Katene Rahui: Tariff (New Zealand-Hong Kong China Closer Economic Partnership Agreement) Amendment Bill — First Reading 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Katene Rahui: Tariff (New Zealand-Hong Kong China Closer Economic Partnership Agreement) Amendment Bill — First Reading 
[Sitting date: 22 June 2010. Volume:664;Page:12098. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
RAHUI KATENE (Maori Party—Te Tai Tonga) 
: 
 This is probably not the best time to be considering a bilateral trade agreement between New Zealand and Hong Kong. If we were to ask Hong Kong - based Natural Dairy (NZ) Holdings about its perspectives on the viability of the New Zealand - Hong Kong China Closer Economic Partnership Agreement it would probably raise the context of the $100 million deal it was attempting to seal with the bid to purchase the 16 New Zealand farms formerly owned by the Crafar family. The receivers handling the sale of the farms had already signed a sale agreement with Natural Dairy (NZ) Holdings conditional on our Overseas Investment Office approving their application. Suddenly out of the blue Landcorp chairman Jim Sutton suggested it might put in a tender because of the reputational risks to the New Zealand dairy industry and New Zealand Inc. He referred also to concerns in the wider community about the sale. We in the Maori Party have raised particular concerns around one of the Crafar farms which is part of the Maraeroa A and B blocks over which Ngati Rereahu has a settlement interest. The 16 farms are located in the Waikato the King Country the Bay of Plenty Whanganui Taranaki and Rangitikei. Other iwi with significant interests yet to be settled may well be watching the events unfold with great interest. 
The next turn of events for the Hong Kong - based company was that the Minister of Agriculture David Carter stepped into the ring saying that a sale to that company was unlikely to go through. The Prime Minister publicly censured his freethinking Minister but the damage had been done. I remind the House that this company had already signed a conditional purchase contract for the farms. It is no wonder that Natural Dairy (NZ) Holdings now says Landcorp’s interests look like the result of political interference. 
I thought that the Crafar farms context would be a very relevant setting in which to consider the environment for a free-trade agreement with Hong Kong. It underlines the range of interests that the Government must consider when we look at the prospect of trade with overseas jurisdictions. The Hong Kong - based company Natural Dairy (NZ) Holdings was also involved in the separate purchase of farms in February this year at Norsewood in southern Hawke’s Bay Waitotara in South Taranaki and the Manawatu. That purchase is now under investigation by the Overseas Investment Office which is questioning whether the required consents were in place. This action led company director May Wang to retort: “The plain fact is if New Zealand does not welcome the investment it is inevitable the company will take its $1.5 billion to another dairying nation that does want it.” 
None of this is the greatest public relations for the Tariff (New Zealand-Hong Kong China Closer Economic Partnership Agreement) Amendment Bill which we are debating tonight but it provides us with an opportunity to address some of the longstanding concerns that the Maori Party has raised in the past about the nature of free-trade agreements in general. We have raised concerns that although free-trade agreements are established to protect investors and their investments they have the potential to threaten our own domestic programme raising concerns for Treaty settlements between Maori and the Crown. In the case of the 16 farms formerly owned by the Crafar family it should be noted that they employed nearly 200 staff on 8000 hectares. Our concern then with free-trade agreements is to always consider how such relationships impact on the long-term prosperity of workers here in our land. We hope that if such an arrangement was to take place with a Hong Kong company following the passing of this bill the local mana whenua would be approached with a view to working together collaboratively on employment opportunities that might arise. 
The Crafar farms issue has raised some concerns around this agreement but also I bring to the House the very real value that Maori businesses have talked to us about of having the opportunity to go out and explore international economies. There has been a growing interest from Maori businesses and from iwi leaders in being able to have access to the international market. I was interested to read some of the comments from Te Horipo Karaitiana who is chair of the Awatoru Maori economic transformation initiative and a director of a successful Maori agribusiness with activities in Aotearoa and overseas. Te Horipo recently participated in the Food and Agribusiness Market Experience programme studying global food value chains and has shared his enthusiasm for working to expand opportunities from the China closer economic partnership agreement. If we consider that the majority of the Maori asset base is in the primary industries—seafood forestry and farming—we see that they all have major implications for how we operate in the international arena. It is Te Horipo’s experience that Maori involved in the primary industries should look upon trade with the Asian economy as an opportunity to participate in the value chain rather than remaining at the production or farm-gate end. 
A classic example is that provided by Patrick Watene of Ngati Tamatera Hauraki who is the founder and executive director of Global Horticulture (Xi’an) Ltd which specialises in horticultural consultancy and bare-land orchard development. Based in China GlobalHort provides expertise in value-adding through an integrated value chain from orchard to market. It was because of the example provided by the range of Maori businesses already developed in the Asian economy that in this year’s Budget the Minister of Maori Affairs announced investment in developing a Brand Maori to gain premium prices for Maori-produced goods exported to niche markets. 
There was also investment in a delegation of Maori business leaders heading over to the World Expo in Shanghai in September. The key purpose of the delegation will be to help Maori businesses enter growth industries to increase Maori exports and to increase the profile of Maori tourism experiences with overseas providers and visitors. This is really important not just for relationships with China and Hong Kong but for the wider growth of the Maori economy. Maori economic development is important not only for Maori but for New Zealand’s overall economic performance. Maori can represent a considerable source of future growth and if they do it is our view that Maori must take a lead role in determining their economic development aspirations and fostering development that works for them. Trade is all about building and sustaining relationships. Maori businesses have been telling us that they believe that the culture of Te Ao Maori connects and resonates particularly with places like Hong Kong Shanghai and Greater China. 
The Maori Party does not want to close the door on those opportunities. Although we acknowledge that there are a range of strongly held views that we ourselves have put forward about free-trade agreements in general the reality is that Maori are already confidently and enthusiastically conducting business throughout the world. Maori businesses and all those who invest in them also deserve our support to benefit and develop the unique indigenous point of difference they contribute to business activities. 
These are the two views that the Maori Party brings to this bill: fair trade and protection of our domestic programme particularly the Treaty relationship or encouragement of the development of a trading partnership based on dialogue transparency and respect—a partnership that tangata whenua will also be able to benefit from. We look forward to hearing what the public has to say about this bill.