Papawai and Kaikokirikiri Trusts Amendment Bill — First ReadingText is incorporated into the Bound VolumePapawai and Kaikokirikiri Trusts Amendment Bill — First Reading[Sitting date: 02 March 2016. Volume:711;Page:9331. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]Papawai and Kaikokirikiri Trusts Amendment BillFirst ReadingALASTAIR SCOTT (National—Wairarapa): I move That the Papawai and Kaikokirikiri Trusts Amendment Bill be now read a first time. I nominate the Māori Affairs Committee to consider this bill. I would like to thank and acknowledge the Papawai and Kaikōkirikiri Trusts Board for coming into Parliament today and welcome to you. I also acknowledge Māori Party member Marama Fox for her initiative and advice.The trust has played an important role in providing educational opportunities for young Māori in Wairarapa. It all began when Māori donated three blocks of land—the Papawai Kaikōkirikiri and Clareville land—to the Crown for a school to be established under the authority of George Selwyn the Lord Bishop of New Zealand. The land was vested in the trust board in 1853. The Papawai Native School was subsequently established and operated on that piece of land until 1932 when it was destroyed by a fire. The trust’s remaining funds were not enough to re-establish and maintain another school so the Papawai and Kaikokirikiri Trusts Act was enacted in 1943. This Act extended and varied the trust’s authority in order to make practical use of the available income and to establish a new board to administer the trust.Since that Act the trust has been distributing the income from the Papawai and Kaikōkirikiri land to support the education of post-primary Māori students. Under the Act two-thirds of the trust’s distributions must go to Ngāti Kahungunu children first then to children of Māori descent and finally to Māori descendants anywhere in New Zealand. The scholarships for these children must go to schools conducted by the Anglican Church in Aotearoa / New Zealand and Polynesia. The final one-third of funding must go towards the cost of boarding clothing and other school-related costs.The bill will remove these strict funding restrictions in the Act and give the trust more flexibility in how the funds are best distributed to the tangata whenua of Wairarapa. The trust will then be able to distribute funds to where they are most effective rather than where they are required to go under the Act. The board members are in the best position to decide where the money should be going. It should not be decided by legislation that is over 70 years old.The requirement for the scholarships to go towards Anglican schools is another part of the bill that is being updated. Schools nowadays are not normally run by Churches like they used to be and scholarship recipients should not be restricted as to the type of school they attend. The bill does this by repealing the definition of the Church of England as the purpose of the trust is to advance education for Māori and the strict requirements in the Act are not necessary to achieve that purpose.Another reason for the bill is to establish a more robust nomination process for the board members. Under the current law there are 10 board members five of whom are appointed on the recommendation of the Diocesan Trust Board four members on the recommendation of the Māori Land Court and one member on the recommendation of the Minister of Education. There are no provisions relating to their term of office. Members of the board can remain members until their death their resignation or their conviction for an imprisonable offence.This bill provides a better framework for board appointment. One of the major changes is that the board must have eight instead of 10 members: four appointed by the Bishop of Te Upoko o Te Ika and four members being tangata whenua of Wairarapa who are either appointed or elected in accordance with a process that is adopted by the board. Board members will serve a term set at 4 years. These changes to the appointment process give more authority to tangata whenua of Wairarapa to decide whom they would like to see manage the trust and to decide on an appointment process that can be used in future to suit their needs.Another important part of this bill is to better facilitate the long-term development of lands. Under the current Act the board may sell the lands with the consent of the Minister of Education but the Minister may not consent to the sale of any land that has been acquired from any Māori tribe or hapū unless the Māori Land Court has given its consent. That court must ascertain the wishes of the members of the tribe or hapū concerned—very complicated; this is another part of the Act that needs updating. The bill warrants the board to sell the Clareville land if it wishes but not the Papawai land or the Kaikōkirikiri land.The board can lease all three of the lands in whole or in part and on any terms and conditions it sees fit. This gives the board more flexibility and allows for better use of the land to increase the trust’s finances.This bill modernises the current Act to remove