Ririnui Mita: Debate on Prime Minister’s Statement 
Ririnui Mita: Debate on Prime Minister’s Statement 
[Volume:637;Page:7448] 
Hon MITA RIRINUI (Minister of State) 
: 
 Kia ora Mr Deputy Speaker. Nga mihi o te tauhou ki a koe otira ki a tatou katoa. 
[ 
Greetings of the new year to you and indeed to all of us. 
] 
You know Mr Deputy Speaker I actually came into the House shortly after Dover Samuels had launched into his brilliant speech and as I was thinking about what he was saying I became a bit envious. He talked about lying in the sun on the beach in the far north soaking up the summer with his friend Ron Mark. It makes one think that this is a wonderful country. It really is when two people from opposing parties and opposing political viewpoints can actually spend some time together in rest and recreation in the north just relaxing. Yes I am quite envious. But it shows that we are certainly a developing and vibrant nation. 
I also heard some comments made by the Maori Party member Hone Harawira in terms of his observations around Waitangi Day. I have a lot of observations to share too and it is really about who we are as a nation. I did not attend the Waitangi Day celebrations; I very rarely do. The reason is that I attend my own in Tauranga Moana where my people signed the Treaty of Waitangi. I do not go up north and trample over the mana of the Ngapuhi just to make my point. I do that from my strength back in Tauranga. 
 Hone Harawira talked about the flag-flyers the protesters and the Auckland Harbour Bridge. I have come to the view after observing the Waitangi celebrations this year that protesting is actually out of fashion. People do not really want to do it any more because the protesters of old are now the entrepreneurs of Maoridom. They do not march to Waitangi any more; they drive up in their BMWs their limos and their new cars. They still look pretty aggressive and pretty sharp but they have done very well under this Government. “Ngati Helensville” is well aware of that—he is actually one of them. 
I will talk a little bit about how we celebrate Waitangi Day in Tauranga Moana. The Waitangi Day celebrations started on our mountain some time in about 1986. Those celebrations have continued ever since year after year. They started with just a handful of us—10 I think at the most—and over time we sent out invitations to the wider community to come and join us to celebrate. Over time the numbers have grown. But this year I observed a very unusual thing. A number of ethnic groups came to help us celebrate to share in our celebration of being a nation to get up in public to speak about who they are and where they come from and to actually say thank you to the tangata whenua for the opportunity to come to this country in search of a better life—because that is what most of us are looking for. 
I listened very carefully to the National Party member Allan Peachey’s speech. I welcome him back and I am glad to see him well. His speech was very similar to the tone of his new leader’s speech. Although the National Party is known for its splits and divisions it is now known for being a party of discovery. National members have discovered that there are poor people in this country. It is unbelievable but they have just discovered that there is underachievement in this country. They have just discovered that the health statistics in this country are not the best. Where have they been? 
A lot of what we inherited as a Government in 1999 was because of the mean policies of that party when it was in Government in the 1990s. But now National members are in denial as well. They do not know anything about poverty in the 1990s. The food bank is a good example. It was established in the 1990s during the time of a National Government. 
Hon Tau Henare 
: They’re looking for a regional director Mita Ririnui! 
Hon MITA RIRINUI 
: Did I hear that interjection from the person who was at that time a member of the New Zealand First Party and the Minister of Maori Affairs? 
Dave Hereora 
: He lost his discipline though. 
Hon MITA RIRINUI 
: He lost his way as well—as well as his memory. He came back here and now he is condemning the party that trained him in the art of being a Minister. Well the things one sees in Parliament! I have a lot of time for that member because unfortunately his wife happens to be a whanaunga of mine. Well one cannot choose one’s whanau; that is what they say back home. 
I will touch on the Prime Minister’s statement to Parliament earlier this week. It has shown as has always been shown since 1999 that not only does this country have a strong Labour-led Government but also it has very very strong leadership. It has leadership that is not frightened to tackle the hard issues. It is not afraid to tackle the challenges of dealing with the hard issues. The nuclear debate is a very good example of that and our nuclear-free policy is still in place. The world admires this little country at the bottom of the Pacific Basin for its nuclear-free stand. 
Our stand on the sustainable management of the environment is another courageous move. While most countries around the world are in denial this country is facing up to the challenge and facing up to the threat. All we can hear from that side of the House is cynicism because it is in denial. In fact National members will discover as our neighbouring leaders have discovered that we do face a real threat to the environment as a result of greenhouse gases. But this Government has a very impressive record of achievement since 1999. 
I heard in the House yesterday afternoon some statements from Chris Finlayson who is now the National spokesperson on Treaty negotiations. I wondered to myself why the Hon Tau Henare or the Hon Georgina te Heuheu did not get the job. Anyway Chris Finlayson got the job and he spoke very eloquently in the House about the history and performance of the National Party when it came to Treaty negotiations. That performance was quite impressive. But I have to say that the National Party of old is gone—the Doug Grahams the Jim Bolgers the Doug Kidds. I say to you Mr Deputy Speaker that you are the last of them. The men with integrity have gone. The National Party of old has gone. I do not see any of them there at all—I even had some admiration for Jenny Shipley. But when the party is full of divisions what does one expect? 
National members say the Government is slow when it comes to Treaty settlements yet they have opposed every settlement we have brought not only to this House but also to the select committees. They have made no effort to contribute positively to the settlements; they have just opposed them. Why? Because they are opposed to the achievements of this Government. 
I look forward to the challenges of the future. Twenty-four settlements are currently on the table. We settled three in 2006 and we have settled 17 over the last 7 years—that is an impressive record. The challenge for Tau Henare is whether he is able to take off his National Party hat—which was once a New Zealand First hat—and think about the Maori people out there the iwi hapu and whanau that are anxious to have their settlements resolved and to get into a developmental mode. I wonder whether he can do that. Well it will be an interesting sight to see. 
In the area of health huge gains have been made. We are a lot wiser and more intelligent now about Maori health statistics. We know through working with Maori communities where the needs are and how to address them. In other words this Government is designing policy based on evidence not on slogans. The achievements out there in the community are testament to all the good work that this Government is doing. 
I heard Allan Peachey talk about the underclass kids. Well he wants to think—[ 
Interruption 
] Paula Bennett was tailgating John Key when he was running around South Auckland. It looked as if she was lost—Takapuna was in the opposite direction. Nevertheless it is good that the National Party has discovered poor people because closing the gaps and addressing inequalities affect the very people we have been talking about for the last 7 years and designing policies to assist.