Davidson MaramaHon MARAMA DAVIDSON (Co-Leader—Green): Haere atu rā Queen Elizabeth II. I stand on behalf of the Green Party of Aotearoa to send our condolences to the Queen's family for their mourning and to the many mourning her here and around the world. I recognise that to many she represented dignity and grace in her commitment to service with an almost stubborn ethic to work right up until the day before she died. I certainly can reflect on her sheer stamina for service and public life—that after seven years as an MP I can't imagine having to times by 10.I know how important it is to hold with care the matriarch she was including as a mother a wife a sibling a grandmother a super-nan"—as we say in my whānau when you start to get several generations of mokopuna in your living presence. As a nana myself to two little ones these bonds and connections and the importance of them particularly when living a very public life deserve their understanding and recognition from us all.I also acknowledge the sentiments held by many in Te Ao Māori who have expressed aroha for Queen Elizabeth. The Kīngitanga in particular have held a particularly special relationship through Te Atairangikaahu to this day perhaps signalled when Queen Elizabeth herself signed their Treaty settlement and read the apology to our Kuini Te Atairangikaahu. In the Tai Tokerau my own elders expressed grace at this time as they have recalled her visits to Waitangi itself.There is a tikanga and kawa among Māori which I too uphold. This calls on the responsibility to affirm the sense of loss shared particularly by her loved ones. It says that Charles is not simply just a king; he is also a grieving son. William is not just the next-in-line prince; he is also a grieving mokopuna. I send aroha for the loss of this pou in the lives of her extended family.I also hold space for the fuller reflection of the institution of the monarchy that Queen Elizabeth upheld—reflections that are being highlighted right now especially as people have had days to gather their perspectives on the impacts of a colonial and imperial agenda on their lives. Over the weekend we saw many Māori leaders who while holding a rightful space of aroha have also been very clear that we cannot ignore the oppression of Māori as very real and continuing. This is the beauty of having grown up on my marae. We are accustomed to the importance of being able to bring to bear the fullness of a person's life especially at their death. As a wahine Māori leader in politics I will not deny those sentiments either.Queen Elizabeth herself was smart and aware. I dare say she would not be surprised in the least about any peoples raising the role of the monarchy in oppressing the power of others including here and countries around the world. She was never ignorant of the responses around the world to the monarch imperial agenda that her long post represented. We can see this when we look at the times and instances when she has referred to the colonial impacts—for example her well-known utterance about the Treaty of Waitangi being "imperfectly observed" in her words. She knew what she was a part of.Ko tēnei Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori—right now is Te Wiki o Te Reo Māori. The irony is not lost on me that due to Parliament not sitting for the rest of the week we are all denied a historic special debate. Politicians across the House were due to speak to our collective responsibility of protecting te reo Māori and to commemorate 50 years since the Māori language petition was presented on the steps of Parliament. This was a once-in-a-50-year opportunity for us to herald something that was at risk of being completely wiped out by a colonial plan that was linked to the reign of Queen Elizabeth's father King George. I am today still doing the work to reclaim my own native tongue as a result of violence towards my grandmother when she was but a child. Now I know that this legacy would have surely horrified the Queen.The reclamation of mana motuhake in Aotearoa for te Iwi Māori continues regardless of what happens on the other side of the world. The work to decolonise and re-indigenise this land continues. The vision of Matike Mai—constitutional transformation and Tiriti justice—is for us on this whenua to do. Yes with all that I have acknowledged with love for the death of a Queen the question of what her service was in aid of is certainly a legitimate one and yes a question for this very time. The debate is happening right now because we haven't yet done the work to restore justice. Te Ao Māori and tauiwi allies will continue to do this work no matter whether we stay in this House this week or not. We will continue to support this reo Māori week no matter. The Queen is dead; our work lives on.Her Majesty lived a life of service as we have said and we in this House also serve the people. It is appropriate for us to mark her passing and give space for people to mourn but we work for New Zealanders and the extended period that Parliament will adjourn for means important legislation will be delayed including the Maniapoto Claims Settlement Bill the Accident Compensation (Maternal Birth Injury and Other Matters) Amendment Bill and the Electoral (Strengthening Democracy) Amendment Bill. Select committees will not have the opportunity to be briefed by Ministers and hold them to account or to hear from members of the public. Our view in the Green Party is that a shorter adjournment period would have been appropriate to recognise the significance of the Queen's passing and the accession of the King while also upholding our commitment to continue governing Aotearoa.I end my contribution to swing back to the reflections of my own whānau who sit all along the continuum of diverse responses. Some of us are in authentic mourning and openly expressing love. Some of us are staying respectfully silent. Others of us still are reacting to having the harms of colonisation denied and erased. With all that I stand by a human acknowledgment of a kuia who I will pay some basic respect that should be accorded to all of our elders. I circle back to genuine regards to her precious ones. Rest well Queen Elizabeth—you've certainly earned it."