many unnecessary restrictions and to establish a more robust nomination process of trustees. We will also see a more fair and flexible distribution of funds by modernising the restrictive distribution provisions in the Act. The bill enables the board to enter into modern business transactions to enable better use of the land and updates the trust’s relationship with the bishop. This bill most importantly empowers the board and iwi to determine for themselves the utilisation and distribution of their assets. This can only be achieved through legislation. I commend this bill to the House.MEKA WHAITIRI (Labour—Ikaroa-Rāwhiti): Tēnā koe Mr Assistant Speaker. Labour will support this bill to select committee. Can I just make the point that as the current elected member for Ikaroa-Rāwhiti—where this bill sits—it is an opportune time I guess for us to ensure across the House that we understand the bill so we can get cross-party support for what you are clearly attempting to do here Mr Scott. I would have welcomed the opportunity but like I said it will go to the Māori Affairs Committee and we will hear from those most affected. I stand in support of this particular bill and like I said I look forward to it coming to the select committee.If I look at the main provisions of the bill—the member outlined a few of the provisions and there are a couple that I want to just go on record about in anticipation of it coming to select committee. He has read out the one around application of trust moneys and the proposed changes as outlined are to provide scholarships for post-primary education of children who whakapapa in relation to the tangata whenua Wairarapa. It also provides for provision of books and clothing and other equipment for holders of scholarships. It also makes grants through governing bodies of any schools at which any such scholarships are tenable. Section 12(3)(d) replaced by clause 9 talks about “the establishment furnishing maintenance and management of a school or schools in the Wairarapa district for children including provision for residential accommodation.”We have had many Māori boarding schools in our recent history that have closed sadly for lack of involvement both from the Churches and the Government. One thing I am hoping is that this is not being set up to also add to the declining number of Māori boarding schools. So I just want to go on record to say that this bill with that particular clause gives me some concern but we will definitely address it through the select committee. The member mentioned the members of the board. He talked about reducing it from 10 to eight. Like any proposed changes in Māori land legislation for me it is important that we define what the problem is—a problem definition—and that we ensure that we have consulted everybody and again no doubt that will come out at the select committee to ensure that when we are proposing changes those most affected are being consulted and then involved in the new provisions.I go over to the provisions in the bill that talk about alienation of land. Can I just make the point that this side of the House when it comes to protecting Māori whenua will scrutinise this bill to the utmost to ensure that there is no Māori land loss through these proposed changes. I want to just put the questions around the bill when it talks about “the Board may sell the Clareville land”. I understand there are three packages of whenua. We are going to protect the Papawai and Kaikōkirikiri whenua but the proposal is—this is according to the bill—“The Board may sell the Clareville land … by public auction or by private contract and on the terms and conditions that the Board thinks fit …”. So I am getting a sense that we are protecting the Māori corpus land but the general land in terms of the Clareville land might be subjected to potentially more changes. I guess the cautionary note there is that we ask the question why that particular parcel of land is being treated differently to the Papawai and Kaikōkirikiri whenua.So those are some points in terms of the bill that has been presented in the House today. Also when we talk about investment of trust funds again we talk about decisions over the leasing arrangements of the Kaikōkirikiri whenua the Papawai whenua and the Clareville whenua. I suppose I just want to ensure that the trust that we are establishing under this bill understands the importance of making critical land decisions that do not alienate the original intent of the land being put aside for educational purposes and that we do not see it either put up for sale or traded for any other purpose. Like I said we stand in support of this bill going to select committee. If members of the board are in the gallery I welcome them too.Also to end I say that I look forward to further scrutiny of this particular bill when it comes to the Māori Affairs Committee to ensure that we are both protecting Māori whenua and ensuring that there is no risk of alienation around that land. Also I believe we are ensuring that the educational needs of our young people from Wairarapa are also supported