Tirikatene Rino: Greater Christchurch Regeneration Bill — In CommitteeText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeTirikatene Rino: Greater Christchurch Regeneration Bill — In Committee[Sitting date: 29 March 2016. Volume:712;Page:9943. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]RINO TIRIKATENE (Labour—Te Tai Tonga): It is a pleasure to take a brief call on the Committee stage of the Greater Christchurch Regeneration Bill and can I acknowledge the Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery for clarifying how the amendments will be empowering the locals more—or giving locals more of an opportunity—to take part in the important plan-making processes and regeneration developments that will be happening for the great city of Christchurch. I am very proud to be a representative member for the Christchurch area and I do want to acknowledge all of the work that all the cross-parties in particular the Minister have afforded all members in progressing the bill to this point and incorporating and addressing a lot of the concerns that have been raised.I want to offer a slightly different angle to the debate thus far. I really want to focus on the clauses in Part 1 that relate to the interests of Ngāi Tahu—Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu. Obviously I am a proud Ngāi Tahu. It is part of my whakapapa and indeed it is a huge part of the constituency that I represent in Te Tai Tonga.I do want to give a few bouquets to start off with. I am pleased that the legislation particularly in Part 1 affirms Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu as a strategic partner in the legislation. I think that continues the very good relationship that was forged out of very unfortunate circumstances through the earthquakes and through the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority legislation which made Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu a partner with the Christchurch City Council and the Crown under that piece of legislation. It is commendable that Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu is a strategic partner but I do lament that the legislation was not able to go that step further and insert a Treaty clause that placed some obligations on this new hybrid entity which is a Crown - local government type of entity.I know that Ms Eugenie Sage mentioned in her contribution before that this was a model piece of legislation for regeneration and indeed it is. I just regret that there was an opportunity here to go further. Indeed in Ngāi Tahu’s submission to the Local Government and Environment Committee it advocated strongly for the placement of a Treaty clause that is more than just recognising the existing rights that Ngāi Tahu has under its deed of settlement and its legislation with the Crown. They are obviously well known. They have been preserved not only in the existing Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority legislation but also here under clause 7 in Part 1. That is unchanged so there are no real qualms about that. But what we could have achieved through this piece of legislation was the placing of more distinct obligations around a partnership which includes this new hybrid organisation that can stem and flow over through to the obligations of local authorities in terms of recognition of mana whenua. Rather than just leaving it to the operational level there could have been some high-level guidance and some high-level obligations imposed in the legislation to ensure that this is the importance of the Crown partnership that this is the importance of the Treaty relationship—as obligations are devolved back to local government.I do regret that the select committee did not see the need to go that far because what we see now is that Ngāi Tahu has a very very strong relationship with the Crown. Minister Brownlee knows that—he has done a lot of work in that regard—and Minister Adams and various other Ministers. What is not happening though—or what is unknown really—is how receptive this new Regenerate Christchurch organisation will be in giving full effect to the mana whenua rights to Ngāi Tahu’s Treaty rights. I guess that is a whole new grey area that is yet to be developed and it really is incumbent on those leaders within the papatipu rūnanga in the Greater Christchurch area to assert themselves to assert their mana whenua and to build relationships with this new Regenerate Christchurch organisation.I do acknowledge that steps have been taken in that regard. The six papatipu rūnanga have come together and have been initiating discussions at the operational level within the council and with the new Regenerate Christchurch establishment just to assert their mana whenua status to drive their pouwhenua in the ground and to make sure that this new body which will be including more local input will also have a strong respect for and recognition of the mana whenua Ngāi Tahu in the application of its role.We certainly hope and I do that operationally the Christchurch City Council and Regenerate Christchurch will have much greater recognition for Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu for the papatipu rūnanga across the whole Canterbury region and indeed give effect to the Treaty partnership. I guess the way that the legislation is phrased at the moment it is like: “OK the Crown and Ngāi Tahu have their deed of settlement. We’re just going to park that over there. Yeah that’s there and we’re going to get on with everything else as Regenerate Christchurch and do all these wonderful things.” But they are not exclusive. They should be incorporated and be fundamental to the operations of how Regenerate Christchurch works. I certainly hope that the new organisation will be very receptive and open to working with its Treaty partners to ensure that they give full effect to the Treaty settlement and to ensure the great regeneration of the mighty city that is Christchurch. Kia ora tātou.