te Heuheu Georgina: Maori Purposes Bill (No 2) — Second Reading 
te Heuheu Georgina: Maori Purposes Bill (No 2) — Second Reading 
[Volume:646;Page:15675] 
Hon GEORGINA TE HEUHEU (National) 
: 
 I am very happy to rise and take a call on the Maori Purposes Bill (No 2) and to say hello to various people affected by the bill who are in the gallery tonight. The Minister has run through in some detail the nature of the changes outlined in the bill. I guess in a sense he is correct to say that they are generally housekeeping in nature. Politicians are very fond of describing changes in this Maori Purposes Bill in that manner yet to those on whom the changes impact they are clearly much more than housekeeping otherwise they would not make the effort to come to Wellington to hear the various stages of this bill as it passes through the House. 
In respect of the changes to the Maniapoto Maori Trust Board Act as the Minister rightly pointed out one of those proposed changes is to formalise a new regional management committee for Kawhia Harbour. The committee received some comments and submissions on this matter but following some consultation it appears that all who are affected by it are happy with the proposed change. When one thinks of what it will do—it will enable the new regional management committee for Kawhia Harbour to properly represent its constituency so that it becomes eligible for funding and enables voting rights in trust board matters—one sees that clearly it is an important change.  
There are two other changes to the Maniapoto Maori Trust Board but the only other one I will mention is the change of name for the Maniapoto council of elders. Currently the name is Te Mauri o Maniapoto and the elders felt that that was inappropriate as the use of the word “Mauri” applies better to marae than to a council of elders. So they have suggested—and it will be the case—that after this bill passes into law the council will be known as Te Kaumatua Kaunihera o Maniapoto. Those are just two changes. They are small in nature but they are very important to the Maniapoto Maori Trust Board. 
I will also mention changes to the Maori Trust Boards Act specifically in respect of the Tuwharetoa Maori Trust Board. The changes are to the annual payment to be paid by the Crown under a new agreement that was forged between the Crown and the trust board in September last year. Again that will bring to a point of conclusion something that was actually started back in 1992 when the bed of Lake Taupo was vested in the Tuwharetoa Maori Trust Board and certain other property rights were basically left to be dealt with at a later stage. This is that stage. I know that for those at home this provision that comes before us tonight is a very important provision. It relates to certain other property rights in respect of Lake Taupo.  
Once the law passes it will enable the trust board with its new format to develop an enhanced relationship with the Crown which I think is always an important thing when iwi or iwi bodies are engaging with the Crown. So this will enhance that relationship as I guess do the other changes I have mentioned. The Maniapoto Maori Trust Board’s relationship with the Crown will be enhanced as well. 
Ultimately the relationship that was forged when the Treaty was signed even though some did not sign it was what the Treaty was about. A lot of the legislation we see coming before the House tries to enhance the relationship between Maori and the Crown although I must say that legislation under the current Minister has been a little bit of a long time coming. I guess in election year he feels he needs to get on and make changes that will enhance his tenure. I hope it does but I am not sure that it will. However that is another matter. I think that any legislation that comes to this House that enhances the relationship between Maori and the Crown is good—not just for the parties but for New Zealand as a whole—because ultimately these trust boards these Maori entities are operating in the wider picture in New Zealand society and in the New Zealand economy. It is a good thing when we can see these types of enhancements. 
The only other comment I will make is in relation to the Treaty of Waitangi. My colleague Chris Finlayson will comment in more detail. I have already mentioned the relationship under the Treaty. There are some changes to the Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975 the main one being the increase in the statutory limit on the membership of the Waitangi Tribunal whereby the membership can increase to 20. I think I made some comments in my first reading speech that it is all very well for Parliament to make these kinds of provisions but we have to have a Government that recognises the absolute importance of the role the Waitangi Tribunal plays in the Treaty of Waitangi settlement process. 
I do not know that this Government has a really keen sense of the importance of that role. The reality is that over the 9 years that the Labour Government has been in power the tribunal has struggled year after year. It has had to scale back its forecasts in terms of the number of sittings it might hold and in terms of the reports that it might write. Now however we have the ability to increase the membership to 20 but that is worthwhile or of value only if the rest of the tribunal infrastructure is properly supported to enable 20 members if it is deemed necessary to sit at a more regular rate than the members now do. 
As a key to the whole settlement process the tribunal needs to be able to get on with its part in the process and enable iwi to again move on with settlements to get grievance out of the way and to ultimately enhance that relationship between Maori and the Crown. The amendments here are housekeeping but National recognises that they are very very important to the entities concerned and ultimately to the ongoing relationship between Maori iwi Maori and the Crown.