Ngati Tuwharetoa, Raukawa, and Te Arawa River Iwi Waikato River Bill

Hon TARIANA TURIA (Minister for the Community and Voluntary Sector) Link to this

I move, That the Ngati Tuwharetoa, Raukawa, and Te Arawa River Iwi Waikato River Bill be now read a first time. I intend to move at the appropriate time that this bill be considered by the Māori Affairs Committee, and that the committee have authority to meet at any time while the House is sitting, except during oral questions, and during any evening on a day on which there has been a sitting of the House, and on a Friday in a week in which there has been a sitting of the House, and to meet outside the Wellington region during a sitting of the House, despite Standing Orders 187, 189(a), and 190(1)(b) and (c), and that the committee report finally to the House on or before 31 August 2010.

Tēnā tātou e te W’are. Tēnā tātou i runga i te kaupapa motuhake o te wiki, tō tātou reo rangatira. Tēnei au te awa o W’anganui e tuku i te mi’i ki taku moana o Taupō, ki te awa o Waikato, ki a Rotorua-nui-a-Kahumatamomoe, ki a Ngāti Tūw’aretoa, ki a Raukawa, ki a Ngā Pūmanawa e Waru o Te Arawa. Nā tō koutou taenga mai i tēnei rā, kua whaimana mātou o tēnei W’are. Ko Tongariro te maunga, ko Taupō te moana, ko Ngāti Tūw’aretoa te iwi, ko te Heuheu te tangata.

[Greetings to us, the House. Greetings to us, in respect of the special nature of the week concerning our chiefly language. I, the river of Whanganui, extend greetings to my lake of Taupō, to the river of Waikato, to the second great lake of Kahumatamomoe, to Ngāti Tūwharetoa, to Raukawa, and to Ngā Pūmanawa of Te Arawa. Your arrival here today has enhanced the credibility of this House. I say to you, Tongariro is the mountain, Taupō is the lake, Ngāti Tūwharetoa is the tribe, and te Heuheu is the man.]

I am proud to stand today as a direct descendent of Ngāti Hikairo, through w’akapapa that connects me through my great-grandmother’s line. I connect as I do with all river tribes to the significance we place upon our tupuna awa as the central bloodline of our tribal heart. Ko au ko te awa; ko te awa ko au.

[I am the river; the river is me.]

I stand to honour the cultural, historical, traditional, and spiritual significance of the Waikato River to the people of the iwi who are named in this bill. Hapū of Ngāti Tuw’aretoa have a direct interest in and special relationship with the Waikato River. This includes the rights and responsibilities associated with kaitiakitanga. The people of Raukawa have their own unique and ancient relationship with the Waikato River. Prominent in their beliefs is the hereditary right and responsibility to protect the Waikato River. Te Arawa iwi exercise manaw’akahaere in accordance with their long-established tikanga to ensure the well-being of the Waikato River. This bill will provide mechanisms for all of them to participate in the co-governance and co-management of the Waikato River.

It is timely to acknowledge the significant precedent established by the Waikato-Tainui Raupatu Claims (Waikato River) Settlement Act 2010. In doing so, we pay tribute to those of Te Whare o Te Kāhui Ariki who played such a distinctive role in their efforts to protect and preserve their taonga—their awa—for future generations. To enact that desire, Waikato-Tainui established a co-governance entity comprising equal numbers of Crown and iwi-appointed members, including other iwi with interests along the river. Today, this bill complements the arrangements agreed between the Crown and Waikato-Tainui by giving effect to co-governance and co-management arrangements agreed with Ngāti Tuw’aretoa, Ngāti Raukawa, and Te Arawa river iwi. The bill provides for each iwi to participate in a co-governance framework for the Waikato River.

It was greatly moving to read today the comments of Ngāti Raukawa Settlement Trust chair Chris McKenzie, who described co-governance as providing iwi “with real influence in how the river is protected and maintained.” Mr McKenzie spoke of this as a process of partnership. We might also call it the negotiation and reconciliation of kāwanatanga and rangatiratanga.

