Mapp Wayne: Foreshore and Seabed Bill — Second Reading Instruction to Committee In Committee 
Mapp Wayne: Foreshore and Seabed Bill — Second Reading Instruction to Committee In Committee 
[Volume:621;Page:17011] 
Dr WAYNE MAPP (National—North Shore) 
: 
 Part 2 is of course one of the major parts of the Foreshore and Seabed Bill and I anticipate an extensive debate and more than one call on it. In this particular call I shall focus on one particular issue only which concerns clause 11 on ownership clause 12 on the fact that the area is not to be alienated and then how that is tied into new clause 115A on the issue of treaty settlements. I heard this morning on the radio that Mr Peters claims—and I use the word “claims” advisedly—to be protecting the public interest and that there will be no alienation of the foreshore and seabed. We know from answers given by the Prime Minister in this House that that is a false statement. The Minister in the chair the Hon Dr Michael Cullen also knows that that is a false statement. We know that the Government has made its deal with its own internal opponents in the Maori caucus—a special deal that is contained effectively in clause 115A.  
I want to say this. Clause 11 purports to provide for Crown ownership of the foreshore and seabed. That clause then immediately states that it is subject to the customary rights provisions of clause 28 and other clauses thereafter. So straight away the idea of absolute ownership on behalf of all the people of New Zealand is immediately compromised—hugely compromised by a whole panoply of customary rights orders. They will be the territorial customary rights orders and the Government’s management plans that go with that. That will hugely compromise the reality of Crown ownership and it is all set out in subclause (3). So the first point is that when the Government states in clause 11 that it provides for absolute ownership on behalf of the Crown that is of itself compromised within the very same clause by the provisions of subclause (3).  
The next issue—and this is more serious—is the link to clause 12 “Public foreshore and seabed not to be alienated”. That of itself seems to be a grand promise. After all this Government and New Zealand First in particular have gone up and down the country and said they will protect the public interest by guaranteeing ownership of the foreshore and seabed on behalf of all New Zealanders. They are not true to their word. They have knowingly set up a device whereby the foreshore and seabed will be alienated. They heard in May of this year that the Prime Minister intends to settle treaty grievances by transferring foreshore and seabed to Maori owners. OK I know that the New Zealand First speakers will say that that takes a special Act of Parliament and that they will not consent to it. They will say that but of course they know perfectly well that the Labour Government will go along to the Green Party the United Future party or the Maori Party and get votes from those parties for the alienation of foreshore and seabed for those settlements so there will be a majority.  
What has really happened in effect is that New Zealand First has set a process in place in this bill to enable the alienation of the foreshore and seabed. That is actually not some kind of secret. The Prime Minister directly told the nation through her answers to parliamentary questions in this Chamber that that is exactly what will happen. I am prepared to bet that the Government will transfer ownership of the west coast harbours—Kawhia Aotea and Raglan—together with much of the East Cape the Eastern Bay of Plenty and the far north estimated by the Maori members to be 10 percent of the New Zealand coastline to Maori. That will require special Acts of Parliament; I acknowledge that. But that is what the Government will do—and the Green Party will vote for that absolutely consistently as will the Maori Party. The Labour Party knows that. The reality is that New Zealand First has been duped. It has been duped and is duping its supporters as a consequence. New Zealand First’s supporters have trusted it. 
Debate interrupted.