under this bill because we have many examples both in our present and very recent history where that has not been the case and many good schools have closed. I do not want to prolong my speech any longer but just say that Labour will support the bill. We look forward to it coming to the Māori Affairs Committee and look forward to all those who will be impacted—both the original gifters of this whenua as well as the current board and as proposed the young Māori from the Wairarapa area—having their say on this bill and ensuring that it does meet the objectives for which this member is bringing this bill to the House. That is why I say we will support the bill to select committee. Nō reira tēnā koutou katoa.NUK KORAKO (National):Ā tēnei te mihi o te whanauka o Te Waka o Takitimu o Ngāti Kahungunu. Ko Kai Tahu tēnei nō Rāpaki nō Te Rakiwhakaputa e mihi atu ki a koutou katoa.[And so I a relative of the Tainui canoe and of the Ngāti Kahungunu people acknowledge you. I am Kai Tahu from Te Rakiwhakaputa and acknowledge you all.]It is a pleasure for me to rise and speak in support of this bill the Papawai and Kaikokirikiri Trusts Amendment Bill. I want to acknowledge first of all the work of the excellent local MP for the Wairarapa Alastair Scott who has brought this bill to the House. As we have heard this bill will amend the Papawai and Kaikokirikiri Trusts Act 1943 to enable this trust board to better manage its functions and that is the essence of this bill—to better manage its functions.The Papawai and Kaikokirikiri Trusts hail from the time when the Wairarapa Māori donated two blocks of land to the Crown for the purpose of establishing a school. That school was to be under the authority of the Lord Bishop of New Zealand. The schools established on this land had various misfortunes however in their early years. The first school closed within 5 years and the second a college was established but was destroyed by fire.Around 1943 a need was seen to make more practical use of the income available from the lands held by these two trusts and for the purpose of furthering education. The Papawai and Kaikokirikiri Trusts Act was passed to allow this and a new board was established to administer the amended trust on behalf of Ngāti Kahungunu. Since that time the trusts have continued with their goal of furthering education. They currently provide educational scholarships for children of Ngāti Kahungunu ki Wairarapa and also of Rangitāne o Wairarapa descent. In 2014 119 scholarships were awarded at a total value of $59600.This amendment bill provides a timely update to the legislation governing the trust board and it will achieve four main objectives. First of all it will better describe the relationship between Papawai and Kaikokirikiri Trusts Board the Bishop of Te Upoko o Te Ika and tangata whenua of Wairarapa. Second it establishes a more robust nomination process for the board members. Third it provides a fairer distribution of funds for tangata whenua of Wairarapa. And the fourth one is to facilitate the long-term development of the lands held by the trusts.These sensible and practical changes will assist the trust board in achieving its mission. And when we look at its mission it is to uphold the aspirations and expectations of our tīpuna to enhance the faith and education of our people of being good kaitiaki of our taoka tuku iho through our business practices. That is the mission. And stemming from that mission they have four goals as well. The first is to enhance the faith to empower whānau and hapū. The second is to make positive contributions to the education of tamariki which empowers whānau—and we all know that. Education empowers whānau. The third one is to be a good steward of our taonga tuku iho and other assets. And the fourth one is to operate in a manner that upholds the expectations and aspirations of our tūpuna. That is about tikanga.This amendment bill will assist the trusts with meeting this mission and these goals. I look forward to hearing from the trust and others when we consider the bill at the Māori Affairs Committee and ensuring that this bill does everything it can to support the ongoing work of the Papawai and Kaikokirikiri Trusts Board. I commend this bill to the House. E mihi atu ki a koutou katoa. [I acknowledge you all.]METIRIA TUREI (Co-Leader—Green): I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. It is 1 minute to 6 so I would suggest that perhaps the House could rise for the dinner break now by leave and we return to this bill afterwards.The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Trevor Mallard): I am just checking with the member. She is seeking leave to adjourn 30 seconds early for the dinner break.Metiria Turei: 30 seconds early. It seems reasonable.The ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Hon Trevor Mallard): Is there any objection to that? There appears to be no objection. I will leave the Chair for kai time and someone will resume it at 7.30 p.m.Sitting suspended from 5.59 p.m. to 7.30 p.m.METIRIA TUREI (Co-Leader—Green): Tēnā koe Mr Deputy Speaker. I want to acknowledge the trustees of the Papawai and Kaikōkirikiri Trusts Board who are here just as I understand it or have been here this afternoon.Ko Tararua Te Maunga ko Ruamahanga Te Awa ā ko Tākitimu Te Waka. Nō Rangitāne me Kahungunu-ki-Wairarapa nō Ngāti Moe ahau; ko Ngāti Moe Te Hapū ā ko Papawai te marae.