The partnership enacted in this bill is through related co-management arrangements that are specific to Ngāti Tuw’aretoa, Ngāti Raukawa, and Te Arawa river iwi, and to the Waikato River and its catchment from Karapiro up to a point known to Ngāti Tuw’aretoa as Te Toka a Tia. The overarching purpose of these co-governance and co-management arrangements is to restore and protect the health and well-being of the Waikato River for present and future generations.

All three—Ngāti Tuw’aretoa, Ngāti Raukawa, and Te Arawa river iwi—take their responsibilities as mana w’enua seriously in upholding their customary obligations and kaitiakitanga over their rohe. It is their intrinsic duty to ensure that the mauri and therefore the physical and spiritual health of their environment is maintained, protected, and enhanced.

Today is a major step forward in achieving that goal. The core elements of the co-governance framework include a vision and strategy for the Waikato River; a single co-governance entity, which will be the Waikato River Authority; and a contestable Waikato River Clean-Up Trust. The co-governance framework provides for Ngāti Tūw’aretoa, Ngāti Raukawa, and Te Arawa river iwi to develop their own objectives for the Waikato River, to be considered in future reviews of the vision and the strategy. The vision and strategy will be incorporated directly into the Waikato Regional Policy Statement, and will be a statement of general policy under conservation legislation.

The purpose of the Waikato River Authority is to set the primary direction, through the vision and strategy, to achieve the restoration and protection of the health and well-being of the Waikato River for present and also future generations. It is a pleasure to see the level of detail set out in the drive to promote an integrated, holistic, and coordinated approach to the implementation of the vision and strategy for the management of the Waikato River. The authority will also fund rehabilitation initiatives for the river in its role as trustee for the contestable Waikato River Clean-Up Trust.

I cannot ignore the challenge laid today by Te Arawa River Iwi Trust chair Roger Pikia, who told us that “For too long Te Arawa and other river iwi have been relegated to mere spectators as the river, a national taonga, has been polluted and been allowed to degenerate to the point where it is now not safe to take kai moana, drink, or to bathe in its waters.” This bill moves the power balance from spectators to participators and decision makers.

In essence, the successful implementation of co-management requires a new approach to the relationships that the Crown and relevant local authorities and agencies have with Ngāti Tūw’aretoa, Ngāti Raukawa, and Te Arawa river iwi. The Waikato River Authority will be able to appoint iwi members to Waikato Regional Council hearing committees, or nominate persons for appointment to the boards of inquiry. It is notable that the bill requires joint management agreements to be put in place between local authorities and each iwi for specified functions under the Resource Management Act 1991 relating to the Waikato River.

Under the joint management agreements, local authorities and iwi will agree the priorities and methods for carrying out the monitoring activities, and activities in its catchment that affect the Waikato River. They will also jointly consider what responses should be made to address the outcomes of monitoring. The joint management agreements will provide for iwi participation when local authorities are preparing, reviewing, changing, or varying the Resource Management Act 1991 planning documents, to the extent that those processes relate to the vision and strategy for the Waikato River. They will also provide for iwi participation in the processing steps with regard to specified applications for resource consent relating to the river.

It is a good day in this House when we see such practical and tangible measures to give effect to a partnership between river iwi and the Government in the best interests of the national taonga that is the Waikato River. So it is our heartfelt desire that this bill proceed without delay. We know that coming to this point has involved the blood, sweat, and tears of so many of our people, some of whom have not lived to witness the significant milestone today. We think of them all today, and we remember their commitment, their patience, and their all-enduring investment in our future.

This bill—specifically for Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Ngāti Raukawa, and Te Arawa river iwi—reflects a respect for the mana of each of these iwi, and the fact that each iwi has its own distinct relationship with the river and with the Crown. It also reflects the unity of purpose shared by all to restore and protect the health and well-being of the Waikato River. Nā reira, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā tātou katoa.

Hon MARYAN STREET (Labour) Link to this

Tēnā koe, Mr Assistant Speaker. Tēnā koe e te Whare. Ngā tangata whenua o Raukawa, Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Ngā Iwi o Te Arawa ki te awa, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou. Nau mai, haere mai. Tēnā koutou katoa.

