Clendon David: Maori Purposes Bill — Procedure Second Reading 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Clendon David: Maori Purposes Bill — Procedure Second Reading 
[Sitting date: 13 September 2011. Volume:675;Page:21256. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
DAVID CLENDON (Green) 
: 
 Kei te mihi nui ki a koutou. I am pleased to take a brief call just to affirm the Greens’ support for the Maori Purposes Bill. It is a slightly unusual situation to be in to stand and support two Government bills in the course of a couple of hours but there is clearly a general consensus in favour of this bill. I have not had a close relationship with the bill but as I say the general consensus that it does good and does very little harm is reflected in the fact that all parties have supported its timely progress through the House to ensure that its provisions are not further compromised or complicated further down the track. 
To the extent that I have had some engagement with this bill it was a privilege I must say to hear at some length the story behind the remarkable person Pukepuke Tangiora. Clearly she was a remarkable personality in her time. It was an interesting and a very valuable story and one that I was privileged to hear. 
Dr Pita Sharples in his first reading comments on this bill made the very valid point that clearly the legislation in the late 1930s and early 1940s reflected a time and a context where it was considered appropriate for the Government to have much more involvement in and control over the lives—and the quite intimate lives—of people and not least of all of Maori. I think that with a more enlightened age we recognise that it is only the very brave or the very foolish who would endeavour to involve themselves in matters of a family not their own and I think it is a good thing that we are moving tonight to unpick some of that issue. 
Clearly this bill has been uncontroversial to the extent that it has had support from across the House for some time but I think that we ought not to dismiss the difficulty that the Maori Affairs Committee has faced. It had conflicting advice and input from various submitters and I think that on balance particularly in the business of administering this estate it has found a very good solution. 
The appropriate term has been found. Clearly any 3-year 5-year 6-year or 4-year term will be somewhat arbitrary but I give the select committee credit for the fact that it has made a decision that I think will serve the needs outlined. It is the most positive outcome that can be achieved. 
Under the question of the mandated iwi organisations having read through the background papers and the select committee report it would seem to me that the policy underpinning that issue is that control of matters Maori should be given to Maori to make decisions about. Clearly that is a principle that the Greens have and will always support and this is just a slight manifestation of it. 
The point has been made that perhaps this bill does not go as far as it might do and perhaps there are opportunities within it to do more and to achieve more change and that may well be a valid position. But as I say I do not feel qualified particularly to speak to that and therefore I will not except to just say again that it is clear to us that this bill actually achieves some considerable good. It appears to do no harm. Therefore we are very happy to support this bill. Kia ora.