7. Question No. 7—Prime MinisterTĀKUTA FERRIS (Te Pāti Māori—Te Tai Tonga) to the Prime MinisterQuestion No. 7—Prime Minister7. TĀKUTA FERRIS (Te Pāti Māori—Te Tai Tonga) to the Prime Minister: Does he stand by his Government's statements and policies on Te Tiriti o Waitangi?Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS (Acting Prime Minister): That is the Government's wont to do but given that some parties in this House believe that the Treaty of Waitangi is an evolving document they are confusingly arguing that we should not stand by our statements.Tākuta Ferris: What examination and research if any has the Government undertaken into the adverse effects on Māori of the legislation currently being passed under urgency?Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: The reality is that the legislation being passed under urgency is for everybody in this country regardless of their gender background their creed or where they came from. We treat people all the same and don't have special treatment based on ancestry which some in this House prefer.Tākuta Ferris: Has the Government applied any Tiriti-based analysis on the policies currently being heard under urgency; if not why not?Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: The Treaty-based analysis which this Government refers was written 101 years ago by a Māori who got his law degree in the record time in this country in just two years flat. His name was Sir Āpirana Ngata. That's our authority; what's yours?Debbie Ngarewa-Packer: Point of order please Mr Speaker. I believe Standing Order 112 relevancy to the question—this question isn't about Tā Āpirana Ngata or Ngāti Porou. It is about Te Tiriti which was written before the existence of Āpirana Ngata. If we could return to the kaupapa please.SPEAKER: Yes but the question asked what authority the Government was relying on and I think that was a reasonable answer in that regard.Debbie Ngarewa-Packer: But that with all due respect again referring to Standing Order 112—relevancy—there is absolutely no relevance of Tā Āpirana Ngata being used in this House and being misrepresented. That was a hundred years old and we're talking about today.SPEAKER: Well with respect I think it would be odd not to accept that Sir Āpirana Ngata had a reasonable degree of authority when speaking about the Treaty.Tākuta Ferris: How can he think it's appropriate to deliberately exclude the Tiriti partner in the deliberation of legislation that will have a profound impact on the lives and wellbeing of whānau tamariki and even the mokopuna of himself?Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS: I thank the member for acknowledging that the legislation will have a profound impact upon all the people he talked about and a profound impact for the better based on their genuine needs like was announced yesterday with respect to certain rates of treatment that were targeted directly to the Māori people—in this case on the basis of need not some preferential basis that arises from the beltway of Wellington or the sociological department of the universities with no connection with ordinary Māori.Debbie Ngarewa-Packer: Again a point of order please. Standing Order 121 Personal reflections"—while we understand that the Deputy Prime Minister may not reflect and even rate Māori who go to university that is a personal reflection and doesn't address the question that was put down.SPEAKER: No I don't think it constitutes a personal reflection. I've been listening very carefully to the answers because I understand there's some sensitivity but I don't think that's a fair suggestion with regard to the Deputy Prime Minister's answers this afternoon.Debbie Ngarewa-Packer: Point of order please?SPEAKER: Is it a new point of order or is it a continuation of the point of order?Debbie Ngarewa-Packer: No it wasn't new.SPEAKER: Well give it a go; it's the last day.Debbie Ngarewa-Packer: Oh your generosity—thank you e te Pīka. It is the offensive reference and certainly there is I guess a duty of care on us if we do look at 121 and the fact that we don't want people out there thinking that there are ordinary Māori and not ordinary Māori. Every Māori matters especially those who have opinions and this is a personal reference. And kei te pai tērā if that is indeed the Deputy Prime Minister's views but it isn't one that should be reflected in the House. Everyone should be treated and talked about equally. [Interruption]SPEAKER: Excuse me. With all due respect I think that if the member were to look at the Hansard responses from the Rt Hon Winston Peters it would be hard to conclude that he was saying anything other than that. We'll move on—question No. 8—Hon James Shaw: Point of order Mr Speaker. Thank you Mr Speaker. In that exchange just now about the previous points of order the Rt Hon Winston Peters was referred to as the Deputy Prime Minister whereas in the question he is the Prime Minister or the Acting Prime Minister and I just wanted some clarity about whether he was speaking as the Deputy Prime Minister or as the Prime Minister.SPEAKER: OK well the point is that the point of order was not directed in the way perhaps it should have been so I responded appropriately to that. But he is here today. He is acting as the Prime Minister—no question about that.Rt Hon Winston Peters: Great news James!SPEAKER: And I'm sure he's very happy for the nation to have learnt that by virtue of this question time."