Tirikatene RinoELECTORAL (ENTRENCHMENT OF MĀORI SEATS) AMENDMENT BILLFirst ReadingRINO TIRIKATENE (Labour—Te Tai Tonga): Tēnā koe Mr Assistant Speaker. I move That the Electoral (Entrenchment of Māori Seats) Amendment Bill be now read a first time. I nominate the Māori Affairs Committee to consider the bill.Mr Speaker he mihi. Tēnā koutou ngā mātāwaka tēnā hoki koutou ngā mema o tēnei Whare. E tū ana ahau ki te whaikōrero mō taku pire kua tae mai ki mua ki te aroaro o te Pāremata. Kua tae tēnei ki te wā ki te whakature i ngā tūru Māori he tūru motuhake. [Mr Speaker greetings. Greetings to those of all descent lines and to the members of this House. I am standing to speak about my bill which has come before Parliament. The time has come to entrench the Māori seats in legislation as separate seats.]I'm very privileged and very proud to speak in support of this member's bill. We have a saying Although small it is a treasure"—"Ahakoa he iti he pounamu". This is a very small bill but it is very significant and it cuts to the heart of the representation and the status of the Māori seats in this House.The general seats under the Electoral Act of this Parliament can be overturned or abolished only by a special majority of this House—that's a 75 percent or more majority of this House—but the Māori seats can be abolished by a simple majority. So there is a discrepancy. There is an imbalance there and my bill seeks to raise us to an equal standard with the general seats. That's what this bill is all about. It's a constitutional issue. We want to ensure that Māori seats are given the same protection as general seats.We have a very proud history of contributions to this Parliament. Our Māori seats were created 150 years ago this year in 1867 and if one is to walk in the halls of the ground floor of Parliament around by our historic room Matangireia one will see all of the many Māori electorate members of Parliament that have been through this House and have left an imprint on this House over those 150 years. We have a colourful history but one discrepancy remains. The disparity is that the Māori seats are not afforded the same protection as the general seats so I'm reaching out to the House today to correct that imbalance. Let's put things right. Let's put us on an even footing. This is about equality and being treated the same.I'm very very proud to be speaking to this bill. We have a long history as I've said and this is not a new kaupapa. I do want to acknowledge the many modern members in the MMP environment who have put forward similar bills of this nature but they were unlucky not to get plucked from the ballot. Bills in the name of the Hon Parekura Horomia the Hon Mita Ririnui the Hon Te Ururoa Flavell—all had bills of this nature seeking the equal status and equal protection of our Māori seats with our general seats so this is not a new novel idea. This discrepancy has long been noted and criticised by many Māori academics of note. It was even identified by Electoral Commission reports.This discrepancy can be easily fixed and that's what I'm proposing through this bill. I've said that the Māori seats have a proud 150-year history. Why we're here is because we embody the Treaty partnership. This is a Treaty issue. The Māori seats in Parliament—and there is a colourful history. Whether it was blood quantums separate polling booths separate polling days or inability to participate in referenda there has been a whole history in terms of Māori trying to seek recognition and equal rights in this House. Here we are in 2018 and there is one disparity that remains and that is this entrenchment gap as it is called. So I'm calling on this House today to stand for the constitution to stand for equal rights and to ensure that we can raise the status of the Māori seats to the same as the general seats.Now I know we've heard a lot about MMP and that it has brought lots of Māori into Parliament and that should be applauded and it is applauded—likewise the diversity across our New Zealand society—but the Māori electorates guarantee that we have a Māori voice in Parliament and those voices are accountable to Māori. So there is a difference. There is a difference between Māori MPs—I don't mean that in a disrespectful manner but Māori electorate MPs are accountable to Māori and that is the key difference. We are here to fight for Māori kaupapa and that has long been the case over the 150 years as we go and look at all of those illustrious photos that adorn Matangireia and through the halls of this House. So each of us as members of Parliament leave our impact and our imprint on this place in many different ways and I'm seeking to leave my imprint through this bill to ensure that the Māori electorate seats are treated the same.Under this bill we are putting in the provisions that create and divide up the Māori seats into an entrenched provision. Now by doing that we want to ensure that we can not only get that protection in place but futureproof Māori in this House of Parliament. That's what this is all about. It's about guaranteeing our equal place it is about the Treaty rights and it is ensuring that our Māori seats have a future. There is also an option in that entrenched provision for there to be a referendum and that's nothing new. Governments can initiate referendums at any time on any matter that they deem fit. So that is part of the entrenched provision and that is perfectly understandable.However the future of the Māori seats—there is a de facto referendum already carried out. We do it every five years and that is by way of the Māori option. Māori have responded positively. By being on the Māori roll over a quarter of a million Māori have responded that they want the Māori seats. By having the Māori option Māori have a say—and must be the only ones that have a say—in terms of the future of the Māori seats. We have gone through that process. Māori have spoken and they support the seats. They want them to continue and all that we're doing here with this bill is ensuring that we are treated the same. We want the same legal status and the same legal protection. We shouldn't have a double standard when it comes to the electorate members of this House.So I want to implore this House and all the parties that make up this current Parliament to put aside political differences and think of the constitution think of giving the proud history of Māori rights equal protection and equal rights. We just want to be treated just the same as the general seats. So I just want to conclude by saying he taonga ngā tūru Māori—Māori seats are a treasure—neke atu i te kotahi rau tau te tawhito—they've been around for well over 100 years—he mana tō ngā tūru Māori—the Māori seats still have mana—he taonga whakahirahira—they are a treasured taonga of our people and of this country—me whakamana ki te ture—let's entrench them in the law through this bill.Nō reira mihi atu ki a koutou te Whare—I commend this bill to the House. Kia ora tātou."