Harawira Hone: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Harawira Hone: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:628;Page:688] 
5.  
HONE HARAWIRA (Maori Party—Te Tai Tokerau) 
 to the  
Minister of Corrections 
: He aha te take i kore ai tana tari i whakautu i te tono a Ngati Hine ma Ngati Hine ake e hapai nga kaupapa Maori mo nga mauhere o Te Tai Tokerau i runga i te ahua neke atu i te waru tekau orau o nga mauhere kei roto whareherehere i Ngawha he uri no Te Tai Tokerau a i runga hoki i te ahua o nga korero a Te Tari Mauhere ka pumau ratou ki nga kaupapa a-iwi Maori? 
[ 
Why did his department not take up the proposal from Ngati Hine to provide a comprehensive habilitation service which was specifically designed to be culturally appropriate to inmates from Tai Tokerau given that over 80 percent of the inmates of the Ngawha prison are of Tai Tokerau descent and the department’s commitment to culturally appropriate practices? 
] 
Hon MITA RIRINUI (Associate Minister of Corrections) 
 on behalf of the 
 Minister of Corrections 
: He nui rawa nga tono i whiwhi ai Te Tari Mauhere mai i a Ngati Hine kare enei tono i whai hua otira kei te mahi ngatahi Te Tari Mauhere me te kaitiaki iwi o taua rohe a Ngati Rangi kia heke iho ai te hunga mauhere o Te Tai Tokerau.  
[An interpretation in English was given to the House.] 
[ 
The Department of Corrections received a very large number of submissions from Ngati Hine but none were successful. Indeed the department is working alongside the local guardians of that region Ngati Rangi to reduce the number of people of the north who are ending up in prison 
. 
] 
Hone Harawira 
: Na kua marama ki a tatou te rahi o te utu ki nga kaiutu take na te nui ake o te utu i nga utu i whakaritea i te tuatahi i te wa i hangaia he whare mauhere i Ngawha a i nga utu kei te utua hoki hei whakatikatika i te whare mauhere na te turi o te mauhere ki nga whakatupato o te tangata whenua kia kore ratou e hanga whare mauhere ki reira ka taea e te Minita te whakamarama he aha ai i hangaia te mauhere i Ngawha na te mea kahore a Ngawha i tohua hei tunga tuatahi mo taua whare mauhere a i runga ano hoki i nga whakatupatotanga na te tapu ehara a Ngawha i te wahi hei hanga whare herehere?  
[An interpretation in English was given to the House.] 
[ 
Now that we know of the massive cost to the taxpayer caused by the cost overruns in the construction of the prison at Ngawha and the ongoing costs in the repair of the prison caused by the department’s refusal to accept warnings by the tangata whenua not to build a prison there can the Minister please explain why the prison was built at Ngawha when it was not on the original list of preferred sites and when he was prewarned that Ngawha would be a culturally inappropriate place to build a prison? 
] 
Hon MITA RIRINUI 
: A kei te marama tonu au ki era tu momo korero e te Kaihautu engari tutuki noa atu enei whakawhitiwhiti korero i te tau 1999 i raro i te Kawanatanga o Nahinara. Otira i tenei wa kua whakamarama ake ki a matou o te Kawanatanga ko etahi o Te Tai Tokerau kare i whakaae ki tenei Whare Herehere. Otira wetahi atu kai te whakaae. Kai te whakaae a Ngati Rangi. Na reira na runga i tenei whakaae ka haere tonu te whare herehere. 
[An interpretation in English was given to the House.] 
[ 
I am very much aware of those kinds of statements made during the previous National Government in 1999. We of the present Government are aware that some in the north were opposed to this prison but some like Ngati Rangi were in favour. And because Ngati Rangi were in favour the building of the prison went ahead. 
]  
Simon Power 
: Can the Minister assure the House that other issues at Ngawha prison have also been resolved such as the fact that windows to prisoners’ cells do not close enabling prisoners to help themselves to tea and coffee in the staff room at night and to stroll in and out of the control room and the fact that recent figures show that 84 out of 87 corrections officers at Ngawha have less than 1 year’s experience? 
Hon MITA RIRINUI 
: Ka huri au ki te reo hoko paraoa! 
