Horomia Parekura: Public Works (Offer Back of and Compensation for Acquired Land) Amendment Bill — First Reading 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Horomia Parekura: Public Works (Offer Back of and Compensation for Acquired Land) Amendment Bill — First Reading 
[Sitting date: 17 June 2009. Volume:655;Page:4428. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
Hon PAREKURA HOROMIA (Labour—Ikaroa-Rawhiti) 
: 
 E tu atu i runga i te karanga o te pire nei. E mihi kau ana i a koutou te Ropu Maori ki a koe e te tuakana e Te Ururoa tena koe. Na te mea e mohio atu tatou mai ra ano e rongo atu ki nga korero e korerotia atu a Hone ma me nga korero a nga pati mo te take taumaha nei. Na te mea mohio atu tatou te tangohia a wera o nga ropu te Kawana nga kaunihera ratou ma te whenua e kore mo te hoki. No reira tena tatou. 
[An interpretation in English was given to the House.] 
[ 
I rise to take a call on this bill and acknowledge you the Maori Party and my elder by descent Te Ururoa Flavell. Greetings to you. We have known and heard for a long time what Hone and others as well as parties have been going on about how heavy this issue is. We know quite well that land taken by those organisations Governments councils and suchlike will never come back. So greetings to us 
.] 
I join my colleague Nanaia Mahuta in stating that the Labour Party will certainly support the Public Works (Offer Back of and Compensation for Acquired Land) Amendment Bill going to a select committee. This bill is a test of the Public Works Act and it has a whole lot of ramifications. I wish that my rugby-playing colleague Paul Quinn were here because we could discuss the issues that are relevant to Treaty settlements and could take on board the salient question raised by Nanaia Mahuta of the impact or impression that this bill will have on certain aspects of settlements. It is important to address that. 
The history of this bill is quite simple. In the early years soon after the settlers had turned us into one of the last settled societies in the world Maoris looked up to the postmaster the policeman the teacher and the preacher. The postmaster had the coupons the policeman would lock us up if we did not do what he wanted the preacher would save our souls and the teacher would take our kids and teach them the new way. It was all about a new way. One thing that went with that was land. Land was used to build schools and Maori gave it incredibly generously. One of the real failings is that on half of the land that was given to build schools no school ever ended up being built. If we look at schools in this country we cannot see many that were not built on land that was a gift from Maoridom. Education was certainly important; people could see that at the time. Hone Harawira talked about Te Roopu o te Matakite. Those organisations those groups that struggled and people like Eva Rickard Dr Sinclair and others fought over a period of time to get those lands back. Councils took land and put their markers on it quarried it leased it out for long periods and then turned it into freehold title land. Some properties that have been well developed will not be returned but there are still a hell of a lot around that can certainly be returned. Some of the land was purchased by Pakeha families. 
But for Maori this is very important. I am proud that we were around in 1997 when the great Government of that time sorted it all—Te Ururoa Flavell will agree with that. During four terms when we were in Government the then Opposition members who sat here at the time did not support this. So it is heartening that over a period of time some people can change their view. Some people will suggest it is a flip-flop but certainly they are very supportive and we need to recognise that. There are a whole host of things that come with this: the valuations and how we set them up. The Mangatu case is critical in relation to the Public Works Act because those people did attack and win in relation to the valuations and the rate take. A lot of the properties that are valued up in this case that Maori may want back and that were taken from them come back with a real heavy weight around the neck. My friend from ACT was saying that was not quite right. It is right because there is a long history behind this stuff. I certainly want to commend Te Ururoa Flavell. 
I hope everybody in the House is genuine about supporting this very very important take because it is that. Maoris did give; a lot of land was taken. But a lot of this public works land Maori actually gave for the betterment of the country—a lot of the quarries a lot of the school sites a lot of the hospital sites Maori actually gave them. They did not sell them; they did not get paid for them. And that is the test to work out how we quantify the return cost if there is a cost. I suggest that there should not be a cost. Kia ora.