Whaitiri MekaHon MEKA WHAITIRI (Ikaroa-Rāwhiti): I'm pleased to take a call on the first reading of the Emergency Management Bill. Can I just make some observation around the role of Parliament and the so-called thing that we talk about—the importance of democracy—and having fit for purpose legislation. The reality on the ground particularly as the member for Ikaroa-Rāwhiti is we've experienced probably more adverse weather events than any other parts of the country. I only have to go back to multiple local states of emergency across the Tairāwhiti going way back even before the time I came into this Parliament with the mighty Bola incident. Fast forward into the time I came in this House and we had multiple events up in Tairāwhiti: the Tolaga Bay floods that went right down into Wairoa we had the Napier floods in 2019 we then had Hale Gabrielle and of course just this weekend we had more flooding in Te Tairāwhiti particularly out at Te Karaka at State Highway 35 and State Highway 2. For most of those events I've been on the ground so I've been able to see firsthand where the shortcomings are when it comes to managing our emergency response. I don't want to take away from all those first responders across all those events and how they've rallied together but my opening point is we must have legislation in this House that is fit for purpose. I am concerned that this management bill which is what we're talking about hasn't learnt from the lessons of the very recent events. They have not learnt. Yesterday I asked in this House multiple questions to the Minister around yet again a key player in that response in my electorate being the response that came from iwi marae and hapū across the electorate. I'm seeing yet again very much a throwback to the 1980s—and I'm probably showing my age having worked in the Public Service back in the 1980s—which is that Māori's only ambition under this bill is to be the advisory group. So I know that we are going to have another adverse weather event into Tairāwhiti or Hawke's Bay or any other part of my electorate and will the people on the ground from maraes—the hapū the iwi—pick this up and go Thank goodness we've got this Emergency Management Bill."? Will they do that? No they won't because their first principle is about manaaki and about tiakitanga. I want to talk to my colleagues on both sides to the right of me and to the left of me about this exclusiveness about just Māori or just iwi because just Māori and just iwi includes everybody. So I want them to rest assured that when we talk about the role and rights of iwi and Māori in legislation that includes and embodies everybody and I saw that firsthand in my visits out to Rissington to Glengarry and to Pakowhai where all were working together. So I just want to allay the fears on both sides of me that this is just exclusively about iwi Māori.But back to the bill because I think iwi Māori need to be better recognised in a bill that goes beyond the advisory and like the Minister asked to me yesterday have I read the bill? Yes I have read the bill. I have read the bill and there's a lot of wording in there that I could reference—but I don't have enough time—where it talks about "should do" and "may do" and it should be a "must". Yes we have an advisory committee. Yes we invite them at the local level and some councils are doing it and just yesterday Bayden Barber the chair of Ngāti Kahungunu was invited to the collective councils in terms of localised emergency management. But like he said he did not have a vote. So here we go yet again: Māori are being asked to be advisers but will the advice be listened to? That was the point of questions I was asking to the Minister yesterday. It was: when do the tangata whenua absolutely have a say and a lead on the emergency response because they are going to do it regardless of what this bill says. What I'd like to see is that the bill is informed by the reality of what is happening on the ground as to what is the best management structure because when everything falls down—like we saw with Gabrielle when the infrastructure all went out—how are we communicating? That's where those relationships will come into play. So for the benefit of people in this House who are asking where Te Paati Māori and Meka are standing on it we're going to support this bill to first reading. But we reserve our position until we hear back from those yet again who will be asked to come to this House to submit on something they've always had a view on which is having a stand-alone Māori national emergency system—that's what we'll be standing for. Kia ora koutou."