[Greetings to you, Mr Assistant Speaker, and to the House. To the Raukawa and Ngāti Tūwharetoa local people, as well as the river subtribes of Te Arawa, greetings to you, greetings to you, and welcome, welcome. Greetings to you all.]

It gives me great pleasure to rise on behalf of the Labour Party in support of the Minister in her introduction of the Ngati Tuwharetoa, Raukawa, and Te Arawa River Iwi Waikato River Bill. This bill is part two of a substantial process that has taken a long time. I wish also to add my recognition and that of Labour to those who have worked for this outcome but who have not lived to see it. I pay special respects to them.

This is a very significant moment. The introduction of this legislation honours an undertaking made by the Crown in a deed of settlement in 2008 when Dr Michael Cullen had the privilege of being the Minister in charge of Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations. He negotiated this agreement and signed the agreement on 4 September 2008. The Minister who has had the responsibility of being the shepherd and the guardian of this agreement through to this point, the Hon Christopher Finlayson, has made some changes to the legislation that I think represent improvements. I am quite happy to acknowledge that.

In its original agreement, there was provision for a number of statutory boards, and what we have in this agreement now is a single authority, as opposed to half a dozen statutory boards that were going to participate in partnership with the Crown in the restoration of the health and well-being of this river. I think that is an improvement, and I acknowledge the Minister for that. I think it will be important that each of the iwi who have an attachment and connection to this great river ensures that they are able to participate in the process that this legislation enshrines, which allows them to indeed have that oversight of, and participation in, caring for this river as envisaged by this legislation.

The Waikato River from its beginning to its end has nourished and supported countless people for numerous years. There is no doubt that it is the source of life. It runs through one of the most productive areas of our country, and our country is productive because of it. To watch the gradual atrophying and pollution of this great river must have caused tangata whenua in particular some considerable distress. I welcome this deed and the structures behind it, and the participation of iwi in the true partnership that will see the restoration of the health of this river. It is indeed a great taonga.

I remember once watching a documentary made by the Topp Twins, who took a trail of the Waikato River from its very beginning to its mouth. Some of it they did on a surfboard, and some of it they walked, where the water was not deep enough. It was a documentary in the style in which the Topp Twins make documentaries. But it was informative, and spoke volumes about the significance and the contribution of this great river.

In the course of debating the other legislation to which this relates, the Waikato-Tainui Raupatu Claims (Waikato River) Settlement Act, I referred to the fact that it is not beyond the wit of anybody in this country to recognise the value of such a life-giving thing as a river. It does not matter whether we come from different ontologies, from different world views. It does not matter whether we see things in the same terms. The shared and common understanding is that this river is a taonga. This river carries life from its beginning to its issuing into the sea, and it deserves protection, it deserves restoration, for all who benefit from its progress. This great river needs help, and that is the great task in front of all of us who share an interest in it. This great river needs repair. This partnership in the legislation before us will provide a consistent and engaged way of making sure that this river is restored.

Although the Minister has already quoted some of the comments from both the Te Arawa River Iwi Trust chairman Roger Pikia, and the Ngāti Raukawa Settlement Trust chairman Chris McKenzie, it is worth recognising and repeating them, because it is in this deep sense of something important happening here that we gather to support this legislation. These people who have travelled to Wellington to support the first reading of this bill understand exactly what their leaders have said today. Mr Pikia said that the first reading, this moment that we are engaged in now, marked the final stage of a process to give effect to a partnership between river iwi and the Government to provide protection and nurturing of the national taonga that is the Waikato River.

This is a model that is worth repeating. This is a way forward, in Labour’s view, and I know that the Minister—in fact, both Ministers who are here tonight—share this view, that this is a way forward, that this is a way of engaging in a genuine partnership, with obligations and commitments that stick, with goals that are shared, and with methods that are participated in equally, in order to recognise and carry forward the application of the Treaty of Waitangi in Aotearoa New Zealand.

I welcome this first reading. I congratulate the Minister, the Hon Tariana Turia, on her first reading speech and the heart—the personal connection—that goes into this legislation. I can only imagine what it means for the Minister to have that very close connection with the people, with the country, and with the river, and to be able to lead off in this debate. I recognise also the Minister Chris Finlayson, who will participate in this debate, I am sure, and all that that represents from both of those people and the participation of the Crown and iwi in the management of this taonga. Kia ora.

