Paraone PitaPITA PARAONE (NZ First): Tēnā koe Mr Assistant Speaker tēnā anō tātou e Te Whare. Tenā hoki koutou ngā manuhiri i tae mai nei ki te tautoko i te pire. Kite atu i a koutou harakau e mōhio ana noa te nuinga i a koutou ēngari ngā hunga e mōhio ana au a Koro me tana hoa rangatira a Mavis nā reira tēnā koutou. Tēnā hoki koutou i hāpaingia i te kaupapa o te pire nei kia whakawhiriwhiringia e tātou i roto i Te Whare Pāremata i te rā nei nā reira tēnā koutou. Tēnā hoki e te whaea te tuahine o Joe ngā mihi hoki ki a koe. Ēngari aroha ana au ki tō tamāhine e noho ana i tērā taha ko tana taha tika kei tēnei taha kia ahatia? Ēngari ngā mihi hoki ki a koe e te whaea.[I thank you Mr Assistant Speaker and greetings to us once again the House. Salutations also to you who have arrived to support the bill. I see you collectively but do not recognise the majority but of the ones I do like Koro and his wife Mavis therefore I acknowledge you collectively. Accolades as well to you who endorse the purpose of this bill for us to consider in the House of Parliament today so well done. Hello to you too auntie colleague and Joe's sister compliments to you as well. But I do feel sorry for your daughter sitting on that side; her proper place is on this side so what? But I do empathise with you as well Auntie.]I want to first of all congratulate the people of Rangitāne Tū Mai Rā—Wairarapa Tamaki nui-ā-Rua claimants—on bringing their claim to this stage. Although we have some way to go before everything is completed I think it is worth acknowledging those who have made the effort—and I am sure against some strong criticism within their own iwi—to bring forward this settlement.I also want to reiterate the point that was made by the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations that this settlement will not fully compensate the iwi. It is no different from all other settlements that have been concluded in this House and for whatever reason that is the reality of Treaty claims. I just wanted to have that put on the record given that there are members of the wider community who are very critical of these settlements. They think that Māori are getting more than what they are entitled to and yet if they read the history of the claims and the reasons for making those claims then I am sure their own opinion would change. But then there will be others within the community and it does not matter how many facts you present them with they will still have a contrary view. So I support the notion of this bill being referred to a select committee because it will give the opportunity for members of the iwi particularly those who might not support the settlement in its present form—it will give the committee the opportunity to hear the background for their dissent if any and the rationale for it and to decide whether or not those concerns can be addressed.I just want to run over some of the details of the settlement itself. In so doing I note that in terms of the area of interest this is the second-largest land area behind that of Ngāi Tahu. It just goes to show the responsibility that those who have carried this bill to this stage—the size of the load that they have had to bear. Just by way of explanation the area that is covered in this settlement extends from the north of Dannevirke to Mākaramu near Porangahau down to Turakirae which is Cape Palliser and it encompasses the wider Wairarapa and Tamaki nui-ā-Rua regions. That in itself gives you an indication of the land mass that this iwi is certainly responsible for.The settlement summary describes a series of land transactions including public work takings by which Rangitāne Tū Mai Rā who had initially encouraged European settlement and enjoyed considerable benefits from rents and trade became virtually landless. Today approximately 2 percent of the region is owned under a Māori land title. The settlement includes the vesting of eight sites in Rangitāne and under other arrangements the vesting of another five sites one of which Pūkaha or Mount Bruce is to be gifted back to the Crown. Again I want to remind the wider public of New Zealand that this is just a mere example of the generosity of iwi claimants to our community. The settlement also includes the establishment of and provisions for participation in the Manawatū River catchment advisory board and the Wairarapa Moana statutory board.I just want to extend the comments made by the member for the Green Party Metiria Turei in terms of Māori contribution to our environment. I have no doubt that as part of this settlement the contribution of the iwi to the care of the Manawatū River and any of its tributaries will certainly be an asset to the wider community.The financial redress is not too bad but it could have been better although it includes interest less any on-account payments and commercial redress values. I will not go into detail as to what those on-account payments were but suffice to say they were included in the overall quantum to meet the financial redress under this claim.There was also a right to purchase some Ngaumu forest land and some commercial sites in the Treaty settlement land bank and right of first refusal over some properties for 174 years. I know that there has been some discussion about that length of time particularly within the Māori Affairs Committee. I am sure that if we as Māori continue our oral tradition then you can rest assured that the Māori partner in this Treaty settlement will certainly not forget this commitment even after 174 years. It is important that it becomes a topic of discussion within iwi circles but it would certainly be helpful if the wider community also kept a record of that commitment.Like all other iwi there have been trials and tribulations that the negotiators have had to endure in negotiating this settlement. I am sure that both parties know that it could have been more. They would have liked to increase the value the quantum of the settlement but for various reasons have not been able to do so. In that respect we have to acknowledge the generosity of the iwi in accepting the terms that have been offered them.I commend the bill to this House. Kia ora.