Finlayson ChristopherHon CHRISTOPHER FINLAYSON (Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations): I move That the Te Awa Tupua (Whanganui River Claims Settlement) Bill be now read a second time. The bill gives effect to a deed of settlement between the Crown and Whanganui Iwi that was concluded in August 2014 up the river not far from Jerusalem. The deed of settlement has two parts. First Ruruku Whakatupua—Te Mana o Te Awa Tupua" establishes a new legal framework "Te Pā Auroa nā Te Awa Tupua" for the Whanganui River that is centred on the legal recognition of Te Awa Tupua as an indivisible and living whole comprising the Whanganui River from the mountains to the sea incorporating all its physical and metaphysical elements. Secondly "Ruruku Whakatupua—Te Mana o Te Iwi o Whanganui" addresses that very special—indeed intimate—relationship between Whanganui Iwi and the Whanganui River. It contains an iwi narrative an agreed historical account Crown acknowledgments and an apology and cultural and financial redress for Whanganui iwi.Can I acknowledge the work of the Whanganui iwi negotiators some of whom are in the gallery today. Can I especially acknowledge my negotiator John Wood our former ambassador in Washington on two occasions and more recently well-known for his work for me both in relation to this claim and also Ngāi Tūhoe. Of course he is now resident in Kaikōura and has had to deal with all those issues. He is a wonderful New Zealander and I acknowledge him. I acknowledge the Government and other agencies that have contributed to this bill.One person I particularly want to mention on my side is Dr Briar Gordon from the Parliamentary Counsel Office who led the drafting on this very complex and innovative bill—I acknowledge my friends nodding in the gallery. She would contact me from time to time and say: "Well how do I express in legislation these metaphysical elements?" but she got there with the help of Jamie Ferguson counsel for Whanganui Iwi. So I acknowledge the tremendous work on both sides that was done to achieve the drafting but I particularly acknowledge Briar Gordon. I also thank the chair and the members of the Māori Affairs Committee. Mr Korako and his team have once again done an excellent job in progressing this bill in a timely manner.Given the shall we say interesting circumstances of the last few days there are two other people I specifically wish to acknowledge. At the conclusion of the last debate there were some very generous comments made about me but I have to say that in my 8 years as Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations there are two other people who are responsible for progressing these claims and without them I would be nothing. There is the Prime Minister of this country who has been so tremendously supportive of me in this work. I can think of critical moments both in relation to this negotiation and for example the Ngāi Tūhoe negotiation when because we were dealing with very innovative redress both could have gone off the rails. Both could have failed. They did not fail because of the Prime Minister.There are some people including former leaders of my party who have said that he did not make a contribution. Well I have to say it is only because they do not understand this stuff and never would. They live in a world that never was and never could be. But John Key is going to go down in history for a number of reasons and he is going to go down in history for being a Prime Minister who was tremendously supportive to his Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations and who enabled this important work to be done.The second person who deserves very special accolades is the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance. So often I have had to do my Oliver Twist act with him—"Please sir I want some more."—and he looks at me and says: "What is it about you that causes me to have to spend so much money?". But he is always there because he understands—even though he only went to St Patrick's College Silverstream as opposed to those of us like Mr Swain and I who went to a slightly better school: St Patrick's College Wellington. He understands what social justice is all about. He understands the need to conclude these settlements. He is a great New Zealander and I mihi to both of them. It has been a pleasure to serve with them. This has a sort of valedictory tone to it. Well I can assure you that like Mrs Thatcher until the tomahawk goes in I intend to go on and on and on.The bill was referred to the Māori Affairs Committee on 24 May 2016 and 21 submissions were received from interested individuals and groups. The committee heard 11 of these hearings at Whanganui and Wellington during August and September 2016. The committee reported back to the House on 24 November and recommended that the bill be passed with changes to the definition of Whanganui iwi and to the Crown nomination process for Te Pou Tupua the river guardians.The bill's definition of Whanganui iwi references a list of those hapū who were active in the 1950 Royal Commission of Inquiry into the Bed of the Whanganui River. The definition is intended to define the groups that fall within the meaning of the term "Whanganui iwi" for the purposes of this legislation primarily being the settlement of Whanganui River claims. Importantly it does not define those groups for any other purpose. Submissions by Uenuku Charitable Trust on behalf of Ngāti Uenuku and Ngāti Tamahaki and Te Iwi O Ngāti Hāua Charitable Trust requested that the bill reflect their status as iwi. To avoid future confusion the committee recommended clarifying the explanatory note in schedule 1 to emphasise that the groups listed which do include Ngāti Uenuku and Ngāti Hāua may also consider themselves to be iwi. The amendment also includes Ngāti Tamahaki as an example of a group affiliated with Whanganui iwi even though it is not expressly identified in the 1950 list. I am pleased with the outcome proposed by the committee as it should provide a level of comfort to these groups regarding their status under the bill.During the consultation on this bill the committee was made aware of an oversight in the Te Pou Tupua appointment process. As the role of Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations will not exist indefinitely the committee recommended amending clause 20(1B) to provide that the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations is responsible only for the first Crown nomination to Te Pou Tupua. The committee has recommended that the Minister for the Environment should be responsible for future nominations. The committee has also recommended that both the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations and the Minister for the Environment should consult with the Minister for Māori Development the Minister of Conservation and any other relevant Ministers when making the Crown nomination. This proposal recognises the importance of this appointment process within the Crown. Indeed Te Pou Tupua can be seen as symbolic of the relationship between iwi and the Crown that was envisaged by the Treaty.I am satisfied with these recommendations as they provide Whanganui iwi and the Crown surety for the future appointments of Te Pou Tupua. Although the office of the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations is gradually being done out of a job I am very pleased that I will still lead the first Te Pou Tupua nomination for the Crown. Te Pou Tupua is a central element to the settlement and I will work to ensure the appointments are made by settlement date.This second reading brings us closer to the concluding stages of settling the historical claims of Whanganui iwi to the great river and I am so excited that this novel and innovative redress will soon become the law of our land. My concluding remarks to my friends from the various Whanganui iwi are that there is still some work to be done; there is still some unfinished business. I see my friend Mr Mair up there. We need to get on with those land claims and he has been doing great work in encouraging folk to get stuck in. Hopefully 2017 will see some real advances in that direction as well. So with those words I commend the bill to the House."