[The mountain is Tararua the river is Ruamahanga and the canoe is Tākitimu. I am from Rangitāne and Kahungunu to Wairarapa and Ngāti Moe. The subtribe is Ngāti Moe and the marae is Papawai.]Kia ora. Just saying.Pita Paraone: So you’ve got a vested interest.METIRIA TUREI: I have a vested interest in making sure the Papawai and Kaikokirikiri Trusts Amendment Bill goes beautifully through the process. I am very pleased to be speaking for the Green Party on this bill and we certainly support it. I am looking forward to the kōrero that we are going to hear about this bill in the select committee actually.There are many trusts like these all over Aotearoa that use Māori land and Māori resources from years and years and years back from generations back and there are many reasons why those resources are being used by trusts like these. They are set up to provide support to Māori children in particular for educational purposes. I have myself been a recipient of grants from the Wairarapa Moana Trust for example and I know the extent of the need out there for this kind of charitable work and support for Māori children and young people. So I am really pleased to see this being recognised here in the House. It is a chance to express my personal—but also I think on behalf of many of us who have received these kinds of grants from these kinds of trusts—gratitude to those who do the work to provide that extra financial support to whānau who struggle. You cannot underestimate the importance of that.I want to just quickly acknowledge there are a whole heap of Māori MPs from Papawai.Ron Mark: Yay.METIRIA TUREI: Yay. I do not think I have got the list completely right so members please correct me if I am wrong: Ron Mark and Marama Fox. Peeni Henare I understand has connections. Is it right that Rino Tirikatene has connections back to Papawai? There are others. Joanne Hayes has connections back to Papawai. MPs who are no longer in the House: Edwin Perry who was a New Zealand First MP and Rāna Waitai who was a New Zealand First MP.Ron Mark: Tūtekawa.METIRIA TUREI: Tūtekawa had connections back to Papawai. Parekura Horomia I understand bless him had connections back to Papawai and maybe there are many others. What really interests me of course is that Papawai being the place of the first Māori Parliament has managed to produce so many Māori MPs across the political spectrum. There has got to be something in that I think.We are pleased that in terms of the bill the bill is an attempt to modernise the trust board and to provide it with more flexibility and opportunity to use the resources it has to improve its financial standing and therefore to improve the services that it can provide to Māori whānau. I am very pleased to see the focus shift away from Anglican children. I thought we were all Catholics so you learn something new every day.Ron Mark: No the Anglicans took the land from us.METIRIA TUREI: “The Anglicans took the land.” says Ron Mark. But I am pleased to see that the process is being cracked open a bit to make it more accessible and I think that again that is part of the modernisation of a trust board like this. Being able to have an opportunity to speak to some of the trustees from this trust board over the dinner break I feel very confident that the kaupapa the purpose of these trusts is in good hands. I am looking forward to the stories that we will hear in the select committee about the history of these trusts and there may be some concerns raised too. We will take those seriously as we consider it. But I am very pleased to be supporting the bill tonight. Tēnā koe.JOANNE HAYES (National):Tēnā koe. Ka nui te mihi atu ki a koutou ngā kaumātua o Wairarapa o Te Papawai me te Kaikokirikiri Trust;tēnā koutou tēnā koutou nau mai.[Thank you. A huge acknowledgment to you the Wairarapa elders of the Papawai and Kaikokirikiri Trust; greetings salutations and welcome.]I am pleased to stand to take a brief call on the Papawai and Kaikokirikiri Trusts Amendment Bill. As my colleague and sponsor of the bill Alastair Scott has said this bill is a form of updating. It is updating the ability and the flexibility for the board to be able to make some decisions around managing the trust with its educational purposes and the land and what they do with it.Members of the Māori Affairs Committee are looking forward to having this bill there. We currently have been having a look at and reviewing the Māori Education Trust and so with this bill coming to us I think that we will have a good opportunity to look in be able to receive submissions and hear what everybody has to say about the changes that have been proposed in amendments in this bill.One of the things that I am quite interested in which I talked about with Marama Fox—and I am going to steal a little bit of her thunder. I