Sharples Pita: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Sharples Pita: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:631;Page:3035] 
7.  
Dr PITA SHARPLES (Co-Leader—Maori Party) 
 to the  
Minister of Maori Affairs 
: Ka taea e ia te ripoata nga hua kua puta i nga tirohanga mo nga tari kawanatanga i waihangatia hei mahi ma Te Puni Kokiri meina kare he aha ai? 
[ 
Is he able to report on the results of the monitoring of other Government departments for which Te Puni Kokiri is responsible; if not why not? 
] 
Hon PAREKURA HOROMIA (Minister of Maori Affairs) 
: 
 Te Puni Kokiri does not have responsibility for any other Government departments. Te Puni Kokiri provides an annual report to Parliament on its activities. 
Dr Pita Sharples 
: Kei te whakaae ia ki nga korero i kiia i puta i a Leith Comer i te ra kua pahure ake nei ara “he moumou taima noa iho te titiro i nga tari kawana” a kei te whakaae ano ia ki nga korero o taua tumuaki i te 16 o Maehe o tenei tau ara “kei te hiahia a ia te neke mai i te tunga pirihimana mo nga tari kawana”; a na nga tohutohu a te Kawana ka korero penei te tumuaki a kei te tautoko te Minita i aua tohutohu? 
[An interpretation in English was given to the House.] 
[ 
Would he agree with yesterday’s reported comments attributed to Leith Comer that the auditing and monitoring of other agencies was “a waste of time” and the earlier comments made on 16 March this year by that same chief executive that “he wants to move away from being the policeman of the State sector” or is the chief executive saying this because it is a directive specified by the Government with the Minister’s support? 
] 
Hon PAREKURA HOROMIA 
: I support most of the statements made by my chief executive. Members should be very clear that the statement “a waste of time” was made by the radio presenter not by the chief executive Leith Comer. 
Hon Tau Henare 
: What response does the Minister have to the Maori Affairs Committee statement that section 5 of the Ministry of Maori Development Act does not give Te Puni Kokiri an option as to whether it should undertake a monitoring role but directs it to do so? 
Hon PAREKURA HOROMIA 
: Monitoring is just one function of Te Puni Kokiri. The responsibilities under the Act of the Ministry of Maori Development are quite clear. The key things under the Act that Te Puni Kokiri is responsible for include promoting increases in the levels of achievement attained by Maori in respect of education training and employment health and economic resource development. Te Puni Kokiri will give effect to the strategic outcomes it has stated. That is only one part. 
Hone Harawira 
: He aha te take i whakaae ai te Minita ki te tono a te Kawanatanga kia whakaitingia nga mahi tirotiro a Te Puni Kokiri a e awangawanga ana a ia ki nga mahi a te Kawanatanga kia tohutohu taurekareka ki Te Puni Kokiri kia kaua e totika ona mahi i raro i te ture?  
[An interpretation in English was given to the House.] 
[ 
Why did the Minister agree with the direction determined by his Government that Te Puni Kokiri should downsize its monitoring role; and is he concerned at this belittling illegal action of the Government in forcing Te Puni K 
o 
kiri to ignore its legal responsibilities? 
] 
Hon PAREKURA HOROMIA 
: I am not too sure which world some people have been living in for the past 6 years. It is time for Maori to move forward. There are some people who want them to be stuck in the past. Maori are moving from dependency to development and this Government has done a hang of a lot about that. Since 1992 Te Puni Kokiri has progressively developed its policy-monitoring and operational functions. It has undertaken statistical monitoring agency reviews effectiveness audits and day-to-day monitoring. We are living in a world now where Maori have the lowest unemployment rate in history and that was created by this Government—not like in the 1990s when the National Government did nothing. 
Dr Pita Sharples 
: I raise a point of order Madam Speaker. The Minister did not answer the question. The question asked why he agreed to downsize Te Puni Kokiri’s monitoring role. 
Madam SPEAKER 
: The Minister did address the question as far as I could hear over the barracking. As the member is aware Ministers are not required to directly answer questions to the satisfaction of those who ask them. 
Hon PAREKURA HOROMIA 
: There was no such directive. 
Shane Jones 
: He aha nga oati a Te Puni Kokiri? What is the range of responsibilities of Te Puni Kokiri? [ 
Interruption 
] 
Madam SPEAKER 
: Members know that interjections are permitted but that barracking is not. It was very difficult for me to hear. 
Hon PAREKURA HOROMIA 
: Pursuant to section 5 of the Ministry of Maori Development Act 1991 the responsibilities of the Ministry of Maori Development include promoting increases in the level of achievement attained by Maori in respect of education training and employment health and economic resource development and monitoring and liaising with each department and agency that provides or has a responsibility to provide services to or for Maori for the purpose of ensuring the adequacy of those services within each department. 
Hone Harawira 
: Ka taea ano e Te Puni Kokiri te whakatutuki nga mahi i waihangatia e te ture kia tirohia nga tari kawana kua tohua hei tuku awhina ki te Maori mo te Maori ranei i runga i nga awangawanga a te Maori kahore nga roia o Te Puni Kokiri e matau ana ki Te Reo Maori i whakaaturia tenei ahuatanga i tetahi hui o te Taraipiunara o Waitangi? 
[An interpretation in English was given to the House.] 
[ 
Has Te Puni Kokiri the capacity to undertake its statutory responsibilities to audit and monitor “each department and agency that provides or has a responsibility to provide services to or for Maori” particularly in the light of concerns from Maori at the inability of Te Puni Kokiri’s legal team to understand te reo Maori as demonstrated at a recent hearing of the Waitangi Tribunal? 
] 
Hon PAREKURA HOROMIA 
: There are a lot of people who do understand the Maori language and there are some who cannot. Certainly we will reinvest our resources in three key core areas to help out with that problem. Some people are not as conversant with Maori as my colleague from Te Tai Tokerau is; he is very conversant with it. We will develop and use resources which is rawa; build knowledge and skills which is matauranga; and strengthen leadership and decision making which is whakamana. In those things Maori are not very different from other people in this land and the needs they have. 
Dr Pita Sharples 
: Na i runga i te ahua kahore a Te Puni Kokiri i mahi tonu ana i nga tikanga i waihangatia e te ture; he aha kei te noho tonu ai hei tari Kawanatanga? 
[An interpretation in English was given to the House.] 
[ 
If the Ministry of Maori Affairs is no longer carrying out its statutory responsibilities why should it exist as a Government department? 
] 
Hon PAREKURA HOROMIA 
: E whakaaro ake ano au i rongo i a koe e Pita mo tera korero kare e tika e taea ake ano i konei te korero moumou taima pera tonu mo ratou nga kanohi Maori mo te Tari Maori e tu ake ano a mua ra nga tari Kawanatanga katoa.  
[An interpretation in English was given to the House.] 
[ 
I have considered what I heard Pita say earlier and it is not right to say here that it is a waste of time for Maori for the Ministry of Maori Affairs and for all Government departments to remain in future. 
] 
Hon Maurice Williamson 
: I raise a point of order Madam Speaker. If a Minister can get up and answer a question by saying this is not the right forum and the question should be answered somewhere else and if you think that addresses the question then we could spend the whole day with Ministers saying they will address questions somewhere else. This is Parliament. 
Madam SPEAKER 
: The Minister did address the question. The point that the member has raised is a debatable point. The Minister did respond. It is for others to determine the quality of the answer.