Quinn Paul: Port Nicholson Block (Taranaki Whanui ki Te Upoko o Te Ika) Claims Settlement Bill — Third Reading 
Quinn Paul: Port Nicholson Block (Taranaki Whanui ki Te Upoko o Te Ika) Claims Settlement Bill — Third Reading 
[Volume:656;Page:5337] 
PAUL QUINN (National) 
: 
 E Te Mana Whakawa o te Whare tena koe. Tena koe e te Whare me oku hoa mema Paremata. Aku mihi nui ki a koutou katoa. Taranaki Whanui ki Te Upoko o Te Ika nga rangatira nga kaumatua e kui ma e koro ma tena koutou. Hoki mai ra ki te Paremata. Aku mihi ki te Kawanatanga a Nahinara E tautoko ana ahau i te pire. Kia ora huihui tatou katoa. 
[ 
Greetings to you Mr Assistant Speaker and to you the House as well as my fellow parliamentarians. Huge acknowledgments to you all. Greetings to you Taranaki Whanui ki Te Upoko o Te Ika leaders elderly men and womenfolk greetings 
.] 
This third and final reading of the Port Nicholson Block (Taranaki Whanui ki Te Upoko o Te Ika) Claims Settlement Bill represents the final step in this process. Firstly it acknowledges the injustices that have occurred to Taranaki Whanui since the time of the New Zealand Company’s transactions commencing in 1839 and the role the Crown has played in perpetuating those same injustices. Secondly the Crown unreservedly recognises and acknowledges that it has not lived up to its Treaty of Waitangi obligations. Thirdly it acknowledges the Crown’s seeking of atonement. In achieving those three steps both parties and this nation can move forward in a lasting relationship whereby Taranaki Whanui and the Crown can stand together as first amongst equals in the same way that other iwi who have settled stand as equals with the Crown and future iwi will also stand. 
Getting to this step has not been an easy task for the parties involved. For Taranaki Whanui who since 1987 the date when they filed their claim with the tribunal have been seeking redress to address their grievances and for the Crown which has had to confront its own ghosts both the deed and the bill have raised issues that have required reflection and debate as both documents have worked their way along the validation path. But today that is all behind us. In this House the people’s House we join as one to acknowledge and salute Taranaki Whanui. From today Taranaki Whanui will be the masters of their own destiny. They will have the tools to stand tall and live out the challenge that is theirs. That challenge is to receive this settlement as their rightful inheritance born from the sweat of those who have gone before them and leave it evermore strongly founded for those who follow. 
I know that the Taranaki Whanui are already well on the way under their current leadership. We have visible signs of that in the Athletic Park development the development of Pipitea Street and proposed developments throughout the region. That reflects the influence that these settlements have once they are agreed to on the regional economies throughout New Zealand. Taranaki Whanui will be no different in the impact that they will have economically within the conservation estate in the area and culturally in being able to progress and promote as a full partner the development of their people and their region. 
There will be challenges there will be pitfalls and there will be stumbles but the key issue is that we learn and take strength from those pitfalls and stumbles and that we move forward as one. I am proud to stand here in this House today to acknowledge and congratulate Taranaki Whanui’s leadership and its people on reaching this outstanding milestone.