Davis Kelvin: Maori Purposes Bill — First Reading 
Davis Kelvin: Maori Purposes Bill — First Reading 
[Volume:668;Page:15369] 
KELVIN DAVIS (Labour) 
: 
 The Maori Purposes Bill is an omnibus bill that changes how the Pukepuke Tangiora estate is administered and amends three other Acts those being the Maori Fisheries Act 2004 the Maori Trust Boards Act 1955 and Te Ture Whenua Maori Act 1993. 
The changes to the Pukepuke Tangiora estate have come about as the result of a petition of Hariata Baker one of two sisters who are the surviving beneficiaries stipulated in the will of Pukepuke Tangiora their grandmother. The original will of Pukepuke Tangiora which came into effect in 1936 upon her death provided for the estate to be managed for the benefit of her son his wife and their nine children. Hariata Baker and her sister Kereni are the last two of those nine children. 
Parliament has changed the effect of Pukepuke Tangiora’s will through a Maori Purposes Act on six separate occasions between 1943 and 1973. As a result of these Acts current legislation relating to some aspects of the will of Pukepuke Tangiora differs significantly from that which pertained when the will was written. Hariata Baker and her sister Kereni are in their late 70s and upon their deaths the land will be free to be sold. They sought the reinstatement of the provision that land be held for another 20 years after the death of the last beneficiary as envisaged by Pukepuke Tangiora but removed by the Maori Purposes Act 1943. However the bill as written proposes to extend that period instead to just 5 years after the death of the last beneficiary to provide enough time for beneficiaries of the estate to make decisions on a future governance entity to hold and manage the estate assets. Hariata fears that upon her death pressure will continue to mount for the land to be sold to clear the way for the coast to be developed ultimately destroying the unique and valuable character of the area—that area being Ocean Beach which was described in an editorial in  
Hawke’s Bay Today  
as one of the gems of Hawke’s Bay. 
The Maori Affairs Committee believes that the Hastings District Council and the trustees have not acted in good faith towards the beneficiaries which has led to a prolonged and unnecessary court case in order to protect their land. As the  
Hawke’s Bay Today  
editorial continued to say: “There are a number of vested interests pulling in different directions at Ocean Beach—Puke Puke Tangiora Estate Waipuka Incorporation which cannot agree with each other or among their own beneficiaries Tennyson OB which stand to make a lot of cash if the dice rolls in their favour Haupouri Station Ltd a several-generations old farming business which wants to continue farming but has gifted land to the council and sold land to potential developers. Then there is the anti-development group Future Ocean Beach”—and as well the council. 
Reverting to the original terms of the will would considerably ease the tension over the land. Although it would not bind the land in perpetuity it might safeguard the land until more enlightened attitudes to coastal development prevail. The bill also proposes amendments to the Pukepuke Tangiora estate so that the Maori Land Court and not the Crown has jurisdiction to hear all matters relating to the administration of the estate. 
This bill also makes amendments to the Maori Fisheries Act 2004. An unintended consequence of the Act was that it prevented the transfer of fishery settlement assets of a mandated iwi organisation to another separate entity of the same iwi. Any attempt to transfer those assets would trigger a provision that would require the sale of those assets to the highest bidder. This in effect could strip fisheries assets away from an iwi. This bill proposes that iwi are able to transfer certain fisheries settlement assets to other separate entities within governance arrangements of the same iwi which in effect rightfully allows iwi to assert tino rangatiratanga over their own assets. 
This bill also amends the Maori Trust Boards Act 1955. At present the Act makes Maori trust boards accountable to the Minister of Maori Affairs. Similar governance entities are not subject to the same conditions of accountability. They are instead accountable to their beneficiaries. This bill proposes that the same practices that apply to those other entities also apply to Maori trust boards. As a result of this bill Maori trust boards too will become accountable to their beneficiaries. This means that trust boards will be required to hold annual meetings where they will report to their beneficiaries on their activities over the course of a year and present an annual report including a financial statement and a budget. This means that the beneficiaries of trust boards can attend those annual meetings and hold the trust board to account. It is no longer the Minister of Maori Affairs to whom the trust board reports; instead those annual reports financial statements and budget will be sent only to the Minister of Maori Affairs for his information. 
Part of the bill relates to the Maori Land Court and extends its powers to reflect those powers of the District Court to award interest on debt or damages. The amendments will ensure that an order of the Maori Land Court filed in the District Court may be enforced as if it has equal status as an order of the District Court which includes being removed to the High Court for enforcement. The Maori Land Court has been in existence in one form or another since the passing of the Native Lands Act 1862 and the Maori Appellate Court has existed since the 1890s. The Maori Land Court has jurisdiction to hear matters relating to Maori land including successions title improvements Maori land sales and the administration of Maori land trusts and incorporations. It also has jurisdiction to hear cases under the Maori Fisheries Act 2004 the Maori Commercial Aquaculture Claims Settlement Act 2004 and a number of other statutes. As at September 2009 there were approximately 1.47 million hectares of Maori land which comprises less than 5 percent of land in New Zealand. Although the total area of Maori land is small the court in its administration recognises the special bond that Maori people have with this land. Thus the maintenance and preservation of the court’s record containing as it does invaluable customary information including whakapapa or genealogy remain a fundamental feature of the work of the court. 
Labour supports this bill being referred to the select committee. However with Maori unemployment double that of the general population this bill does miss an opportunity to make real progress for Maori. The issues burdening our people are unemployment the cost of living inadequate housing and real progress in lifting wages. The cost of fruit and vegetables continues to rise. We heard today that it is getting more expensive to go to the doctor and with the cuts to early childhood education funding parents are being expected to dig deeper into their pockets to get their young ones an education in their most formative years. This is happening at a time when Statistics New Zealand’s Income Survey shows that the median Maori income from all sources has gone backwards over the past 2 years by $41 a week which probably explains why we heard over the weekend that families are being forced to buy cheaper cuts of meat normally used for dog food. When people get to that stage we know that more drastic measures than what are being amended in this bill are necessary to improve outcomes for Maori. The Labour Party supports this bill being referred to the select committee but it is a missed opportunity to make a real difference for Maori and to reduce disparity for our people.