SpeechHon KIRITAPU ALLAN (Minister of Conservation): Karanga mai rā Te Arawa waka karanga mai rā Ruawāhia Maunga karanga mai rā Tarawera awa. Nau mai haramai whakatau mai rā ngā uri o Ngāti Rangitihi kei roto i tēnei Whare.Ka huria mātou nei ki tō koutou hītori kei roto i tēnei Whare i tēnei ahiahi. Me noho a mātou mai i te Karauna kei waho rā i te ahiahi nei ki te whakarongo i a rātou i raro i te raukura o Te Ati Awa mō te whakatau i a koutou o Ngāti Rangitihi kei roto i te Whare Mīere i tēnei ahiahi. Kua rongo a mātou ki a koutou ko te mea tino whakahirahira ki a koutou ki te whakamana i ngā pūrākau o tō koutou whenua ki te whakahokia te mana o te whenua ki te mana whenua. Me haere tonu tātou te Karauna me te hau kāinga te iwi o Ngāti Rangitihi i raro i tēnei kawenata mō te ara ki mua. Heoi anō kei a koutou ngā uri o Ngāti Rangitihi kei roto i te Whare nei kei a koutou ngā uri o Ngāti Rangitihi kei te kāinga i tēnei wā he rerekē i raro i te taumahatanga o te mate urutā kei te mihi kei mihi kei te mihi. [I call to the peoples of Te Arawa I call to the mountain Ruawāhia and to the Tarawera River. Welcome welcome welcome to the descendants of Ngāti Rangitihi in this House.We shall turn our attention to your history this afternoon in this House. Some of us on the Crown side have to be outside the House this afternoon to listen to you of Ngāti Rangitihi being welcomed into the Beehive under the feather plume of Te Āti Awa. We have listened to you and the most important things for you are that your ancient stories of your land are validated and that the authority of the land is returned to those with traditional authority over that land. The Crown the local people and the people of the Ngāti Rangitihi tribe need to continue on this path forwards under this covenant. However to you of Ngāti Rangitihi in the House to you of Ngāti Rangitihi at home at this strange time under the burden of the pandemic greetings greetings greetings.]It's an absolute privilege to be able to speak in this third reading. Today it marks the end of a six-year journey between Ngāti Rangitihi and the kāwei of people that have been mandated by the people of Ngāti Rangitihi to engage with the Crown to acknowledge the historic wrongdoings that have been made over the past 200 years since the Treaty of Waitangi was signed. Outside this House this earlier afternoon we had the privilege of welcoming those that could come this afternoon from Ngāti Rangitihi into this Whare Mīere and what I heard was that the journey to this point—it was long it was arduous but one thing that Leith Comer said in his contribution was that while some things like these settlements can often leave a lasting imprint that tear the people apart this settlement and today is a day of unification for Ngāti Rangitihi and I acknowledge those rangatira amongst them that have pulled the people together. I want to acknowledge my colleague the Hon Andrew Little for his stewardship. I too want to acknowledge that the journey was commenced six years ago under the maru under the helm of the Hon Christopher Finlayson. I want to too acknowledge my predecessor the Hon Eugenie Sage of whom Ngāti Rangitihi made comment and asked me to please pass on their regards for her work that she did whilst she was the Minister of Conservation.Treaty settlements are a unique kind of Parliament. It's a time when we across the House can come to acknowledge our history our collective history. We can acknowledge those people of a place—and in this instance from my own home the mighty fine electorate of the East Coast Ngāti Rangitihi. I acknowledge the peoples of Matatā and that they have been tireless in their advocacy for the mana of their people there in Matatā. And I too share the Rangitihi plains with the people of Ngāti Rangitihi—a little over closer to Edgecumbe and Te Teko but we share a shared sense of history contemporary and historical so I acknowledge my friends and my relations under that hat as well.But why I particularly want to take a call today is in my capacity as the Minister of Conservation. We've heard—and actually I want to acknowledge Joseph Mooney in his contribution which acknowledged some of the conservation elements to this particular Treaty settlement. One of the comments that Leith Comer also made outside was that this settlement isn't just about dimes and money; it is about the restoration of the mauri to the whenua to the awa and in particular Tarawera Awa which has had a long and sad history.It is today that we mark a turning point. It's not the end of a journey; it's an end of a particular aspect of a journey which is the negotiation point that gets us to this place where we agree that from henceforth we the Crown and they the people of Ngāti Rangitihi engage on a new frontier in a mana to mana relationship that upholds the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi that upholds the promises that are made in this settlement that has been hard fought for as a consequence of Crown breaches to the people of Ngāti Rangitihi. It is something that I have become very familiar with as the Minister of Conservation. It is the opening of a new dawn and a new day because whilst we acknowledge the historical wrongs of yesterday yesteryear tomorrow we have to implement with honour and integrity the promises made in this settlement. That can be a hard journey as well and I want to acknowledge that because things will not be perfect. I've learnt in my short tenure that we often will stuff up but what this kawenata—what this settlement—provides for is an enduring promise to act with integrity and it sets out how we will do that. I wanted to make particular acknowledgment of some of the conservation components to this settlement which is what I think makes it incredibly unique. Fourteen sites 14 areas of whenua that have not been in the hands of Ngāti Rangitihi will be returned as a consequence of this settlement. These will comprise of pā sites wāhi tapu some sites where there are kōiwi and we're going to do that in a number of different ways—some in scenic reserves. Scenic reserves are where we agree that there is incredible indigenous biodiversity or something specific about the flora and the fauna of the environment but the ownership transfers back to Ngāti Rangitihi. They managed that whenua in a way that upholds those biodiversity aspects. In particular I just want to acknowledge a site of significance is Waimangu Volcanic Valley where 80 hectares surrounding the unique geothermal attractions will be transferred.There are also historic sites—historic sites which can be comprised of things like pā sites for example or significant wāhi tapu where Ngāti Rangitihi will say that this is a culturally significant site for these archaeological—for these whatever reasons that they deem are significant to the peoples of that place and the Crown mai rānō will have to acknowledge what Ngāti Rangitihi set down. They have the mana to say that these are the things that are important to those areas and in particular I just to acknowledge a couple of those places: Moura Ongarara which cover a strategic and significant headland over on Lake Tarawera. Recreational reserves are another type of land you can say that have been handed back to the mana whenua. These are open space areas and there was a bit of controversy that I won't delve into but I will acknowledge that Te Tapahoro is a site of significance that is going back to the peoples of Ngāti Rangitihi today.The kawenata that we engage and that we sign off today is significant for so many reasons. It acknowledges the history and the past but it sets forward a new pathway by which Ngāti Rangitihi will be at the helm of some of the places that make them who they are. There is a shameful history that we all acknowledge in this House. But today signifies a new dawn and if I can acknowledge the leadership of those that have been at the helm: Leith Comer Ken Raureti Tiipene Marr Cathy Dewes Merepeka Raukawa-Tait Donna Semmens Tia Warbrick Delwyn Rondon Anthony Olsen Dougal Stewart Peri Perenara and the many others that have come before. May I thank them for their service and acknowledge that this is indeed a new dawn a new day. Tēnā koe.