read an article that she has just been writing around Wairarapa. One of things that she mentioned in there was the Papawai Marae and the pou on the marae and that all but one of them actually face in. When I said to her “What does that mean Marama?” she said that it is a symbol of looking into themselves and making sure that they themselves are well and doing well. Then they have one pou that stands out to protect the area. Papawai Marae is very historical in terms of being the first Māori Parliament for the country. I think it is one of those eras that we as Māori MPs should never forget—if we already have not remembered that. We should never ever forget that.I too want to acknowledge the number of Māori MPs—exactly what Metiria Turei talked about—who whakapapa to Papawai. She said that there is something about it it has got to be in the water—but no it is about genes. It is about whakapapa and that is what makes it such a historic occasion really to have representation in this House from across all the parties except for ACT and United Future that have MPs here.Without any further ado I note that there is a long way to go on this bill and I do want to save some of the more savoury moments. I know that the member Meka Whaitiri mentioned about having that kōrero with my colleague and that kōrero will carry on. It will happen because that is the way that it is. Without any further ado I stand to support the first reading and support this bill through to its conclusion. Kia ora.RON MARK (Deputy Leader—NZ First): It is a privilege and an honour to be able to stand and to speak to the first reading of the Papawai and Kaikokirikiri Trusts Amendment Bill. I want to start by acknowledging my whanaunga whom I cannot see in the gallery but I know they are up there who have come along to witness this first reading and will no doubt appear at a later stage before the select committee. I cannot see them from here Alastair. I am too short. It is a genetic thing you know—it is my Ngati Porou side. Although looking at some of my cousins cousin Marama we seem to share the same affliction—height disadvantage and not being able to see.But anyway a couple of things that have already been mentioned here today: I think it is timely right and proper that an Act that was put together in 1943 comes before the House for amendment so that it fits contemporary law a little more and makes it more workable. Those of us who are from the Wairarapa who are Ngāti Kahungunu ki Te Wairarapa who do whakapapa to Papawai Marae—the thing you need to know also is that if you whakapapa to Papawai Marae you probably whakapapa to Hurunui o Rangi to Ngāti Hinewaka to all of those hapū that surround the lake. It is something that was pointed out to me when I first came to Parliament back in 1996. After that I was told where I was from. Cousin Rex Hemi and Kim Workman arranged for me to go home to Papawai and introduced me to my whanaunga and told me who I was—something that I did not really know a great deal about having been brought up as a ward of the State.It was quite astonishing as a member of Parliament to be standing there and hearing the history of Papawai—it being the seat and the home of the Kotahitanga movement the site of the only still to this day Māori Parliament in New Zealand and a marae from which an immense amount and quality of leadership was demonstrated to the nation as Māori gathered there from all over the motu to discuss the issues that concerned them and to have those issues brought here to the Parliament of the day.So it was something that quite astonished me when people like Rāna Waitai who became a New Zealand First member of Parliament who then ended up with the National Party again having come from the National Party—he was a former policeman of some renown—told me that he too was from Papawai and Edwin Perry. At that time Tūtekawa Wyllie also introduced himself to me as another person who could whakapapa back to Papawai. We have a list here of at least 10 but I think there are more members of Parliament who whakapapa directly back to Papawai.I will leave that to the House and to others to contemplate why it is that such a small marae in such a small part of New Zealand has such a long history in politics. I guess it is that wairua thing that keeps tapping you on the back of the neck and reminding you that there are things beyond your control that lead one to where one is at the time despite one’s best efforts maybe not to be there. But it is something that you need to note: from the seat of the Kotahitanga movement we end up here in Parliament today with Māori from Papawai represented in an array of cross-party political parties.I just want to conclude by saying two things. It is timely that this bill is here. I would have liked it to come to the House probably from Meka Whaitiri because she is the elected Māori MP over in that part of the country. I would have liked it to come to the House maybe from someone who actually comes from Papawai but it has come here in this way. I would also have liked to have more consultation with our people back home