Wagner NickyHon NICKY WAGNER (National): Tēnā koe e Te Mana Whakawā. Tihei mauri ora! Te Whare e tū nei tēnā koe. Te papa e takoto nei tēnā koe. Ngā mate haere haere haere. Ngā reo ngā mana tēnā koutou katoa. Kei te kōrero ahau mō te pānuitanga tuatahi o Ngāti Hinerangi Claims Settlement Bill.[Greetings Madam Speaker. I stand. To the House that stands before me greetings. The ground that lies before me greetings. Those who have passed go go go. To the spokespeople the authorities greetings one and all. I am speaking about the first reading of the Ngāti Hinerangi Claims Settlement Bill.]I really liked the Stuff heading of 25 May 2019 reporting on the day that Ngāti Hinerangi and the Crown signed the deed of settlement that will be implemented through this legislation today. The headline read An iwi blossoms – Ngāti Hinerangi take back their mana after signing a Deed of Settlement".Today we celebrate the first reading of that claims settlement bill for an iwi that was nearly forgotten. If it wasn't for kaumātua Rawiri Thompson who was one of the few who knew that Ngāti Hinerangi wasn't merely a hapū of Ngāti Raukawa but an iwi in its own right we wouldn't be here in the House today discussing and debating this legislation. I think it was just in time: another generation down the line and the iwi may have been lost for ever.The rebirth of Ngāti Hinerangi began in 2004. Through research the Māori Land Court proved the existence of the iwi. The Ngāti Hinerangi Trust began negotiations towards this Treaty settlement in 2014. The agreement in principle was signed in 2015 by the then Minister of Treaty settlements the Hon Chris Finlayson and this is the final step.If we go back to pre-European times the people of Ngāti Hinerangi were a strong iwi inhabiting land all the way from the eastern Waikato to Tauranga including part of the Kaimai Range. But when Rawiri Thompson was a boy they were landless reduced to owning only the marae in Matamata and a few houses on Douglas Road. How did that happen?Back in 1840 rangatira proudly affiliated with Ngāti Hinerangi signed the Treaty of Waitangi when it was taken to Tauranga. But in the early 1860s Ngāti Hinerangi in an attempt to slow down land sales and to gain political influence joined the Kīngitanga movement and when war broke out in Taranaki joined the Kīngitanga forces in opposing the Crown. Their warriors also opposed the Crown during the Waikato War. In April 1864 Ngāti Hinerangi was among the forces of the Tauranga Māori who defeated—defeated—Crown troops at the Battle of Pukehinahina at Gate Pā. That was a significant victory—a significant victory—for less than 250 Māori warriors defending Gate Pā and it was a crushing defeat for the nearly 2000 of His Majesty's finest and well-equipped soldiers and sailors. And in fact today it is still considered the most devastating battle for the British military during the New Zealand Wars. But unfortunately it was swiftly followed by the Battle of Te Ranga which ended in defeat for Tauranga Māori including Ngāti Hinerangi.Multiple land confiscations followed with increasing violence over land surveys and in 1867 the Crown mounted a scorched earth campaign against several Māori villages. Even the Native Land Court conspired against the iwi and Ngāti Hinerangi were alienated from their land. They became virtually landless. Over the course of the 20th century that loss resulted in social cultural and economic marginalisation of the iwi.Today in this bill the Crown unreservedly apologises to Ngāti Hinerangi for failing to uphold its obligations under the Treaty of Waitangi and the resulting damage that was done to the iwi. The bill provides for cultural redress to recognise the traditional historical cultural and spiritual associations of Ngāti Hinerangi with sites owned by the Crown and provides for the vesting of 14 cultural redress sites including part of the Wairere Falls which of course is a sacred awa to Ngāti Hinerangi. It also allows for co-governance of the Waihou and Piako river catchments and total financial redress of $8.1 million. There's also a cultural revitalisation payment of $200000 and a marae rebuild payment of $20000 but of course nothing will fully recompense Ngāti Hinerangi for the loss for the hurt and for the terrible consequences of the events of the late 19th century and the 20th century. This legislation today provides for a new beginning—an opportunity for the descendants of Ngāti Hinerangi to start to re-establish their iwi and as Dianna Vaimoso says "It means that Ngāti Hinerangi can hold its head high and be proud of what it's accomplished." Ngāti Hinerangi can now build a sustainable future for the iwi for this generation and for those that follow it. Mō tātou ā mō kā uri ā muri ake nei—for you and your children after you. With the signing of this Treaty settlement the name changes to Te Puāwaitanga Ngāti Hinerangi. Puāwai means "to blossom". Today is a giant step forward towards the blossoming of today's Ngāti Hinerangi. Nō reira tēnā koutou tēnā koutou tēnā koutou katoa. Kia ora."