Hon CHRISTOPHER FINLAYSON (Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations) Link to this

I begin by thanking the speaker who has just resumed her seat, the Hon Maryan Street, for her generous comments and helpful insights; they were greatly appreciated. The Ngati Tuwharetoa, Raukawa, and Te Arawa River Iwi Waikato River Bill marks another milestone heralding the advent of a new era for the Waikato River in which the Crown, iwi, and local authorities will work side by side to bring about the restoration and protection of the health and well-being of the Waikato River for present and future generations.

The particular purpose of the bill is to give effect to co-governance arrangements agreed with Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Raukawa, and Te Arawa river iwi. The bill is a companion to the Waikato-Tainui Raupatu Claims (Waikato River) Settlement Act 2010. The agreements with those iwi reflect a contemporary Treaty relationship, and do not settle historical Treaty of Waitangi claims. The agreement with Te Arawa river iwi is made pursuant to an undertaking made by the Crown in the 2008 deed of settlement with the affiliate Te Arawa iwi hapū. I acknowledge and pay tribute to the representatives of those iwi who have given their support to this groundbreaking initiative and who have worked so hard to ensure the co-governance framework for the river is one that all iwi connected with the Waikato River can participate in with the Crown.

From March 2008, when the Guardians Establishment Committee was formed to develop the vision and the strategy for the river, Raukawa were at the table, through Stephanie O’Sullivan, Te Arawa river iwi were at the table, through Roger Pikia, and Ngāti Tūwharetoa were there, through Dean Stebbing. They joined the representatives of Waikato-Tainui, Maniapoto, and the Crown, including local mayors, and demonstrated that co-governance can, and does indeed, bring about some very positive outcomes.

The river is deeply significant to Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Raukawa, and Te Arawa river iwi. Their respective relationships with the river are ancient and central to their culture and traditions, and to the way they see themselves and the world. The river system is the longest in the country, with the second-largest catchment comprising 14,300 square kilometres. About 383,000 people live in the catchment, and produce about 9 percent of the gross national product of this land. The river and its catchment play a significant strategic role for New Zealand as a source of energy, and as a location of significant primary industry and recreational activities.

There are important values and relationships between the Waikato River and the people in communities, including private and public interests associated with the river and its environs. Different people in the community value the river in different ways, but the scoping study currently in progress has found that many of the attributes that support health and well-being values, such as clear and safe water, healthy ecosystems, and engagement with, and respect for, the river, are consistently shared across the whole community. Securing the longer-term sustainability and health of the river for present and future generations is vital. A new era of co-governance in respect of the river is a most effective and inclusive way to go about achieving that goal.

The Crown has a responsibility in terms of the principles of the Treaty to provide for the relationship of Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Raukawa, and Te Arawa river iwi and their culture and traditions with the Waikato River, which is taonga to them. The co-governance framework and the arrangements with those iwi provide legal mechanisms for Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Raukawa, and Te Arawa river iwi to participate in the governance and the management of the river. The provisions of this bill provide clear direction and certainty about the co-governance of the river. The framework will streamline, improve, and coordinate governance and management arrangements for the Waikato River, commensurate with its strategic importance to New Zealand’s social, cultural, and economic well-being.

At the signing of the deed with Raukawa, at the beautiful Whakamaru venue, George Rangitutia spoke of his dream for a healthy river. When Te Arawa river iwi signed it, at the historic Ōrākei Kōrako, Roger Pikia spoke of an end to exclusion, and commended the Crown for its courage in providing more than words to the concept of partnership enshrined in the Treaty.

These are words of optimism, focused on the future. They are not about pessimism in the past. The past is beyond our ability to change, but the future is ours to make. With the arrangements enshrined in this bill, I think we have laid a stronger, positive foundation for healthier relationships and a productive, healthier national environment.

