Ririnui Mita: Central North Island Forests Land Collective  Settlement Bill — Second Reading In Committee 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Ririnui Mita: Central North Island Forests Land Collective  Settlement Bill — Second Reading In Committee 
[Sitting date: 23 September 2008. Volume:650;Page:18943. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
Hon MITA RIRINUI (Associate Minister in charge of Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations) 
: 
 I naturally stand in support of the Central North Island Forests Land Collective Settlement Bill. I intend to take only a very short call. I listened very carefully to the Hon Dr Michael Cullen’s second reading speech in the House last night and I am pretty confident that he covered all the technical aspects of the bill and also highlighted some of the important issues around the process that was undertaken by the Central North Island Iwi Collective. 
If I have any comment at all to contribute to this discussion it is about the process. It is important to acknowledge the leadership of the iwi collective leadership by Te Ariki Dr Tumu te Heuheu and also the efforts of his executive team and all those tribal leaders who made a contribution to the process and also to the manner in which the allocation of interests to all iwi concerned will be undertaken. 
It is also important to comment about the effect that this particular process has had nationwide where there are collective interests involving a number of iwi over a number of areas and relating to specific claims. It seems that a forum for the representation of common interests is very very popular. I have met with a number of iwi around the country since the central North Island agreement was signed who wish to look at a similar process so that they themselves can resolve issues that they all share as iwi. For example the Muriwhenua forum will look at a number of areas including Te Oneroa-a-Tohe Landcorp farms forests rivers and mountains. They themselves will decide how individual iwi interests will be represented and also how those interests will be distributed. Interestingly enough I met with iwi from Wharekauri—Moriori and Ngati Mutunga—who are also looking at a similar process. I am sure that over the next few months we will see similar arrangements being implemented around the country. 
The way in which the central North Island settlement was reached has gathered a lot of momentum and a lot of support. It is important to congratulate all those who have been involved in the central North Island settlement to date and to thank them for the contributions they have made. I thank my colleagues Dr Cullen and the Minister of Maori Affairs for the great work they did and I acknowledge the independent facilitator Wira Gardiner who conducted the whole operation like a military exercise. I do not mean he shot prisoners; I mean he made everyone stand to attention—but I was getting worried sometimes! [ 
Interruption 
] And Matt Te Pou; there are so many whom I could mention but if I go through them individually I am bound to offend by leaving somebody out. 
I also acknowledge the contribution to this debate by Chris Finlayson. I was not sure whether he was talking about the bill or auditioning for a job as Crown prosecutor but I thank him for his contribution. Kia ora tatou.