Mooney JosephJOSEPH MOONEY (National—Southland): It's a privilege to rise this afternoon as the member of Parliament for Southland and the National Party spokesperson for Treaty negotiations to speak in support of the Ngāti Maru (Taranaki) Claims Settlement Bill. To the elders leaders and whānau of Ngāti Maru who are here in the gallery today or watching from home I wish to extend a very warm welcome. This settlement this bill and this process is about you your tūpuna and your uri.Maru hāhā hāhā te whenua hāhā te tangata.[Maru of extreme loss and breathlessness the land is deserted.]The people are gone and gasping for breath. In this Ngāti Maru lament we are haunted by the intense sense of loss discontent and disconnection that generations of Ngāti Maru whānau and hapū have borne. Ngāti Maru is an iwi whose area of interest extends from Mount Taranaki east to the upper Whanganui River and north-east to the Waitara River. However Ngāti Maru were left virtually landless and their people displaced and dispersed. It is those wrongs that we seek to acknowledge today and set right through the settlement.I acknowledge that the signing of Ngāti Maru settlement which took place in February has been a long time coming for iwi who have been in negotiations since the late 1980s. An in principle agreement was reached two years ago. I also note that this bill completes the settlement process which began under former Treaty negotiations Minister Christopher Finlayson under the last National-led Government. I also recognise the leadership and efforts of Minister Little who is shepherding this settlement to its conclusion. We also owe a debt of gratitude to the settlement negotiators for the Crown and for Ngāti Maru who through their efforts have shaped an agreement that helps to build a brighter future for iwi and subsequent future generations.With every Treaty settlement bill we turn our gaze in three directions. We look to the past reflecting on traumatic histories and legacies that are very much a part of the story of our history as a nation. We look upon the present moment acknowledging past injustice and through redress we seek to make right the wrongs of the past. Finally we look to the future with hope trusting that a re-forged relationship between Crown and tangata whenua lays the foundation for our best days which lie ahead.The historical account in this bill turns our gaze to the past. For generations Ngāti Maru cultivated the fertile river flats and drew resources from the area's forests rivers and wetlands. Because of their inland location Ngāti Maru had limited contact with Europeans during the 1840s and 1850s. Ngāti Maru were not involved in the land dealings which led to war in Taranaki in 1860 and were not directly involved in the subsequent fighting. Their involvement was limited to providing refuge to Wiremu Kīngi Te Rangitāke in accordance with the requirements of whanaungatanga. However when the Crown confiscated huge tracts of Taranaki to punish the rebels—so-called—in 1865 approximately half of the traditional lands of Ngāti Maru were included. Many of their main kāinga urupā and wāhi tapu were taken and some have never been returned.Through the 1870s Ngāti Maru suffered devastating land loss. Much of the remaining Ngāti Maru land was then put through the Native Land Court. Ngāti Maru had no alternative but to use the Native Land Court if they wanted a title that could be legally recognised and protected from claims from other Māori. A legal title was also necessary if Ngāti Maru wished to lease or sell land. However the individualisation of customary title made the land more susceptible to alienation and further damaged tribal cohesion. Ultimately Ngāti Maru did not retain any of the land awarded to them by the Native Land Court. In the early 1890s some Ngāti Maru were virtually landless and appealed to the Crown for help. The Crown's response was slow and ineffective. Legislation was not enacted until 1907 and the land ultimately provided to Ngāti Maru was poor and of limited size. In many other ways the Crown failed to protect the interests of Ngāti Maru in the context of accelerating settler migration.The extensive loss of Ngāti Maru lands has eroded tribal structures created severe poverty and damaged the physical cultural and spiritual health of generations of Ngāti Maru people and that is what this bill aims to redress. So it is in a spirit of remorse and with a genuine hope for reconciliation in this bill that the Crown acknowledges and apologises to Ngāti Maru for its acts and omissions which breached the Crown's obligations under the Treaty of Waitangi and the damage that those actions caused to Ngāti Maru. These include acknowledgments relating to the wars in Taranaki in the 1860s the Crown's confiscation of approximately half of the Ngāti Maru rohe its imprisonment of Ngāti Maru men without trial following their participation in protests initiated at Parihaka regarding the confiscation of Taranaki lands and its subsequent invasion and destruction of Parihaka. The deed will also include acknowledgment that the Crown failed to ensure that Ngāti Maru retained sufficient land for their present and future needs and that it failed to protect their rangatiratanga.Ngāti Maru will receive financial and commercial redress valued at $30 million. Cultural redress includes the vesting of 16 sites of cultural significance including Purangi and Tarata domains. While no redress can ever fully compensate for the destructive and demoralising effects of past actions it's hoped that this settlement will allow Ngāti Maru to realise their aspirations for a vibrant economic and cultural future and restore a relationship based on mutual trust respect and cooperation. I thank the people of Ngāti Maru for their generosity and commitment in being here today and achieving this settlement. Tēnā koutou tēnā koutou tēnā tātou katoa. I commend this bill to the House.