Connell Brian: Foreshore and Seabed Bill — In Committee Speaker Recalled In Committee 
Connell Brian: Foreshore and Seabed Bill — In Committee Speaker Recalled In Committee 
[Volume:621;Page:17075] 
BRIAN CONNELL (National—Rakaia) 
: 
 I say to the laird of Riversdale Mr Edwin Perry that his speech had passion in it if nothing else. It was in stark contrast to the speech that I had to sit through and listen to when Mr Dail Jones took a call just prior to the dinner break. It was so dull that I now know why Rip van Winkle went to sleep for 100 years. This guy would have us believe that the only reason that 1840 is the date that everything must work off is because it is the law. I ask Mr Jones why we do not just think about having law that evolves to reflect the make-up of our society now. That is what we should be doing. I say to Mr Dover Samuels while I am at it that non-Maori New Zealanders do have some spiritual beliefs but the difference between the way we want to practise those and the way he articulates the case for Maori is that he wants every day for Maori culture to be Christmas Day. We do not buy that. 
 I have to say also that when Dr Cullen was on his feet he asserted that the problem with the National Party is that we do not know what our argument is. I respond to Dr Cullen by telling him that the real core problem is that he is rushing through this House legislation that has the potential to disenfranchise 90 percent of New Zealanders from their traditions.  
Darren Hughes 
: How? 
BRIAN CONNELL 
: Mr Hughes is calling out. I suggest he goes outside puts on his first pair of long trousers and then comes back. Then we will take him seriously.  
Darren Hughes 
: Answer my question! How? 
BRIAN CONNELL 
: The member should go away and come back and then we will take him seriously.  
Darren Hughes 
: How? 
BRIAN CONNELL 
: The member is yelling out: “How?” He is telling us now through this legislation that ancestral connection will disappear but on closer scrutiny— 
Hon KEN SHIRLEY 
: Clause 31. 
BRIAN CONNELL 
: —yes clause 31 as one member has called out—it is not disappearing at all. All he has done is a sneaky back-door deal with New Zealand First somewhere around Courtney Place. They certainly work—they might miss their meal breaks but they never miss their drink breaks. When they were working through that they failed to tell us that they have put the ancestral connection through the Resource Management Act process. What it means is that they will be able to bring that provision in the back door any time they want. The Maori caucus has already accepted that premise as recently as last night. The caucus said it “will provide stronger recognition of the traditional association of whanau hapu and iwi with the coast than the ancestral connection orders initially provided for in the legislation.” It is coming from the Maori caucus.  
The great pity of all of this is that I do not believe any of it had to happen. If cooler heads had prevailed and people had taken time to read the appeal decision they would have seen that it did not state anywhere in that decision that Maori would get ownership of our foreshore and seabed. It never stated that anywhere. But rather than wait for due process the poll-driven Government which is now in cahoots with New Zealand First decided to legislate because it thought it would get some cheap votes as a consequence. But boy has that cost the Government dearly! The Maori caucus members know exactly what I am talking about. Their heads have gone down now and they are not so chipper. They know it has cost them dearly and it will probably cost some of them their seats. I hope it does.