The cornerstones of the co-governance arrangements are: the vision and strategy, which will be the primary direction-setting document for the river; the Waikato River Authority, which is the co-governance entity; the Waikato River Clean-Up Trust, which will be accessible to the community on a contestable basis; and, importantly, the involvement of iwi commissioners on resource consent matters that directly affect the river. Local authorities and relevant agencies will continue with their existing roles and management functions in relation to the river. The bill does not change those roles and functions but it does contain provisions that will result in a hands-on role for iwi working jointly with local authorities and agencies.

Joint management agreements, an integrated river management plan, and new relationships with the Ministry of Fisheries and the Department of Conservation through accords and jointly developed regulations are good examples of what co-management will mean in a practical sense for iwi. As the Hon Tariana Turia noted, this bill complements the Waikato River settlement with Waikato-Tainui. It is important to achieve as much coordination as possible and to have the respective pieces of legislation that together make up the co-governance framework for the Waikato River come into effect within similar time frames.

In closing, I emphasise that I believe it is in everyone’s interests, including local authorities and the community, to avoid a disjointed implementation of co-governance and co-management for the Waikato River, not that I believe that that will happen, because I think the evidence is there already that regional government, local government, iwi, and other members of the community will work together for the benefit of the river. So I commend those who have made such a valuable contribution to the development of this legislation. I have mentioned those representatives of iwi who have played their part. I also mention, in particular, Peter Buckley of Environment Waikato, who has played a significant role, and, like him, I am looking forward to seeing how this legislation will play out. I believe that it will be a very successful venture.

Hon SHANE JONES (Labour) Link to this

Ā kāti, kia tukua e au tēnei kōrero ōku i roto i tō tātou reo Māori. E te iwi, koutou kua tatū nei ki Te Ūpoko o te Ika, ki te whakarongo, ki te mātakitaki i a mātou ngā kaitōrangapū i whakaritea hei whakatatū i te mahi i oti i a koutou ngātahi ko te Karauna, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa. Tēnā tātou i roto i te āhuatanga o ō tātou mātua, o ō tātou tūpuna nā rātou i wawata ka oti tētahi tauira pēnei rawa te ātaahua otirā, kīhai rawa rātou i toe, kia kite ā-kanohitia e rātou ēnei mahi rangatira e oti ana i tēnei wā. Nā reira rātou ki a rātou, tātou ki a tātou, Te Arawa, Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Raukawa, tēnā koutou, tēnā tātou katoa.

Tēnei pire, ka nui noa atu tō mātou tautoko. Kei te whai mai i muri i te pire i oti i te Whare, mō te wāhanga ki ō tātou huanga, ki roto o Waikato ake. Otirā, ko te pai o tēnei pire, kei te puta mai koutou, kei te whakapūmautia ki roto i tēnei pire, ngā pānga i raro i te Tiriti, e hāngai tonu ana ki tēnei awa me ōna taonga katoa mō tēnā iwi, mō tēnā iwi, mō tēnā iwi.

E toru kē ngā rōpū kua whakaritea hei amo, hei hāpai i ngā pānga me ngā moemoeā o koutou tokotoru me te Karauna. Mā roto pea i te pire pēnei, kātahi ka mau haeretia ki ētahi awa kē atu, ki ētahi iwi kē atu. Kua pau te toru tekau tau, mai i te wā i waihangatia ai te ture e kīa nei ko te Resource Management Act. I tērā wā, ō tātou mātua a Bob Mahuta mā, i akiaki kia puta tētahi tauira pēnei me te pire neki. Otirā i roto i tērā wā, te tau 1990, kīhai te nuinga o te ao tōrangapū i rata, ki te whakaaro pērā. Mai i tērā wā tae noa mai ki tēnei, kātahi anō kia rata.

