6. Question No. 6—Prime MinisterRAWIRI WAITITI (Co-Leader—Te Paati Māori) to the Prime MinisterQuestion No. 6—Prime Minister6. RAWIRI WAITITI (Co-Leader—Te Paati Māori) to the Prime Minister: Thank you very much Mr Speaker. Tēnā tātou i te āhuatanga ki wā tātou wāhine. He wahine he whenua ka mate te tangata. [Women like the land itself are crucial to the wellbeing of humanity.]Does he stand by all his Government's statements and actions?SPEAKER: You need to read it as—the last word is policies" not "actions".Rt Hon CHRIS HIPKINS (Prime Minister): Yes.Rawiri Waititi: Do you want me to repeat that?SPEAKER: No it's OK.Rawiri Waititi: Does he stand by his statement "Do I think we need to find Te Matatini a sustainable funding platform? Yes I do."; if not why not?Rt Hon CHRIS HIPKINS: Yes I do.Rawiri Waititi: How can he be comfortable with current levels of funding for kapa haka in Aotearoa when currently the Government does not currently provide any funding for the regional Matatini competition or other levels such as tamariki and rangatahi performances?Rt Hon CHRIS HIPKINS: I'm not and that's a topic of active conversation at the moment.Rawiri Waititi: What is his response to multiple research reports that show that Māori—including rangatahi—who participate in kapa haka achieve higher academic results have better physical health and improved cultural belonging and mental wellbeing?Rt Hon CHRIS HIPKINS: I welcome those reports; I welcome Te Matatini. I do believe that the renaissance in kapa haka that we're seeing through our education system at the moment is a very very welcome development and one that we should all be proud of and it's one that we as a Government are keen to support.Rawiri Waititi: Point of order Mr Speaker. I seek leave to table the reports from Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga from June 2022 which were commissioned by Te Matatini that demonstrate the value of kapa haka to Aotearoa.SPEAKER: Are they publicly available?Rawiri Waititi: No.SPEAKER: Leave is sought for that purpose. Is there any objection? There is none—they may be tabled.Documents by leave laid on the Table of the House.Rawiri Waititi: Will he increase the budget for Te Matatini and all levels of kapa haka so that it's equitable to the funding for the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra and the Royal New Zealand Ballet to recognise the higher standard of cultural excellence that is only to be found in Aotearoa; if not why not?Rt Hon CHRIS HIPKINS: As the member is aware the Budget is in May. But I can tell him as I've said publicly that we are having discussions about how best to ensure that we can fund Te Matatini how best we can support the renaissance of kapa haka that has been happening and I do expect that there will be some further announcements coming in due course.Hon Peeni Henare: Can the Prime Minister confirm that some of the major sponsors of Te Matatini—most recently held in Tāmaki-makau-rau—include Government departments such as ACC the role of Te Whatu Ora Te Aka Whai Ora and Te Tāhuhu o te Mātauranga?Rt Hon CHRIS HIPKINS: Yes indeed I can confirm that and I also want to acknowledge and thank all of the private sector sponsors who put a significant backing into Te Matatini—an amazing event that I had the opportunity to attend in Auckland. I think it's one we should all celebrate as New Zealanders. It was an amazing event a fantastic spirit and just great to see people putting their heart and soul into something that they are clearly so proud of."