Woodhouse Michael: Maori Trustee Amendment Bill — Third Reading 
Woodhouse Michael: Maori Trustee Amendment Bill — Third Reading 
[Volume:654;Page:3031] 
MICHAEL WOODHOUSE (National) 
: 
 I will begin by adding my message of condolence to the Parata whanau at this time. 
I am absolutely delighted that the whip saw fit to allocate me a call on the third reading of the Maori Trustee Amendment Bill. I guess it is through opportunities like this that new MPs like me can come to understand and contribute to the debates on such a wide policy range. I am certain that a great many members—and we have heard from many of them—are far more qualified than I am to comment on the merits of this legislation. Nevertheless I will do my best to make a contribution to the discourse with Hipkins-like enthusiasm. 
The Maori Trustee Amendment Bill had its genesis in the Maori Trustee and Maori Development Amendment Bill and it had two intentions: firstly the establishment of the Maori Trustee as a stand-alone organisation and secondly to propose arrangements of the statutory corporation to further Maori economic development. As has been elucidated to some degree by my colleague Mr Quinn that part of the initial bill was a bit contentious and in fact created quite some debate when the larger bill had its first reading. I think at that time my colleague the Hon Tau Henare said that perhaps the bill should be called the “Maori Trustee Theft Bill” so it was clearly quite contentious legislation. Wisely the select committee having considered the submissions decided to split the bill into two. 
This bill deals with the first intention of the bill which is the establishment of the Maori Trustee as a stand-alone organisation. I note that the select committee in its very carefully considered deliberations decided that the changes to establish the Maori Trustee as a stand-alone organisation were important enough that that split occur and that the bill should actually be passed before the close of the forty-eighth Parliament. So it seems that this bill is yet another example of the bit of a tangle the previous administration got into when it was far more interested in policies that ensured its continued survival on the Treasury benches than on focusing on the issues at hand and the passage of legislation. I am pleased to be part of a Government that is taking appropriate legislation from the obscurity of the Order Paper where it has been languishing and ensuring its speedy passage through the House and into law. 
I think it is appropriate to focus for a moment on the second objective of that initial bill and why this Government and its confidence and supply partners are extremely concerned about ensuring that aspirations for Maori are met particularly their economic development aspirations because they are so important to the social and cultural strength of any people—but certainly Maoridom. There were certainly sufficiently challenging elements to that part of the legislation for it to be put to one side but I look forward to this Government and its confidence and supply partners coming up with much more appropriate policies and legislation that will enable innovation economic growth and prosperity for tangata whenua. 
The issue of Maori economic development is as important now as it has ever been as we stare down the barrel of recession—the depth and length of which we cannot really determine yet and which to a considerable degree is somewhat beyond the control of small economies like ours. We know that the tax-and-spend policies of the previous Labour administration which it believed somehow contributed to strong economic performance over the past few years but actually acted as a handbrake when better policies would have led to stronger growth and a greater resilience to the downturn were thankfully ended. They were thankfully ended by not only the general electorate but the Maori electorate who saw through those policies and elected parties to govern so that they could cushion the country through the harshest edges of recession. High tax and public spending will not end this recession. Education innovation entrepreneurship risk taking and increasing exports are the key to improving our position relative to other OECD countries. Rising unemployment is probably the most tangible and concerning element of recession. Previous recessions have identified that Maori are as vulnerable or more so as the rest of the population when considering the average rates of unemployment. Maori economic development initiatives must continue to be encouraged as evidenced by the Maori development workshops that have already been held earlier this year and mentioned by the Hon Dr Pita Sharples. I look forward to the Government and the Maori Party continuing to explore ways in which this can be achieved. 
The Maori Trustee I understand is also responsible for the administration of the Sir Apirana Ngata Memorial Scholarship which was created by the Maori Soldiers Trust Act in 1957. I am advised that the scholarship funding comes from the Hereheretau Station in Wairoa which is a major asset of the Maori Soldiers Trust so I certainly commend the work of the trust office and the opportunities given to Maori students through that scholarship. 
During the Committee stage my colleague Aaron Gilmore talked about the issue of distributable income and those who are and are not entitled to income. In particular he referred to the unclaimed moneys in some of the families from his area in Te Wai Pounamu who were entitled to in some cases considerable amounts of money as I understand it thanks to the amendments being made to clauses 11 and 11A. The entitlement to those unclaimed moneys will rise by the fact that all of the income from the investment of money in the common fund will be paid into the common fund and the distributable income will be paid out of the common fund rather than the interest earned being paid into the general purposes fund. Mr Gilmore was strongly in favour of some of the families he described in respect of that clause. I support that view and look forward to that being the case. 
One of the other significant things the bill does is to effectively write off the Maori Trustee’s accumulated debt to the Crown therefore ruling out the need for section 41 and making the Maori Trust Office effectively Crown funded. That is not to indicate that the autonomy of the Maori Trust Office should be compromised in any way. The whole purpose of this bill is to crystallise the independence of the Maori Trustee as in fact any trustee would. The basic principles of trust law in this country revolve around that independence. The legislation will more accurately bring the Maori Trustee into line with common principles as set out by the trustee’s Act and its subsequent amendments. 
I am very delighted to have been given the opportunity to take this call and spend a few minutes sharing my learnings of the day. I am proud to support this bill as my Government will and I look forward to its passage through the House so that the general level of accountability for the office of the Maori Trustee is approved. The Maori Trustee will be free from political pressure as a stand-alone organisation and it will add to the communication between the trustee and its beneficiaries. I support this bill. I look forward to its passage through the House. I hope I have not kept Mita awake for too long. I will be very happy to support this bill. Thank you Mr Assistant Speaker.