Donnelly Brian: Porirua City Council (Pauatahanui Burial Ground) Bill — Second Reading In Committee Third Reading 
Donnelly Brian: Porirua City Council (Pauatahanui Burial Ground) Bill — Second Reading In Committee Third Reading 
[Volume:642;Page:12457] 
Hon BRIAN DONNELLY (NZ First) 
: 
 As we consider the Porirua City Council (Pauatahanui Burial Ground) Bill it is worthwhile reflecting that history really is a wonderfully tangled web. This afternoon we consider the fate of the Pauatahanui Burial Ground and the history involving this piece of land. It is of real interest to me that another piece of history has been revealed here today with the revelation by Luamanuvao Winnie Laban that the great-great-grandfather of our present Assistant Speaker Ross Robertson is buried in this burial ground. 
I want to talk about the strand of history during the 1830s and 1840s. On the site of the burial ground there was a pa located within the rohe of Ngati Toa. It belonged to Te Rangihaeata who has an important part to play in our history because he was Te Rauparaha’s son-in-law. It was the killing of Te Rangihaeata’s wife that caused the rage that ended up in what has become known as the Wairau massacre an incident of not insignificant import to New Zealand. So the strands are connected. 
Another strand of connection that I talked about in the first reading is close to this site. On land bought by Thomas Stace is what is known as the Taylor-Stace cottage which is a Historic Places Trust building. It is actually the oldest building in Porirua. It was initially built by William and Ann Taylor who arrived in Wellington with their six children in 1840. They built a simple Georgian cottage constructed with rough sawn timber which was later to be bought by Thomas Hollis Stace who extended it. The great-great-granddaughter of the Taylors is one Cathy Davis whose husband Ernie is known to many around these buildings because he has been a senior staff member of New Zealand First since 1994 and has certainly contributed significantly to the ongoing achievements of our party. 
The further history of this particular piece of land that we are talking about the burial ground itself relates to the deed of trust which was dated as Winnie Laban said on 6 December 1856. At this particular time Thomas Hollis Stace conveyed the land that is the burial ground to five people: William Bromley Edward Bolton William Jones James Mitchell and himself. These were the people who were named in the trust. The trust had certain purposes: to permit a chapel to be built on the land for religious worship by the Protestant denomination; to permit the chapel to be used as a schoolhouse for the education of children of the neighbourhood; and to permit the land to be used as a public burial ground. One of the parts of the deed of trust was to reserve a particular part of the burial ground as a family plot for Thomas Hollis Stace and his heirs and descendants. In some respects this is part of the issue that we are having to resolve with this bill because at present the burial ground is full. It has gone through various different legal modifications since the time that it was first put under the trust but now it is full and there are no further plots; obviously there are no further plots for the descendants of Thomas Hollis Stace. 
There is no legal access to the burial ground. The entrance from Paekakariki Hill Road was closed for reasons of road safety several years ago. Consequently the only access is via the road leading to St Alban’s Church. Although the church allows its road to be used for access all parties would prefer to have a legal agreement to this effect. However because the legal title remains subject to the caveat that we are talking about and the land itself remains subject to the trust it would be difficult for the council to formalise access. The council which actually owns the land unfortunately is caught by the caveat. Furthermore as I have said there are no more plots in the burial ground available for sale. So really what we have here—as people have described—is a beautiful piece of land and an important part of our history and really this is a common-sense approach to preserving the history given the happenings over time. 
I must make the point that I endorse the statement made by John Carter about the manner in which the community has worked together in a constructive fashion to bring this legislation before the House. This is proven by the fact that the select committee made no recommendations. Select committees make no recommendations when people have put in the hard yakka and got everything right when there is nothing controversial about the legislation and when the people doing the work have the details correct. The fact there were 14 submissions all in favour of the bill and the select committee made no recommendations for any change is a reflection of the work that has been put in by the different groups within the community to bring this harmoniously together. 
New Zealand First is very pleased to be able to support the passage of this bill through its second reading and through its other stages this evening. Thank you Mr Assistant Speaker.