Henare Tau: Ngai Tamanuhiri Claims Settlement Bill Ngati Makino Claims Settlement Bill — First Readings 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Henare Tau: Ngai Tamanuhiri Claims Settlement Bill Ngati Makino Claims Settlement Bill — First Readings 
[Sitting date: 16 February 2012. Volume:677;Page:549. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
Hon TAU HENARE (National) 
: 
 Tena koe e te Rangatira tena koe. Tena koutou i haere mai i tenei po. No reira mihi kau atu ana ki a koutou katoa.  
[ 
Greetings Mr Assistant Speaker Robertson greetings to you. Greetings to those of you who came here tonight. So acknowledgments to you all 
.] 
New Zealand First back in the House eh? And all they can do is sing the national anthem! That is it. That is the sum total of New Zealand First’s contribution to two Treaty bills. Damn that was good! I cannot wait to go home and tell my moko that Brendan Horan had the opportunity to say something really really deep and all he could do was sing the national anthem. And do you know what Brendan Horan? It was not even a good version. And let me tell those people over there that if he wants to have a go about loyalty in New Zealand First then how come Tu Wyllie was not put up to No. 2 on the list when he stayed with New Zealand First? I do not think that is anything to do with loyalty. 
Hon Nanaia Mahuta 
: What number are you? 
Hon TAU HENARE 
: No. 40 and I still got in. No. 40 and I still got in. No. 40 and there were still people after me who got in. It may not happen next time but I am very proud of the fact. It may not happen again but hey I do not digress. 
Andrew Williams 
: Why are you playing snakes and ladders? 
Hon TAU HENARE 
: Sorry what was that? 
Andrew Williams 
: Why are you playing snakes and ladders with you being the snake going downwards? 
Hon TAU HENARE 
: Well look at least I can go to the toilet properly. 
Hon Parekura Horomia 
: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. We are here this evening debating and discussing a very very serious matter that history has put asunder that people in Parliament have trampled on and I think it is correct that we get on with the business rather than play oral fights. 
Hon TAU HENARE 
: Speaking to the point of order there is a long tradition in this House that when there are interjections a member who has got the call can respond to those interjections—especially if they are of a personal nature. 
The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (H V Ross Robertson) 
: Thank you. I also remind the House that if they look at Speakers’ rulings there is also some leeway given when people make contributions in the House.  
Hon TAU HENARE 
: We have heard the platitudes of nearly every member in the House and along with those I add mine as well. My congratulations go to iwi to the Government to the Public Service to the Office of Treaty Settlements to Crown Law and to everybody involved in trying to bring closure to this aspect of New Zealand’s history. 
But let us not forget that it is a deal between the Crown and iwi. Therefore I want to ruffle a few feathers as I am wont to do on many occasions and say that this House looks very seriously at how we deal with Treaty settlements. I say that because when the bill comes to the Maori Affairs Committee the select committee cannot change any part of the deal between iwi and the Crown—it cannot do that. And sometimes I wonder why we waste iwi time and why we waste the House’s time by having the bill go to a select committee. It is my opinion that because it is a deal between the Crown and iwi there must be some way where we can speed up the process so that iwi can get on with the job of looking after iwi. 
So I want to say that what we have done in the select committee is two things. One is to split the committee in half and have a couple of committees go out and do our business. And we have also promised ourselves that the turn-round will not be 6 months it will not be 3 months; it will be between 4 and 8 weeks. So we give that commitment to iwi so that they can get on with the job at hand. 
I will not be too long but there is something else that I want to respond to and that is some suggestion that section 9 of the State-Owned Enterprises Act has something to do with what we are talking about. All I can say is that at the end of the consultation process I can guarantee—because I am a member of this Government—that there will be the Crown’s response to iwi and the Crown’s recognition that it must take into account the Treaty of Waitangi. That is the Crown’s responsibility. So if section 9 does go there will be a rewritten clause that still says the Crown has a responsibility to take into account the Treaty of Waitangi. 
I just briefly want to mention something that the Hon Parekura Horomia mentioned in his speech and that is the issue about rates and it has been a vexed issue for Government as far back as my great-grandfather who just happened to be a member of Parliament nearly 100 years ago. I think that there is coming a time where we will—both sides of the House—have to agree on a mechanism for the rating or not of Maori land because it is getting completely out of hand and the only losers are those Maori who have shares in Maori land. 
Hoi ano taku mihi ki a koutou katoa. Ano taku mihi ki a nga rangatira o te Whare nei taku tuakana a Parekura a no reira tena koutou tena koutou kia ora mai tatou katoa. 
[ 
Thus I acknowledge you all. My compliments to the leading figures of this House to my elder Parekura so greetings to you greetings to you and greetings to us all 
.]