3. Question No. 3—Māori Crown Relations: Te ArawhitiARENA WILLIAMS (Labour—Manurewa) to the Minister for Māori Crown Relations: Te ArawhitiQuestion No. 3—Māori Crown Relations: Te Arawhiti3. ARENA WILLIAMS (Labour—Manurewa) to the Minister for Māori Crown Relations: Te Arawhiti: What recent announcement has the Government made regarding Matariki celebrations? Hon KELVIN DAVIS (Minister for Māori Crown Relations: Te Arawhiti): Last week the Government launched the Matariki karakia booklet at the dark sky sanctuary in Takapō/Lake Tekapo. The Matariki booklet contains karakia for each of the nine stars of Matariki and will be distributed across the country to kura and communities as Aotearoa continues to embrace the occasion. [Interruption]SPEAKER: Order! [Interruption] Order! I'm on my feet. Be quiet. Simeon Brown will stand withdraw and apologise. Simeon Brown: I withdraw and apologise.Hon KELVIN DAVIS: Can I start again? It contains karakia—and maybe Simeon Brown needs a few karakia to help him out with his problems—for each of the nine stars of Matariki and will be distributed across the country to kura and communities as Aotearoa continues to embrace the occasion.Christopher Luxon: So all the big issues are being done.Hon KELVIN DAVIS: And it's great to see that the Leader of the Opposition embraces Matariki. The booklet presents the karakia in a way that is accessible for whānau and communities wishing to conduct their own Matariki ceremonies this year—98 percent of New Zealanders have heard of Matariki and 87 percent have an understanding of what Matariki is about. [Interruption] Obviously there's the 13 percent that don't have an understanding of what Matariki is about. I think that's incredible and this booklet will help cement the occasion and build on the success of last year.Arena Williams: What is the significance of the booklet which was used in the proceedings of Parliament's Māori Affairs Committee today?Hon KELVIN DAVIS: Last year the inaugural Matariki public holiday was officially launched through a whāngai i te hautapu ceremony at Te Papa Tongarewa—[Gestures towards the National Opposition benches]—or Te Papa to you guys. Te Arawhiti worked with the Chief Advisor Mātauranga Matariki Professor Rangi Mātāmua around the gifting of the karakia that were recited during the ceremony at Te Papa. The karakia in the booklet were penned by Sir Pou Temara and Professor Mātāmua. This is an invaluable resource that they have gifted to Aotearoa New Zealand and it helps to make some of the mātauranga Māori underpinning Matariki accessible to us all.Arena Williams: How will the booklet help New Zealanders celebrate Matariki? [Interruption]Hon KELVIN DAVIS: I can see the enthusiasm from Negative National". The job now is to embed the day into our calendar while ensuring it remains grounded in mātauranga Maori and upholds the key principles and values associated with Matariki. Nearly half of New Zealanders have said they would like to do more to celebrate Matariki in 2023 and this booklet will help them to do just that. This booklet along with a range of other resources is free to access online making Matariki an occasion truly everyone can commemorate.Arena Williams: What kind of engagement did New Zealanders have with Matariki last year?Hon KELVIN DAVIS: Last year New Zealanders wholeheartedly—wholeheartedly—embraced Matariki. Let me share some insights with the House: just over half of the country did something to celebrate Matariki last year with the most popular activity being viewing the Matariki cluster; 385000 New Zealanders tuned into the live broadcast last year; Matariki content received 4.4 million views across social media platforms; and the potential economic benefits for the domestic tourism industry have been estimated at up to $160 million. Matariki is a time to commemorate a uniquely New Zealand public holiday. Together we can all embed the occasion for years and generations to come."