Tremain Chris: Ngati Apa (North Island) Claims Settlement Bill — Instruction to Committee In Committee 
Tremain Chris: Ngati Apa (North Island) Claims Settlement Bill — Instruction to Committee In Committee 
[Volume:669;Page:15876] 
CHRIS TREMAIN (National—Napier) 
: 
 Whakataka te hau ki te uru whakataka te hau ki te tonga kia makinakina ki uta kia mataratara ki tai. E hi ake ana te atakura he tio he huka he hauhunga. Tena koutou ki te Whare. 
[ 
Cease the winds from the west cease the winds from the south let the breezes blow over the land let the breezes blow over the ocean. Let the red-tipped dawn come with a sharpened air a touch of frost a promise of a glorious day. Greetings to you the House 
.]  
I started with that whakatauki in response to the Hon Parekura Horomia’s comments that there has been a slow number of settlements under this new Government. The reason I used that whakatauki is that it talks about a red-tipped dawn coming across the nation. 
Hon Parekura Horomia 
: Ah red! We like the colour red. 
CHRIS TREMAIN 
: Ha ha! It talks of the promise of a new day and that is what we are seeing under this Government. Although the Hon Parekura Horomia sits on the other side and says there have not been many settlements under this Government he is quite clearly incorrect. Under the previous Labour Government we saw a mere 1.6 settlements per annum over 9 years. 
Chester Borrows 
: Repeat. 
CHRIS TREMAIN 
: There were 1.6 settlements. Under this Government we have achieved 10 settlements in just 2 short years. I do not pretend to be a mathematician of any ilk but I simply divide 10 by two and come up with five. Perhaps I am wrong but I suggest that five settlements per year are quite a bit more than 1.6 settlements. On any count we are well ahead of the previous Government in terms of settlements. 
Hon Parekura Horomia 
: When did they start? 
CHRIS TREMAIN 
: It is not about when they start my friend. It is when they finish. It is not about whether you set out to climb the Himalayas and reach Mount Everest; it is whether you climb them; whether you “knocked the bastard off”. Actually we are knocking those bastards off and doing it one by one. We have done 10 over 2 years or five per annum. Ngati Apa is another one— 
Hon Shane Jones 
: I raise a point of order Mr Chairperson. It is about the term “bastard”. I have a great deal of admiration for that man given his fortitude for playing second place to Parekura Horomia’s cousin Hekia but we do not use the word “poriro” on the marae and we ought not to use “bastard” in the Chamber. 
The CHAIRPERSON (Hon Rick Barker) 
: I just say to the member that I thought the word was used in the context of a very well-known quote from a famous New Zealand icon. It is part of the New Zealand vernacular. It is also a word about legitimacy or not so it is not offensive in itself. I did not think that the member was using the word in an offensive manner. He was using it I thought in a colloquial manner and the Chair certainly did not take any particular offence. I invite Chris Tremain to continue. 
CHRIS TREMAIN 
: Thank you Mr Chair. It was certainly not meant in any manner that would offend. It was used to clarify exactly what members on this side are achieving in terms of settlements. We believe that settlements are an important part of moving this nation forward. It is a bit like the way that Parekura Horomia moved forward on Saturday last week in the Iron Maori. I should bring to members’ attention his achievements when he took part in the Iron Maori in Ahuriri this week. It was a half-marathon. I am not sure how many laps he did but when we are talking about settlements and taonga I am surprised he is not a taonga that is still left out on the racecourse my friend. 
Hon Parekura Horomia 
: I didn’t see you. 
CHRIS TREMAIN 
: I was there. It was great to be there. 
Hon Parekura Horomia 
: You must have been behind me. 
CHRIS TREMAIN 
: I would not have been able to keep pace with the member. 
The point I make is that the Ngati Apa (North Island) Claims Settlement Bill is wonderful legislation. We are proud to be bringing it to the House and proud to be making significant gains for Maori in this country. Settlements are important and in closing I make the point that a number of Pakeha wave their hands and say we have settled too much or spent too much on making these settlements happen. If we look at it in the wider context we have spent less on the settlement process to date than I understand may have been spent on the South Canterbury Finance claim. The point I want to make clear is that this legislation is empowering Maori to be part of the wealth-creating engine of this economy. The more we can do that and the more that iwi and hapu are part of that economy the more they will lift themselves off the deck in terms of the statistics that we all decry. I think Parekura Horomia would join me as would Shane Jones in that sense. The more we can lift that aspiration the more we can make Maori part of the wealth-creating engine of this economy through settlements through wealth creation the better this nation will be. I will close with the example of Whale Watch Kaikoura and what that community has achieved through a settlement process that has empowered that community. Thank you very much.