Wilson Margaret: Ngati Tuwharetoa (Bay of Plenty) Claims Settlement Bill — First Reading 
Wilson Margaret: Ngati Tuwharetoa (Bay of Plenty) Claims Settlement Bill — First Reading 
[Volume:621;Page:16448] 
Hon MARGARET WILSON (Minister in charge of Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations) 
: 
 I move  
That the NgatiTuwharetoa (Bay of Plenty) Claims Settlement Bill be now read a first time. 
 I intend to move at the appropriate time that this bill be considered by the Maori Affairs Committee. I will include an instruction that the committee has the authority to meet at any time while the House is sitting except during oral questions that it can meet during the evening on a day on which there has been a sitting of the House despite Standing Order 194(1)(b) and (c) and that the committee report finally to the House on or before 1 March 2005. 
This bill brings to an end longstanding historical grievances of NgatiTuwharetoa Bay of Plenty. NgatiTuwharetoa Bay of Plenty are from the Kawerau and Matata area and number approximately 3000 members. Their eponymous ancestor Tuwharetoa had 17 children some of whom led migrations to Taupo. The people of Tuwharetoa are most closely associated with this district. The descendants of those who remained in the Kawerau area now comprise NgatiTuwharetoa Bay of Plenty also known as Tuwharetoa ki Kawerau. 
The bill settles all the historical treaty claims of NgatiTuwharetoa Bay of Plenty and gives effect to the deed of settlement signed with NgatiTuwharetoa Bay of Plenty in June 2003. The historical claims of NgatiTuwharetoa Bay of Plenty relate mainly to the confiscation of land the compensation process and the operation and impact of the native land laws. This bill contains a formal apology given by the Crown to NgatiTuwharetoa Bay of Plenty their ancestors and their descendants for the breaches of the Treaty of Waitangi acknowledged by the Crown. The bill also records an acknowledgment by the Crown that NgatiTuwharetoa Bay of Plenty’s loss of control of and access to the Kawerau geothermal system has caused a sense of grievance that is still held today. 
The public can be reassured that the Crown is certain of the validity of the claims settled by this bill. It can of course not be possible to fully compensate NgatiTuwharetoa Bay of Plenty for all the prejudice and loss they have suffered. Settlements must take into account the other developments and commitments that exist in New Zealand society today. I wish to congratulate NgatiTuwharetoa Bay of Plenty on negotiating on this basis and with regard to the interests of New Zealand society as a whole. If claimant communities insisted on full recompense for what they had lost there could be no settlements and therefore no resolution of the historical grievances affecting claimant communities. 
The negotiators for NgatiTuwharetoa Bay of Plenty have agreed to a package that includes a Crown apology for the Crown’s breaches of the Treaty of Waitangi and its principles financial redress of $2.5 million the vesting of four commercial properties the vesting of five cultural redress properties a statutory acknowledgment of the special association of NgatiTuwharetoa Bay of Plenty with five statutory areas and a geothermal statutory acknowledgment over geothermal water and energy located in the Kawerau geothermal system; also the granting of renewable camping entitlements over one nohoanga site and at the granting of an owhakatihi or overlay classification known as taupuni in the NgaiTahu settlement. That acknowledges the traditional cultural spiritual and historical values and associations of NgatiTuwharetoa with the Parimahana scenic reserve. 
The bill makes it clear that this is a final settlement of all the historical claims of NgatiTuwharetoa Bay of Plenty. Treaty settlement negotiations can be difficult and occasionally contentious processes. These negotiations require the Crown to balance a range of interests. Challenges to settlements are not entirely surprising given the overlapping nature of the interests that are potentially at stake. In the course of negotiations with NgatiTuwharetoa Bay of Plenty challenges were raised by some overlapping claimant groups who were concerned to protect their existing rights. The Crown and NgatiTuwharetoa Bay of Plenty worked to ensure that the concerns raised by these overlapping claimants were adequately addressed. 
I wish to acknowledge those NgatiTuwharetoa Bay of Plenty people who have suffered as a result of the Crown’s breaches of the treaty and those who carried the grievances and who are no longer with us. The bill lays the foundation for a strong and positive relationship between the Crown and NgatiTuwharetoa Bay of Plenty into the future. I acknowledge the work done by former treaty negotiations Ministers and Ministers of Maori Affairs who contributed to this settlement. I wish to thank other Ministers and departments involved and in particular the Minister of Maori Affairs the Minister of Finance and the Minister of Conservation who have supported the process throughout. I also wish to thank the Office of Treaty Settlements for the work done in seeking a just and fair settlement. As New Zealanders we can be proud that the real and significant grievances have been recognised and settled peacefully and within the law. 
The people of NgatiTuwharetoa Bay of Plenty have waited a long time and worked so hard to realise the settlement of their historical treaty claims. I consider that the bill should therefore proceed without delay to the Maori Affairs Committee and be reported back by 1 March 2005. This will allow for the timely transfer of the settlement redress to NgatiTuwharetoa Bay of Plenty. Finally I acknowledge the kaumatua the members and the negotiators of NgatiTuwharetoa Bay of Plenty who have been a constructive and conscientious group to work with and whose commitment on behalf of their people their ancestors and their descendants has led to this historic event and the restoration of the integrity of the Crown. I commend this bill to the House.