Ririnui Mita: Maori Purposes Bill (No 2) — Second Reading 
Ririnui Mita: Maori Purposes Bill (No 2) — Second Reading 
[Volume:646;Page:15676] 
Hon MITA RIRINUI (Minister of State) 
: 
 Kia ora Mr Assistant Speaker. I speak today in support of the Maori Purposes Bill (No 2). The bill includes an important amendment to the Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975 that will increase the upper limit of the membership of the Waitangi Tribunal from 16 to 20. As an Associate Minister in charge of Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations I find this a very very important amendment to the bill. 
In 2006 the Government responded to calls from New Zealanders to streamline the Treaty settlement process and set a closing date of 1 December 2008 for the submission of historical Treaty claims. The closing date represented the first step in a wider Government policy that aims to settle all historical Treaty claims by 2020. This policy recognises the importance of the Treaty settlement process for New Zealanders while ensuring that historical Treaty settlements are attained in a fair manner and within a reasonable time frame. 
A key part of this Treaty settlement process is the role of the Waitangi Tribunal. Established in 1975 the tribunal’s jurisdiction was originally limited to making findings and recommendations relating to events dating from 1975. Its original membership consisted of a chairperson plus two other persons. However in 1985 the tribunal’s jurisdiction was extended allowing it to investigate events dating back to 1840. To meet this increased jurisdiction the membership of the tribunal was also increased to a maximum of 16 members. One of them Mrs Georgina te Heuheu is sitting over there on the Opposition benches. 
Few of us who have observed or who have been direct participants in the journey our nation has been taking since 1985 could dispute the huge impact that the tribunal and its inquiries have had on our development—who we are where we come from and how we do things. The work the tribunal achieves is wide varied and intensive. Claimant communities go to considerable efforts to put their stories before the tribunal and few people could deny the efforts of the tribunal members themselves to ensure that these stories are respectfully heard and recorded. In particular the workload of historians and kaumatua members will intensify over the next few years as the number of historical claims needing inquiry increases and the tribunal reports back on these inquiries over a more concentrated time frame. The efforts and expertise of all tribunal members are invaluable to the work of the tribunal and provide immense support for both claimants and the Crown alike. 
The support of up to four additional members over this time period will greatly assist with the responsibility the tribunal now faces. It is this need for extra support that brings the amendment before the House today. By providing the tribunal with additional members to respond to its increased workload we are ensuring that the tribunal has the necessary expertise and human resource to provide claimants with a timely yet comprehensive claims process. Furthermore the amendment is likely to come into effect before the closing date of 1 September 2008. This means that the tribunal will be resourced to hit the ground running once the closing date passes. 
As I said at the beginning of this speech the setting of a closing date for the submission of historical Treaty claims represented a first step in the Government’s commitment to settling all historical claims by 2020; both the closing date and the 2020 policy are important developments in our nation’s progress towards the final settlement of historical Treaty claims. I am pleased to support the next step—an important step—of providing the Waitangi Tribunal with the additional resources it needs to contribute to the goal of settling all historical claims by 2020. Thank you.