giving us some background as to why this bill is here. It concerns me that Labour New Zealand First the Green Party or I had any contact at all from Papawai and Kaikokirikiri Trusts Board to brief us as to what the issues were and why this bill is here. I think we need to recognise that there are more than just two Government members in Parliament from the Wairarapa. There are a lot more. If we talk about tino rangatiratanga and kotahitanga then we need to demonstrate that.But the bill highlights some issues like the two-thirds of the funding that goes to students going to religious schools and only one-third going to other Māori students when in actual fact I think the number is about 10 in the Church of England schools and about 200 applicants from the wider whanaunga.MARAMA FOX (Co-Leader—Māori Party): My apologies to my colleague. I was just at the flag referendum debate and came late back to the House so the lovely Jo Hayes took my spot. We have done a swap. However—ā tuatahi kei te pīrangi au ki te mihi atu ki Te Whare ki ōku whanaunga e noho nei ki roto i ngā tūru kei runga rāme te tuku whakaaro ki ngā tupuna ka mihi atu ki a rātau! Nō rātau tēnei whenua i whakarite nā rātou tēnei kaupapa i whakarite hai awhi hai tautoko i te hunga rangatahi o te kāinga kia tupu pai ake i roto i tēnei ao hurihuri nō reira tēnei te mihi.[And so in the first instance I want to acknowledge the House my relatives in their seats up there and spare a thought to the ancestors and accord a tribute to them. They considered this property and came up with this scheme as a means of assisting and supporting the young people of the local area to improve their growth in this evolving world; therefore I applaud them.]The Papawai-Kaikōkirikiri lands were gifted by the Crown after they were gifted to the Crown for religious and educational purposes in 1908. There was an intention to build a school at Papawai which never happened which is why they established this scholarship fund. The current trust was created in an Act in 1943; hence we are here.This bill has been with different members in this House for many many years and has never progressed. When I came into Parliament the whānau came and said: “Marama can you help us move this bill along. It’s been sitting on the table for a long time and under different people’s names it wasn’t able to progress.” In the discussion with the whānau we felt that it was a good idea to put it with the Government’s representative from the Wairarapa Alastair Scott thereby speeding up the process instead of waiting for the day when it might be drawn out of the ballot.I take on board the points made by Ron Mark cousin and member for New Zealand First and our colleague Meka Whaitiri the representative of Ikaroa-Rāwhiti. There is still much to be debated and when this bill comes to the select committee we will all again have the opportunity to collectively work on the bill to ensure that it does do just that—that it upholds the rangatiratanga of our people to determine what they think is best to move the trust forward.My own children have been recipients of the scholarships proffered by the trust as have many in the Wairarapa. Papawai is a significant place. It was known as Ngā Wahakaka o Wairarapa—the great speakers and holders of the knowledge. In fact we found in our writings that when Ātiawa over here in the Wellington region were struggling with an issue of tikanga an issue that they could not settle they said: “Me haere tātau ki ngā waha kākā o Wairarapa hai whakatau.” [“Let us go to the Wairarapa representatives to settle it.”]Such was the renown of the people of Papawai—yes the seat of the Māori Parliament. But not only that the repository of knowledge of our tohungatanga of our whare wānanga. So it was right that they saw fit to ensure that there would be scholarships available for our young people growing up in a new and modern world even at that time even until this time—that they be supported in their education so that they can strive to take their place as we have done in the halls and the seats of this Parliament and in the world beyond.Today in this Parliament there are five members of this current 51st Parliament who whakapapa to Papawai Marae from five different parties. It is the legacy of a people who saw in a vision that they could be self-determining; hence the trust has come and asked that we make the changes necessary to the Act that governs the paying out of scholarships from the fund so that they too can continue to uphold that legacy of our ancestors. So I am quite proud to stand and speak on this basis.The Papawai block was 400 acres. The Kaikōkirikiri block is 177 acres. The trust then purchased a further 150 acres. The collective funds gathered from the good trusteeship and governance of that land is what keeps our children in school today. So I am proud to stand and support this bill.ADRIAN RURAWHE (Labour—Te Tai Hauāuru):Tēnā koe e Te Māngai o Te W’are otirā e tika ana kia tuku mihi atu ki te w’ānau kua tae mai ki te tautoko i tēnei pire. E tū ake tēnei tangata poto anō hoki tērā pea ki te taha ō tōku kuia nō Wairarapa me Kahungunu ko Meipara Tāwhimāka tōna ingoa ki te taha ō tōku pāpā. Nō reira e mihi ana ahau ki aku hoa ma’i kātahi anō ka rongo ki tēnei whakapapa.