Nā reira, e tika ana tātou kia mihi ki te iwi nā rātou i waihanga, nā rātou i hahau, ā, ka taria mai ki te aroaro o te Whare i tēnei pō. Tērā pea, ka eke rawa tātou ki tēnei whakamātautau, arā, ngā ui hōhonu, ngā wero kāhore anō kia tatū, arā pēnei me te pātai nei, nō wai rānei te wai? Ka riro i a wai rānei ngā painga me ngā hua, ki te whakamahia te wai hei kaupapa mahi moni. Mā roto pea i ngā huarahi pēnei ka māmā pea ā tōna wā, te whakatatū, pēnā he pānga anō o te iwi Māori, he pānga anō o te Karauna, e taea rānei te mahitahi kia kaua rawa atu te wai e whakamahia, ka mutu, kāhore he hua e hoki mai ana ki te marea whānui, arā, ki a Ngāi Pākehā, ki a Ngāi Māori, ki te katoa. Ā tōna wā te whakamutunga, te whakautu mō tēnā pātai ka rangona, ka kitea.

Ā, me mihi noki ki te Minita, nāna tēnei kaupapa i hari mai. Me te mihi noki ki a Dr Cullen engari, te mihi atu ki te Minita i tēneki wā. Te tauira i oti i a mātou te wā i a Dr Cullen, kīhai rawa i tino eke ki tōna taumata. Nā, nāhau anō e te Minita i hoki, ka kōrero tonu ki ngā reo o te iwi, kātahi ka whakahangaitia tētahi tauira pēnei rawa te pai. Nā reira tika ana tēnei Whare, tēneki taha o te Whare me koutou, kia mahitahi, kia oti wawe wēnei raruraru. Kia kaua rawa atu e waiho hei take wehewehe i waenga tonu i a tātou ngā kaitōrangapū, otirā, te marea whānui o roto o Aotearoa.

Te take e tārewa tonu ana hei akiaki mā te Kāwanatanga, he pūtea hei whakakaupapa, hei whakatinana i ngā hiahia kei roto i tēnei pire. E hia rānei mahere e kōrerotia ana, e hia rānei mahere e tūmanakohia ana. Otirā me whiwhi huruhuru, kia takoto rangatira ai wēnā mahere, kia whiwhi ringaringa ai, kia whiwhi waewae ai ngā mahere kia kaua rawa e waiho kia tārewa tonu me te mea nei he kohu, kei runga i te mata o te wai i roto i tēnei awa. Nā reira, e kore e kāhore nui tonu ngā tono, nui tonu ngā īnoi, ka taria mai ki te aroaro o te komiti uiui mō ngā take pēnā. Otirā mā te Kāwanatanga anō e whiriwhiri ā tōna wā me ngā kaunihera, kia kaua rawa atu e waiho he kongakonga anake e wātea ana hei muru i ngā nama e pā ana ki te waihanga mahere, ki te whakahaere i ngā take, ā, ki te whai haere me pēhea rānei te wai e mā ai, me pēhea rānei ai te hunga e whakamahi ana i te wai e mau tonu ai ki te ture, e tika ana mō te whakamahi i te wai hei kaupapa ahuwhenua, hei kaupapa whakainu tangata, hei kaupapa noki hari i te para o te tangata ki hea rānei.

Nā reira, koia tāku e mea ake nei ki a tātou i roto i tō tātou reo Māori, tēnā koutou, tēnā tātou, kia ora tātou katoa.

[Without further fuss, allow me to deliver this address in our Māori language. To the people who have arrived here in Wellington to listen and to observe us, the politicians who were given the responsibility to deliberate over what you as a collective completed jointly with the Crown, greetings to you, greetings to you, and greetings to you all. Greetings to you in respect of the situation of our parents and ancestors, whose hope it was to complete a paradigm as beautiful as this one. Alas, they did not remain, nor lived to see with their own eyes these noble undertakings completed today. So they, the dead, to the dead; and we, the living, to us the living. Te Arawa, Ngāti Tūwharetoa, and Raukawa, greetings to you, and greetings to us all.

As far as this bill is concerned, we fully support it. It is a sequel to the one that the House passed for our relatives in Waikato proper. Indeed, what is good about this bill is that you are coming to the fore. Another good thing is that any Treaty interests relating specifically to this river and all its properties for that tribe, that tribe, and that one are embedded permanently in this bill.

Three specific groups have been settled upon to bear responsibility and to lift the interests and dreams of you three groups and the Crown to another level. Through such a bill as this one, perhaps it might be possible to take it to some other river or to some other tribe, and apply its principles there. It has been 30 years since an Act called the Resource Management Act today was created. At that time, our elders such as Bob Mahuta and others urged that a paradigm and a bill like this be produced. But at that time, in 1990, most politicians did not entertain the idea. As time passed, and the present day arrived, then at last they began to accept it.

