Peters Winston: Urgent Debates — Government Proposals for Seabed and Foreshore 
Peters Winston: Urgent Debates — Government Proposals for Seabed and Foreshore 
[Volume:611;Page:8046] 
Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS (Leader—NZ First) 
: 
 This is a case of Huka Ma me nga whena e whitu or Snow White and her seven dwarfs. Do members know who the seven dwarfs are? The seven dwarfs are absolute lions on the marae and lambs in caucus. They are the ones who told Maoridom that they were going to close the gaps and that when they had the support of the Maori people again—having had that since the 1930s—they could be trusted. Of course we all know who Snow White is. She handles only those issues that make her look good and on any issue that requires prime ministership direction leadership or statesmanship she wins by a hundred yards—she is gone and one cannot see her for dust and small pebbles. 
I want to remind people of what the historical perception has been since 6 February 1840 when it comes to the issue that we are speaking about today. I am amazed by the level of passion that seems to be arising in this debate today—as it has arisen around the country—from certain politicians. I can see why they have so much passion about it. Their fingerprints are all over this growing mess and it has been that way for the last 18 years. They know that they are to blame for it but they hope that the public has no memory of that. I am referring to the leadership of all the political parties except one. I am talking about all those who run the political parties with the exception of New Zealand First which has a consistent record on this issue. As Maoridom sees that unfold it will come back to us at the next election. 
Clayton Cosgrove 
: Ha ha! 
Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS 
: Members can laugh now but it will be kao kao ka awatea—it will be morning time again. They will wake up in 2005 wipe the sleep from their eyes and realise how they have been let down by the seven dwarfs and by the Labour Party itself. 
The Labour Party is just like a used car salesman—there is plenty of pre-sales talk but no after-sales service and Maoridom knows that. Let me ask those Maori who are here in the House today whether they have heard about closing the gaps lately. Oh no the Government has dropped that like a hot kumara because in making that much-vaunted boast it was required to pass the test of Maori examination and it has failed abysmally. Instead of Government members saying they had to fix that the Government has just dropped the slogan. 
The perception from 1840 all the way to June 2003 was that the ownership of the foreshore and seabed lay with the Crown in this country—and members should note that I use the words “the Crown”. The Crown is beloved of Maoridom; it is something that Maoridom understands. 
Maoridom has never heard the creeping socialist republican words “public domain”. Today the Deputy Prime Minister described the Queen of this country as a little old lady in London. Where is he from? [ 
Interruption 
] Well I cannot possibly repeat that phrase. We do not need an import to start dancing all over the constitutional provisions of this country. Helen Clark is anti-monarchist; she is a republican. She cannot get her way so she does it by stealth and now she is trying to ram the phrase “public domain” down the throats of the public and of Maoridom. 
Let me say this also. As a consequence of our international treaty arrangements we have gone from being a country that owns up to three miles off shore to one that owns 12 miles and then to one that owns 200 miles which has all been conferred by an international treaty. On whom was that conferred? It was conferred on the Crown and the people in this country who are under the Crown. That is what we thought the arrangement was. I know that that was the arrangement when other countries conferred that upon us. Then in 1993 we had the Te Ture Whenua Maori Act which was supported by Labour and National—their fingerprints are all over it. 
The Hingston decision is worth reading because of the critical issue that the judge raised. In essence he stated that despite the case not being a Treaty of Waitangi matter and despite it being about British law and rights and origins going back to before 6 February 1840 the key issue was the successive policies of Labour and National Governments. So there we have it. Their fingerprints are all over the issue but they want to deny that. Labour and National are out there trying to say to the public that they should trust them to fix it. Any Maori who believes that must be a very generous person with a very beneficent soul because Maoridom has known for decade after decade that Labour promises the world and offers nothing. I ask members to name just one thing that the Labour Party has done for Maori recently. 
Hon Dr Nick Smith 
: Maori television. 
Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS 
: Maori television. I ask members to name one Maori who has got a snapper or a job from Labour—and I do not mean those people who are working in the treaty industry; I am talking about the mass majority of beneficiaries for whom those claims were made in the name of all Maori. I have never seen such a generous people as the Maori people. Maori have gone out and backed Labour members even though they have been such appalling representatives. 
What did Heta Hingston state? He stated that the key issue was the view and policies of successive Governments and he is wrong right there because in the court of law one judges the law and not Government policy. Where does one find Government policy when it comes to this issue? On the day that this issue broke on 24 June Helen Clark said that the Government would pass legislation to give clear expression to the Crown’s ownership of the seabed and foreshore for the benefit of all New Zealanders. Did members hear the words “Crown’s ownership”? Then of course it all hit the fan. Where is Helen Clark? She has gone. She has done a vanishing act and disappeared. Last Monday she said nobody owns the seabed and foreshore—how is that? Then she said it was a matter of public domain. Who is this Blackstone of New Zealand law whom we have just heard about? The Blackstone of New Zealand law from the “pol science” department at Auckland University is Helen Clark who is backed up by her history teacher from Otago University Dr Cullen. This is not leadership. It is not direction and it is not prime ministership. 
New Zealand First intends to go out and consult widely with Maoridom. We will not have a jack-up meeting in a hotel; rather we will consult widely with Maoridom. We know that Maori will come out in their thousands because we can be trusted. 
Government Members 
: Ha ha! 
Rt Hon WINSTON PETERS 
: I can see the Government is nervous because the last polls showed us rise 8 percent in the Maori vote alone and we will have risen another 8 percent next time and 8 percent more after that. The Government will be history. We will go out there and consult Maoridom and we will have our answer ready as we have it ready now. We will ensure that Maoridom supports this paper and we bet that every right-thinking sane-thinking New Zealander will support it as well. When we have done that all that will remain will be for the Maori people along with the rest of New Zealand to come out and restore to Government a party that does keep its word on these issues.