[Thank you Mr Deputy Speaker. It is right that I extend a welcome to the family who have arrived to support this bill.This person—a short person as well from the side of mygrandmother who hails from Wairarapa and Kahungunu—rises to do that. Her nameon my father’s side is Meipara Tāwhimāka. And so I acknowledge my work colleagues who have just heard this genealogy for the first time.]It is a pleasure to stand in support of the Papawai and Kaikokirikiri Trusts Amendment Bill going to the select committee. From my reading of the 1943 Act of Parliament the Papawai and Kaikokirikiri Trusts Act a couple of things have occurred to me probably because I have also read a couple of other bills—one from 1929 and around that era—and they seem to be very prescriptive. I would probably go so far as saying they were paternalistic as well and I think they definitely need to be brought into this century so that the trustees can carry out the functions of the original intent of these trusts.I want to acknowledge the long history—and it goes way back further—and I defer to the other members who have shared a lot more history about it. I want to acknowledge that history but I also want to acknowledge the long commitment that the trusts have had to the ongoing education of ngā tamariki nō taua wāhi [the children from that place] from Wairarapa. I think it is important to also acknowledge the real change that will happen under this bill the change going from having the Church of England Schools Scholarship Fund to having the Papawai and Kaikokirikiri Scholarship Fund. That is a significant move because I think it acknowledges moving from that—even if it was subtle—paternalism.I think it needs to be stated in this House that this amendment bill seeks to address that in a way that empowers the whānau and that is why I am really keen to hear the submissions that will no doubt come in. If there are any things that need to be corrected in there—I cannot see anything myself but I think the overall issue of moving it forward into this century is really important. That is why we have this process so that our people can participate in it and can make submissions on this bill that affects their lives. There are some other things in there that are quite interesting for me: the new definitions that are in there—I would really like to hear what the people have to say about those—and the changes to the governance arrangements which are really really important.One thing I would like to say about the governance arrangements is on the phrases that are used in there and how we describe ourselves. The language of 1943 talks about “Maoris” or Māori and the language in this bill is talking about tangata whenua. I raise this because there are other bills—another one in particular that is before the House which changes the language similar language talks about the Aboriginal people of New Zealand changing that to “people of Māori descent”. I raise that because I think that with a number of Acts of Parliament we should come to a standard way of describing who we are. I acknowledge the words in this particular bill because I think those were the right words in describing us.I do want to acknowledge the member of Parliament for Ikaroa-Rāwhiti Meka Whaitiri. I think that she could have played a much wider role if she had been involved in this. I think under her stewardship it would not have slowed down any so I just want to acknowledge her. Nō reira e Te Māngai o Te Whare tēnā koe otirā tēnā tātou katoa.DAVID BENNETT (National—Hamilton East): Unfortunately I do not have any link to any whakapapa in the Wairarapa so I cannot take any credit for being part of the education success that this trust has been able to engage in. But we do have a Catholic heritage which is quite similar I guess to the Green Party when they mentioned that they thought that there was a Catholic not an Anglican basis to it.From an outsider’s perspective education is crucial and any opportunity to give our young people an education is something that we should celebrate and make as successful as possible. When you have got a community that is willing to be so forward thinking as to donate land to build a school and then not actually have that happen but uses that money over generations to have other people from a similar background get that opportunity for education then this House should stand by and do all it can to assist that trust in making sure that it achieves its purposes. I presume we have got some members of the trust who might be watching or are here tonight. We welcome you we acknowledge the great work that you do and we wish that it carries on.The nature of the political process is that sometimes these kinds of bills do need to come before Parliament to enable the trust to achieve its purposes and we have to make some changes in that way. This bill basically gives flexibility to the trust to be able to achieve its purposes in a more modern