Tirikatene RinoCANTERBURY REGIONAL COUNCIL (NGĀI TAHU REPRESENTATION) BILLFirst ReadingRINO TIRIKATENE (Labour—Te Tai Tonga): I move That the Canterbury Regional Council (Ngāi Tahu Representation) Bill be now read a first time. I nominate the Governance and Administration Committee to consider the bill.Tuatahi me mihi au ki ōku rangatira ngā tini whanaunga o Ngāi Tahu whānui Te Kaunihera Taiao ki Waitaha nau mai whakatau mai nau mai whakatau mai ki Te Whare Paremata e takatū nei. Tēnā koutou i tēnei kaupapa whakahirahira. E tū ana au ki te tautoko i te hautū tēnei pire Te Pire Kaunihera Taiao ki Waitaha ngā māngai o Ngāi Tahu. [Firstly I should acknowledge my leaders the many relations from the wider Ngāi Tahu tribe and Environment Canterbury; welcome welcome to Parliament House which stands here. Greetings on this important matter. I stand to support the passing of this bill the Environment Canterbury legislation and the spokespeople of Ngāi Tahu.]It's an honour and a privilege to introduce the Canterbury Regional Council (Ngāi Tahu Representation) Bill. As the House will be aware local bills enable local authorities to promote legislative change at a local level. This bill would have the effect of continuing permanently the mana whenua representation on the Canterbury Regional Council in the form of two Ngāi Tahu councillors from the 2019 local body elections an existing arrangement first put in place by the National Government in 2010 when it installed commissioners on the Canterbury Regional Council. The introduction of Ngāi Tahu councillors has proved truly insightful and I commend the National Party for its foresight in doing so.This House will recall it was also the National Government who determined that post-quake Canterbury needed a strong presence in determining its own future leading to the establishment of the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority (CERA). And while not without its critics National further endorsed that approach post-CERA establishing Ōtākaro Ltd and Regenerate Christchurch two Christchurch-based organisations which continue to progress post-quake recovery initiatives and ensure enhanced local engagement in local issues—a concept also at the heart of this bill.I commend too Environment Canterbury's councillors for recognising that value and seeking the continuation of a mana whenua voice in decision making. This local bill as local bills are is very much a local solution for local issues and would simply continue what is well-established and working exceptionally well. Continuing Ngāi Tahu representation on the council is key in ensuring the values and concerns of mana whenua are given full expression in all aspects of the council's decision making. A significant amount has been achieved with a mana whenua voice in Environment Canterbury's decision making from which the region has benefited along with its ratepayers; hence the wish for it to continue. Indeed it is the expiry of that National Government legislation the Environment Canterbury (Transitional Governance Arrangements) Act 2016 and the upcoming local body election in 2019 that has led to the promotion of this bill. Environment Canterbury as the Canterbury Regional Council is responsible for not only environmental outcomes but also social economic and cultural outcomes in a 45000 square kilometre area of the South Island. It is an area that includes many of New Zealand's iconic landscapes and majestic vistas from north of Kaikōura to Waitaki in the south and inland as far as the Southern Alps including the spectacular braided rivers and the mighty maunga Aoraki / Mount Cook. Ngāi Tahu of course are the original people and kaitiaki of much of that area having had an intimate connection with it since the ancient migrations of Waitaha Ngāti Māmoe and Ngāi Tahu. Generations later the sense of kaitiaki responsibility that Ngāi Tahu has for the natural environment has not diminished. To the contrary it remains vital and strong and increasingly relevant.In the 20 years since the Ngāi Tahu Claims Settlement Act particularly since the Canterbury earthquakes of 2010 and 2011 and again following the Kaikōura earthquake of 2016 Ngāi Tahu has been increasingly recognised as a key partner in the Canterbury region. Many entities in the south as Environment Canterbury clearly has now recognise the value of strategic partnership with and Ngāi Tahu representation at a governance level as well as a cultural narrative which remains very relevant today. Ngāi Tahu again demonstrated the value of partnership particularly in time of need in its compassionate and responsive leadership again in Christchurch in the last few weeks.This local bill is therefore supported by the mayoral forum of all 10 territorial local authorities and all 10 Papatipu Rūnanga in the Canterbury Regional Council area. The council has recently undertaken a representation review which indicated the council's preference that two mana whenua seats should remain. Ten submitters addressed the subject. The council's intention was also referred to in long-term plan consultation documents with three submitters commenting on the proposal. Consultation on the bill itself will of course be possible at the