Tangaere-Manuel CushlaCUSHLA TANGAERE-MANUEL (Labour—Ikaroa-Rāwhiti): Tēnā koe. Tuatahi māku he tautoko i ngā mihi a Hōnore Jackson i tēnei rā ki te whānau o Efeso otirā ki a koutou hoki tana pāti e noho tonu ana i raro i te kapua pōuri.He mihi hoki ki tōku ake whānau e noho ana i raro i te kapua pōuri arā ngā whānau Horran ngā whānau Reedy. Kei te tangi te ngākau ki a koutou. Heoi anō ki ngā mahi huhua o te wā haere haere atu rā koutou.Huri noa ki a tātou o tēnei Whare tihei mauri ora. Tihei mauri ora.[Thank you. Firstly for me is support for the acknowledgments of the Hon Willie Jackson today to the whānau of Efeso indeed to you also his party that remain under the cloud of sadness. An acknowledgment to my own family also that sit under the cloud of sadness—i.e. the Horran families the Reedy families. My heart cries for you.However the many recently departed go forth rest in peace. And to us all around this House the breath of life.]Tihei mauri ora—behold the breath of life. That is what Te Aka Whai Ora represented to us—an opportunity that we may ourselves breathe the breath of life into our people Aotearoa whānui utilising our traditional knowledge and our modern expertise in the area of medicine as well. That hope is being dashed today as we stand here to disestablish Te Aka Whai Ora.I'm reminded of an experience I had about 20 years ago while studying. A century on from the Tohunga Suppression Act it came up in our studies. A woman a bit more senior than myself and a dear friend said to me Now I know what's wrong with me." I said "What do you mean?" She's someone we would characterise as a kaimahi rongoā or indeed a tohunga. But for many years because she was deprived of our traditional models and the knowledge of our tikanga and our practices she thought something was wrong with her. She had nobody to teach her. It impacted her mental health. She turned to alcohol and drugs and finally she knew why. So I think this serves as a precautionary tale to us. All these years later we take that risk again.I had every intention of coming into this calm and speaking about some of my family experiences but I can't help but sit here and feel insulted—insulted by that side of the House who are telling us that they understand what's best for us they want what's best for us. Excellent; let us tell you what that is and help us put that into action.I'm furthermore insulted such is the arrogance that when the Hon Willow-Jean Prime was making her case for hauora Māori—the wellbeing of Māori in our language—barely half of that side put in their earpieces to hear what she was saying.Heoi anō I want to acknowledge the presence today of some kaimahi hauora Māori in our area. Tēnā koutou. Nau mai haere mai. I want to acknowledge the amazing mahi you do not only for whānau Māori; I know for a fact that the services these people represent cater to all people in their region—Māori mai Pākehā mai Pasifika mai ahakoa nō hea [including Māori Pākehā Pasifika wherever they are from]. No matter who they are or where they are from these services help them and their whānau utilising the unique and impactful kaupapa Māori practices that we have. Tēnā koutou. Be assured that I and this party will continue to advocate for you to be able to do the unique mahi you do for the benefit of all New Zealanders.Heoi anō another reason this Te Aka Whai Ora is so important to me is as a daughter who wonders what would have been had my mother's belief in rongoā Māori been honoured. She was told "One or the other." There was no balance sought. You know what? We wanted her to be able to treat her body as tapu but when she declined surgery she was told "You'll be back in a box." and treated inadequately because she believed in rongoā Māori. I'm pleased to report my mother did live for another 10 years but we can only wonder what would have been if her beliefs were honoured and she was provided mainstream care to go alongside that.Heoi anō just this afternoon the Prime Minister said—and I quote—"We believe in better outcomes for Māori." Sadly it appears that's only if Māori behave in the capacity of committee members and advisories not as authorities on a subject that is literally us. So I'm sad to say that this bill represents the dashing of hope because it was something that was Māori-inspired Māori-led and all-inclusive. Tēnā rawa atu koe e te Māngai."