environment where there will be choices in education and not limited to one religious background—for example the Anglican Church where those scholarships would be delivered.I think that we need to congratulate all members of the House who have spoken here today. I think there has been a lot of support and willingness to work together. I think everybody takes on board the wishes to involve the local members and to make sure that the understanding and desires that they have are incorporated through that process as well. I look forward to our Parliament working together in this area to ensure that we can give the best solution for the trust and for the education of students going forward who will benefit from this trust.So it is my great pleasure to support my colleague Alastair Scott and to support other members of the House who have an interest in this bill and to wish the trust all the best. Hopefully we will see many more politicians come through who gain an education and an opportunity provided by a trust like this and they take on the leadership and deliver even greater and better results for their communities in the future. Thank you.ALASTAIR SCOTT (National—Wairarapa): After the relevant speeches from members I feel a bit left out. I am amazed that there are so many people from this Parliament who are connected to the Papawai Marae. I commend again the trustees and the people of Papawai for bringing obviously a fantastic culture to Wairarapa and to the country.I would like to thank my colleagues for their support of this bill. This bill is just one part of many actions policies and changes that this Government has initiated that support and empower Māori. To summarise how this bill achieves that: first we are going to remove the restrictive parts of the legislation so that funds can be distributed in a more fair and effective manner. The tangata whenua of Wairarapa under this bill will have greater autonomy to manage their own affairs. They will have the ability to invest trust money into the educational purposes where they believe is best. This will provide better outcomes for Māori by widening the areas of education where the funding might go. The board has done a great job to date in the management of the trust. In 2014 119 scholarships were awarded worth a total of $59000. The trust gives students the opportunity to live up to their potential. It is not only Wairarapa Māori who are achieving in schools. Since 2008 National Certificate of Educational Achievement level 2 achievement for Māori students has risen 32 percent up to a 66 percent pass rate. Young Māori are on the right track to success.Secondly the bill establishes a more robust nomination process for board members. Tangata whenua of Wairarapa will play a role in appointing or electing members to the board keeping the decision within the community. Thirdly the bill helps to facilitate the long-term development of the land. This is essential as it empowers the board to increase the amount of trust money to be distributed to students.I would like to touch on some other initiatives of this Government that also improve outcomes for Māori. The Crown has been working hard over the past 7 years to speed up the Treaty settlement process empowering more Māori to determine for themselves their future using their own assets. We are working hard towards our goals of reaching final and durable settlements with all willing iwi by the end of 2017. So far we have signed 53 deeds of settlement with iwi in the last 7 years compared with 15 in the 9 years before. Of these settlements 36 have had legislation enacted with four settlements currently in the House and two at select committee consideration. We are moving in the right direction and we can already see the benefits that these settlements are bringing to iwi communities regional New Zealand and the country as a whole. It is important we continue to complete the process for the benefit of everyone.Another Government initiative to further develop Māori interests is Te Ture Whenua Maori Act reform. This is planned to be introduced to the House this year. The reform of Te Ture Whenua Maori Act will unlock the economic potential for Māori land while recognising the need to maintain its ownership in the hands of Māori landowners. There has been extensive consultation on this reform and there is overwhelming support from iwi who want to unlock the potential of Māori land for its owners. The Ministry for Primary Industries has estimated the economic benefit could be in the region of $5 billion to $8 billion. The potential benefits for Māori economic development are exciting. This work is a top priority for the Government this year.Thank you again to the House for the support of this bill. This bill is an empowering bill. It will improve the administration of the Papawai and Kaikokirikiri Trusts Board by providing greater flexibility in the distribution of funds establishing a better nomination process for boards and making better use of the land being managed. Kia ora.Bill read a first time.Bill referred to the Māori Affairs Committee.Waiata