the House for consideration of parties as we get to the Business Committee that what we normally do is five-minute calls for the first reading, 10-minute calls for the second reading, and 10-minute calls for the third reading.

I wonder if perhaps there is scope and if there’s a will in the House to flip the second and first reading calls as the first reading is an important one where our tribes and our whānau who come here to start of the process of the bill—I think that deserves the time of a 10-minute call for members across the House while the negotiations after the select committee continue with officials, the Minister, and of course the tribe. By the time we get to the second reading—and I support this bill—what’s here in the Amendment Paper and bills of this nature are already complete. What we do here are just some technical minor changes if that’s all that’s required. Then we go into 10-minute calls for the third reading.

I leave that thought on the floor of Parliament whereby if we could for this particular process in the future flip the second reading time frame for the first readings, and the first reading time frame into the second reading, so that we can honour the mahi that we do here today and the work that so many have done to make sure that this particular kaupapa—and many other kaupapa like it—progress into the future.

Nō reira e te Māngai o te Whare ka waiho ēnei kōrero ki te pātū o tō tātou Whare. He pito kōrero ka whakahokia.

[Therefore, Mr Speaker, I’ll conclude my speech here within the walls of our House. I stand down.]

It really is a privilege to stand up and make my contribution to the beautiful kōrero that’s taking place this morning. We’re in the second reading of the Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Ranginui Claims Settlement Bill, and I’m absolutely privileged—and I thank the House for this privilege, and the people of Takanini that put me here—that I’m the deputy chair of the Māori Affairs Committee. In front of me is the chair, my good friend David MacLeod, and I’ve got Dan Bidois, my good friend who helped shepherd this bill as we went through the changes.

We’ve heard some very profound and detailed accounts of what’s involved in this settlement bill, so if you don’t mind, as the last speaker on the second reading, what I would like to do is maybe just a few acknowledgments. I’d like to acknowledge the attendance of the Rt Hon Dame Patsy Reddy, our former Governor-General. Thank you for being here, and thank you for your tautoko for this important mahi. I’d like to also acknowledge our kuia and our kaumātua across the House in the gallery. Thank you for making the journey here, and thank you for teaching the generations that come after you how important this type of kaupapa is as well, and to never give up.

I’d like to also acknowledge the presence of my good friend Matt Winiata, the chair of the Manurewa Local Board—and I’m so pleased to see your father here. Mr Ranginui David Winiata, thank you for raising your son to be the person he is. Matt was on the news a few months ago for shedding tears when he gave a kōrero to the Auckland mayor saying, “Manurewa has a lot of vulnerable communities. Please, please make sure that pūtea”—money—“comes to Manurewa.” So thank you for being here today. Thank you for the love that you give South Auckland communities, Matthew.

We’ll go towards a third reading now. I commend this bill to the House.

Motion agreed to.

Bill read a second time.

The Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Ranginui Claims Settlement Bill is set down for committee stage immediately. I declare the House in committee for consideration of the Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Ranginui Claims Settlement Bill.

In Committee

Part 4 Preliminary matters and settlement of historical claims