Davis Kelvin; Salesa JennyMĀORI PURPOSES BILLFirst ReadingHon KELVIN DAVIS (Minister for Māori Crown Relations: Te Arawhiti) on behalf of the Minister for Māori Development: I present a legislative statement on the Māori Purposes Bill. SPEAKER: That legislative statement is published under the authority of the House and can be found on the Parliament website. Hon KELVIN DAVIS: I move That the Māori Purposes Bill be now read a first time. I nominate the Māori Affairs Committee to consider the bill. Tēnā koe Mr Speaker. Kia ora tātou katoa e noho nei ki roto i tō tātou Whare. Ka nui te mihi ki a tātou.[Greetings Mr Speaker. Greetings to everyone in the House. I will leave my greeting there.]On behalf of the Minister for Māori Development I present a legislative statement on the Māori Purposes Bill. On behalf of the Minister for Māori Development I move that the Māori Purposes Bill be read a first time and I nominate the Māori Affairs Committee to consider the Māori Purposes Bill. I'm proud to introduce this bill on behalf of the Minister. No doubt he would present it with a greater flourish but as it is it makes changes which are important for whānau hapū iwi and Māori communities. This Government is committed to building closer partnerships with Māori and working with them to improve wellbeing outcomes and create more development opportunities. Empowering Māori entities to achieve these goals for whānau Māori and their communities means ensuring they have the autonomy and decision-making rights they need to make good and timely decisions. The bill proposes minor technical and non-controversial updates and improvements to Māori development legislation. While the changes in this bill are technical and minor they will have a significant impact because they will remove barriers that have impeded the ability of Māori entities to manage their own affairs. The proposed amendments will give Māori entities greater decision-making capability address technical issues and reduce the burdens of unnecessary administrative compliance. The bill proposes amendments to Te Ture Whenua Maori Act 1993 the Maori Purposes Act of 1959 the Maori Trust Boards Act of 1955 and the Maori Community Development Act of 1962. The bill contains four specific sets of amendments to Te Ture Whenua Maori Act 1993. The first set will ensure that the Ruapuha Uekaha Hapū Trust continues to exist with the same beneficiaries. The other amendments extend the time frame for decision making and allow owners who cannot be physically present to participate in meetings electronically and it also corrects a te reo Māori mistake. The Ruapuha Uekaha Hapū Trust was established to give effect to the settlement of Treaty of Waitangi claim Wai 51. Currently the Māori Land Court can terminate a trust if it sees fit to do so in accordance with certain requirements. Termination of this trust would have the potential to compromise the terms of the settlement of the Wai 51 claim. The bill aims to amend the Act so that the power to terminate a trust does not apply to the Ruapuha Uekaha Hapū Trust. This will protect the entitlements of the Wai 51 intended beneficiaries and the proposed amendments are supported by the trust. Changes proposed to sections 147A and 246 of the Act will extend the period for decisions on whether those who are eligible wish to exercise a right of first refusal when land is being sold or transferred or where other critical decisions are being made by Māori incorporations. Extending the time frames for these decisions from 15 to 20 working days is intended to ensure that those involved have enough time to make well-informed decisions on these important matters. Being technologically capable and able to function remotely is important for Māori entities. We can enable this by amending section 174 of the Act to provide the option for meetings of owners to be held electronically. Te reo Māori is important and should be recorded correctly in legislation. There is a mistake in the wording of the preamble of the Act that requires correction. The bill will replace kia tū tonu he Te Kooti" with "kia tū tonu Te Kooti". The bill proposes a range of amendments to the Maori Purposes Act 1959. Most are focused on the Lake Rotoaira Trust and its trout fishery. The trust is an ahu whenua trust under Te Ture Whenua Maori Act 1993 and it administers Lake Rotoaira on behalf of more than 11000 beneficiaries. The trust manages the trout fishery with functions powers and obligations regarding the fishery being prescribed in the Maori Purposes Act 1959. The Maori Purposes Act 1959 restricts the capacity of the trust to manage their business and other affairs on the lake. The amendments will enable the trust to manage their whenua with flexibility and autonomy. The trust supports these changes. The proposed amendments include removing the requirement to hold a trout-fishing licence to fish for species other than trout and making it clear an entry permit does not authorise fishing on the lake. In addition at present owners of the Motuopuhi Māori Reservation an island in the middle of the lake cannot access their own whenua without an entry permit. This bill will amend the Act so trustees and their guests can access their whenua without a permit. There are also anomalies with the penalties contained in the Act. These are out of date and out of line with similar legislation. The solution is to replace the out-of-date "$100" penalty with "$5000" in sections 11 and 15(2)(h) of the Act. The amendments will also make technical changes to help the trust better manage trout spawning areas. Currently the trust has no authority over some parts of their fishery that are crucial to the management of their business. The proposed amendments address this discrepancy. As I've said getting te reo Māori right in legislation is vital. We need to replace "Wairehau Canal" with "Wairehu Canal" in the Act. The remaining technical amendments include updating the definition of a "stipendiary ranger" to include a warranted officer under the Conservation Act of 1987 replacing the term "26R(4)(b)" with the term "26R(4)" in section 14(b) of the Maori Purposes Act 1959 and repealing two inappropriate provisos to section 15(2)(e) of the Maori Purposes Act 1959 which impede on fishery management. The bill proposes technical and non-controversial amendments to the Maori Trust Boards Act 1955 to ensure that Māori trust boards can run efficiently. Keeping up with technology is important for Māori entities. The changes proposed will allow electronic ballots for election of board members which means they can keep functioning remotely. This is even more important during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Māori trust boards are required to pay board member fees and allowances in line with the Cabinet Fees Framework. They are finding this framework restrictive inflexible and not appropriate to recognise the depth and breadth of work that board members do. Māori trust boards are a step further away from the Crown compared to the other entities that are subject to the Cabinet Fees Framework. Amending section 41 to remove Māori trust boards from being subject to the Cabinet Fees Framework recognises this and enables them to pay their members appropriately. The bill also streamlines processes for resignations of trust board members. Currently Māori trust board members are required to provide a notice of resignation in writing to the Minister for Māori Development. The changes proposed will enable members of trust boards to resign to the board directly. The board can then notify the Minister. Section 9(2) of the Act relates to an annuity payment for the Taranaki Māori Trust Board. The trust board and the Crown have agreed to a Crown buy-out of the annuity and payment has now been made by the Crown. The parties have agreed that this section of the Act should be removed. The final amendment proposed in this bill is to the Maori Community Development Act 1962. The bill amends section 28(1)(f) of the Act so that district Māori councils are required to submit audited financial statements directly to the New Zealand Māori Council rather than to the Te Puni Kōkiri chief executive. The current process is unnecessary and creates administrative burdens. In summary this bill makes a number of minor and technical amendments to Te Ture Whenua Maori Act 1993 the Maori Purposes Act 1959 the Maori Trust Boards Act 1955 and the Maori Community Development Act 1962. While the changes proposed in this bill are minor and technical in nature they will none the less have a significant impact on the ability of Māori entities to manage their business and exercise their rangatiratanga. The entities impacted by these changes support the proposed amendments. Some of these changes proposed in the bill will address longstanding issues that have been raised over a period of time. It is our responsibility to ensure legislation is up to date and enables Māori entities to move with the times. Minimising barriers to effective operation is crucial to their success. On behalf of the Minister for Māori Development I commend this bill to the House. Nā reira tēnā koutou tēnā koutou. Kia ora mai anō rā tātou. ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Jenny Salesa): The question is that the motion be agreed to."