[ 
I turn to the language of commerce 
!]  
I am aware of those issues. I am also advised by officials that there was one particular design fault in one of the windows of the cells. The inmate decided that he would go for a cup of tea. The fault has been repaired and there is no longer a problem. 
Hone Harawira 
: Ka taea e te Minita te wakamarama ki te Whare to ratou pumau ki nga kaupapa whakapakari tangata mo Ngapuhi i te mea i nga tau 10-15 kua pahure ake nei mo nga putea kua tohaina i roto o Kaikohe te Manawa hotuhotu o Ngapuhi kua haeretuatahi kia rahi ake te tari mo nga tamariki nga rangatahi me o ratou whanau;tuarua kia whakapaipaihia te whare pirihimana;tuatoru kia tuwharetia te whare tautawhi; tuawha kia hangai he whare herehere kahore e arikarika te utu nga miriona taara neke atu? 
[An interpretation in English was given to the House.] 
[ 
Can the Minister tell the House what the Government’s commitment to social enhancement programmes for Ngapuhi is given that over the past 10 to 15 years the Government’s social expenditure in Kaikohe the heart of Ngapuhi has centred around first the expansion of the Department of Social Welfare; second the upgrading of the police station; third the opening of a periodic detention centre; and fourth the construction of a multimillion-dollar prison? 
]  
Madam SPEAKER 
: I am sorry; that question is out of order. It is wide of the original question which does relate to Ngawha prison. Unless it was specifically related to that the question is out of order. It is too general. 
Hone Harawira 
: I raise a point of order Madam Speaker. It does actually relate to the prison in that the prison was the final construction in a series of measures in Kaikohe beginning with the Department of Social Welfare upgrade the upgrade of the police station the building of a periodic detention centre and culminating in the building of a multimillion-dollar prison. In the light of that I was asking whether that is what the Labour Government’s commitment is to the social enhancement of the people of Ngapuhi. 
Hon Dr Michael Cullen 
: The problem is that the last part actually reveals the difficulty that this is a question to the Minister of Corrections. If it is a general question about contribution to social welfare then clearly that is a question for the Minister for Social Development and Employment not the Minister of Corrections. 
Madam SPEAKER 
: Yes the question was too broad but I thank the member for his explanation. 
Nandor Tanczos 
: Can the Minister confirm that the recommendations of the most significant inquiry ever done into our prison system—the 1989 Roper report—is totally consistent with Ngati Hine’s proposal and the philosophy underpinning it and why does the Department of Corrections and the Government despite their many fine words continue to give habilitation and rehabilitation a low priority and move in entirely the opposite direction from those recommendations? 
Hon MITA RIRINUI 
: I am totally confident that Ngati Hine’s proposal is consistent with what is actually happening now in Ngawha prison. In fact I visited Ngati Hine twice earlier this year and observed those programmes and I am very confident that they are doing a good job. 
Nandor Tanczos 
: I raise a point of order Madam Speaker. I did not actually ask the Minister whether he thought those recommendations were consistent with Ngati Hine’s proposal. That was the premise of the question. What I was asking was: why does the Department of Corrections give a low priority to habilitation and rehabilitation and why have the recommendations of the Roper report been ignored by the Government and to be fair by the previous Government as well? 
Madam SPEAKER 
: The Minister did address the question. The original supplementary question was very broad and therefore the Minister had much latitude in the way he responded to it which happens in those instances. 
Ron Mark 
: I raise a point of order Madam Speaker. I bring your attention to Speaker’s ruling 151/7 of Mr Speaker Kidd in the interests of ensuring we have one law for all in the House. I note that in the exchange of supplementary questions from the Maori Party in relation to a number of questions in the House today questions have been prefixed with the word “given” and two supplementary questions to this question have been prefixed with the words “now that” which went on to a long diatribe. I note that the interpreter adjusted one of the answers for the member but it was not an actual interpretation of the way in which the question had been put. I know that they are new members and I understand but could you possibly offer some guidance to ensure that we all do comply with the same laws in this House? 
Madam SPEAKER 
: I thank the member for that observation. As he also observed the members are new to the House and now that he has referred them to that Speaker’s ruling I am sure they will note it in the future.