select committee stage.Opposition to this bill will likely include the apparent concern that it's not acceptable to give Ngāi Tahu special treatment and that the pendulum has swung too far. Let me say to those people: this bill is not about special treatment. This bill is about enhanced representation in an age where a mana whenua voice is critical which Ngāi Tahu councillors have demonstrated in the value they have added to a range of Environment Canterbury's work over the last eight years. This bill is simply about effective regional governance continuing in a manner that has already proven to be effective.To those who say that this bill will adversely impact on representation and democracy I say this: this bill will ensure that more not fewer voices will be heard at the council table and because of that provide an enhanced additional level of representation informed by generations of knowledge and environmental awareness. It may be that those people don't appreciate have forgotten or for whatever reason willingly ignore that the mana whenua world view is one of fostering and sustaining the natural environment for the benefit of all peoples. There can only be advantage and value from such inclusiveness and mutual understanding that is a fundamental element of this bill. It should not be seen as special treatment. It should remind us that what is good for mana whenua is good for all of us. There is nothing to be scared of here.In recent weeks the nation's response to the tragic events in Christchurch has demonstrated globally the power of inclusiveness and the value of other cultures' beliefs and different ways of thinking and our collective willingness to accept them. It is what we wish to become known for and we have been widely praised for it. The passage of this bill will undoubtedly add to the conversation of what inclusiveness really means. This bill is an opportunity to stand with the mana whenua and accept and utilise their values spiritual beliefs and knowledge gained over generations for the good of all. Given recent events in Christchurch and the sense of inclusiveness that has arisen from it it would be an unforgivable double standard not to trust and embrace the mana whenua.This nation the nation of all of us has come a long way but our journey of which this bill is now part is far from complete. In Aotearoa New Zealand in the modern progressive nation we wish to be a Te Ao Māori world view is an essential part of decision making. Ngāi Tahu representation on the regional council ensures a position of influence for mana whenua values and it creates a governance structure that reflects the spirit and commitment to work together in true collaborative partnerships between mana whenua and the regional council and in the work it does. That collaborative partnership includes the sharing of knowledge and information the creation of opportunities for increased participation in decision-making processes effective engagement and further enhancement of existing working relationships. It is what the Labour-led Government had in mind when it sought to enhance Crown-Māori relationships.In the nearly nine years since they were first introduced by the National Government Ngāi Tahu councillors have played a pivotal role in building the social capital and community ownership of solutions that underpin water and land management in Canterbury. The practical benefits are not least the greater efficiency in planning and consenting processes reduced costs for both council and consent applicants and the council's role in earthquake recovery. Such representation has contributed immeasurably to good outcomes in the region for the council for its ratepayers and even for those visiting the region. From a council perspective Environment Canterbury very clearly understands that continued mana whenua representation at a governance level is the most effective way to give effect to key statutory obligations under the Resource Management Act 1991 and the Local Government Act 2002 and also as fellow New Zealanders wishing to contribute to a better and more inclusive New Zealand both for us and our children after us.Ngāi Tahu councillors have also provided confidence to Papatipu Rūnanga and wider tribal members that their voices their environmental and other concerns are heard at the highest level. This bill will ensure that the values and intergenerational perspective are consistently heard at the council table and confer more representative and more effective local authority than without mana whenua representation. As we have already seen there will be more balanced views on a range of issues more partnered decision-making and better outcomes for ratepayers and those who use our natural environment.In short we know that what is in place now and has been for years and what this local bill would continue works. It should continue. In the words of Dame Margaret Bazley a previous chair of the Environment Canterbury commissioners having Ngāi Tahu at the council decision-making table is simply just the right thing to do". As the local member for Te Tai Tonga and therefore the Canterbury region I support this modest request and I commend this bill to the House. Kia ora tātou."