Parker DavidMAORI COMMERCIAL AQUACULTURE CLAIMS SETTLEMENT AMENDMENT BILLSecond ReadingHon DAVID PARKER (Minister for Oceans and Fisheries): I present a legislative statement on the Maori Commercial Aquaculture Claims Settlement Amendment Bill.ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Jenny Salesa): That legislative statement is published under the authority of the House and can be found on the Parliament website.Hon DAVID PARKER: I move that the Maori Commercial Aquaculture Claims Settlement Amendment Bill now be read a second time. The Maori Commercial Aquaculture Claims Settlement Amendment Bill 2021 is an important bill that amends the Maori Commercial Aquaculture Claims Settlement Act 2004 to improve the allocation and transfer process of aquaculture settlement assets. The amendments in the bill are the result of extensive process with the trustee Te Ohu Kaimoana. It also involved iwi other Māori and Government over several years. Currently iwi in some regions are facing indefinite delays in receiving their aquaculture settlement assets from Te Ohu Kaimoana as it has not been possible to get unanimous agreement by all of the iwi in those regions on how the assets should be allocated amongst them. The dispute resolution process provided in the Maori Commercial Aquaculture Claims Settlement Act has been unable to address those issues because unanimity has been required and unable to be achieved and there's a risk that similar situations will arise in future regional settlement processes. So the policy objective of the bill is to improve the allocation and transfer process provided for in the Maori Commercial Aquaculture Claims Settlement Act to better enable the allocation and transfer of aquaculture settlement assets to iwi.The remedy that the bill provides is to enable assets that have already been allocated to an iwi by Te Ohu Kaimoana to be transferred to those iwi aquaculture organisations who wish to receive them. It seeks to improve the delivery of assets in regions where some do not have the required governance structure to participate in regional negotiations or the dispute resolution process and it also ensures that assets will be preserved for those iwis who choose not to participate in those regional negotiations.The bill achieves its objective by amending the sections in the Maori Commercial Aquaculture Claims Settlement Act relating to the allocation of settlement assets. It provides Te Ohu Kaimoana with a limited discretionary power to allocate and transfer aquaculture settlement assets to iwi. The bill will ensure iwi can access their aquaculture settlement assets within an appropriate time frame. It will improve the delivery of the Crown's aquaculture settlement obligations and it will protect the interests of iwi who do not wish to claim their aquaculture settlement assets at this time whilst also supporting iwi aquaculture aspirations and the growth of the aquaculture industry more generally.Can I thank the Māori Affairs Committee and the submitters for their time and contribution to the bill. The committee received 10 written submissions and six oral submissions—the majority of whom were from Māori groupings. The Māori Affairs Committee heard that the current provisions of the Act prevent Te Ohu Kaimoana from delivering aquaculture settlement assets; this is due the inability of iwi in those regions to reach agreement between themselves in accordance with the Act. This is partly because some iwi don't have the required governance structures to participate in regional negotiation. It's also partly because some iwi are unwilling to participate in those negotiations from their perspective as a matter of principle. The Māori Affairs Committee agreed there was a significant risk of similar situations occurring in future settlement processes if we don't make the change in this bill.Submissions on the bill were supportive. The Māori Affairs Committee also heard that the proposed option for asset allocation is similar to a provision for the transfer of assets provided for in the Maori Fisheries Act 2004. As noted in the select committee report if the bill gains Royal assent then the limited discretionary power could be used almost immediately for allocation issues in Northland and the Bay of Plenty. Some submitters said that they'd been waiting for years to access their settlements and they don't want any more delay. Submitters also commented that iwi have an important role in the Government's aquaculture strategy and could contribute to the growth of the aquaculture industry and therefore the improvement of the economy.The Māori Affairs Committee also referenced in its report two matters raised by submitters which were considered to be outside the scope of the bill and I thought I would address them for the benefit of the House. The first was a request for wider recognition on the involvement of hapū and whānau in the allocation process for settlement assets with an amendment requested to widen the definition of relevant iwi to include hapū and whānau. The Māori Affairs Committee were advised that these suggested amendments would require governance changes that are beyond the remit of the bill and would require substantive additional consultation which would yet again further delay the transfer of settlement assets.The second request was to include provisions that give consideration to applicants who are currently before the High Court on Marine and Coastal Area (Takutai Moana) Act 2011 applications or who are in negotiations with the Crown. The select committee were advised that including such provisions would be repetitive of section 6A which is already in the Maori Commercial Aquaculture Claims Settlement Act and already describes the relationship between that Act and the Marine and Coastal Area (Takutai Moana) Act. The Māori Affairs Committee accordingly after its considerations recommended that the Act be passed without amendment. I again thank the members of the Māori Affairs Committee for their thorough consideration of the bill and the submitters who went to the trouble of providing their written or oral submissions to the committee. On that note I commend the bill to the House.