Therefore, it is fitting that we recognise the people who created, fashioned, and brought it before the House tonight. Perhaps we are now up to this examination in terms of questions of an in-depth nature, challenges not yet settled, like the question of who owns the water. Who will receive the benefits and profits if water is marketed? Maybe co-arrangements like this one will make it easier, over time, to settle whether the Māori people and the Crown have interests, whether it is possible to work together so that the water could never be marketed so that no profit returns to the public at large, Pākehā, Māori, and everyone. The conclusion and response for that question will be heard and seen in time.

I commend the Minister who brought this bill before the House. While I acknowledge Dr Cullen, as well, my congratulatory remarks at the moment are directed to the current Minister. The model that we came up with in Dr Cullen’s time did not really get as far as this. But it was you, Minister, who went back and maintained talks with the representatives of the tribes and came up with a wonderful model like this one. So it is appropriate that this House, our side and yours, work expeditiously and together through these problems. Let us not leave it to fester and become a divisive issue between politicians, and the people of New Zealand.

One issue that we urge the Government to address is to set aside funding to meet the requirements in this bill. Several plans have been spoken of and hoped for. However, there must be funding to successfully implement those plans so they do not remain like a mist upon the surface of the Waikato River. I have no doubt there will be many submissions once this goes before the select committee. None the less, the Government will hold discussions with local councils so that there is sufficient funding to implement management plans to clean up the river and keep those using the water in line with laws around agriculture, water consumption, and transporting human waste.

So that is my address to us, in our Māori language. Greetings to you collectively, greetings to us, and greetings to everyone. ]

It is Māori Language Week, and for each of the last 3 or 4 years a number of us have endeavoured to celebrate the language in this week. But in order for the language to survive, as our visitors will no doubt know, each generation needs to use it with great frequency.

It was 30 years ago, during the process of creating the Resource Management Act based on the reform of resource management law, that an attempt was made, unsuccessfully, to create a model such as the Ngati Tuwharetoa, Raukawa, and Te Arawa River Iwi Waikato Bill. The wānanga took place at the marae at Taumutu in Ngāi Tahu. It was found to be too radical, and it certainly did not meet willing minds or bodies at that period of time. It is an interesting observation that 30 years have passed since river management and water catchment issues were comprehensively dealt with. I would go so far as to say that the model in this bill, although at one level it integrates Māori involvement, represents the most significant departure from the way that rivers and water have been managed to date.

The fear that a number of submitters, no doubt, will reflect on yet again is that it may prove to be too bureaucratic, and that it may place a new level of cost upon the administrative regime that is designed to achieve better water outcomes. During the time we dealt with the other portion of the Waikato River we heard those very negative perspectives advanced by the Waikato people. This model represents no threat to the quality of the water or the ability of either river users or the community to enjoy the services of the river, be they aesthetic, commercial, cultural, or whatever purpose a community of interest may seek to enjoy in relation to the river.

On this side of the House we do not share the view that this innovation represents a retrograde step in respect of statutory management of natural resources. We think it is an overdue step—and as I have said, in my view it comes 30 years too late—especially when I think of the people who contributed in 1990 to that wānanga, searching for a way to integrate Māori involvement into the administration of water resources. As I said in Māori, Bob Māhuta and a host of others who are no longer with us endeavoured to introduce those kinds of concepts in 1990. As earlier speakers and, indeed, the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations said, the past has gone, and we cannot recreate it. The future for the river, I believe, looks rosy, and we look forward to hearing from different submitters, not only those from the Māori community but also those who may need their fears assuaged, during the period of time that it lies before the Māori Affairs Committee,

Let us work together on both sides of the House to “de-fang” the misapprehension, fearmongering, and other scare tactics that so often are visited upon such innovative attempts as this one to involve Māori, and to give meaning and real effect to the principles of the Treaty. We support this bill. Kia ora tātou katoa.

Dr RUSSEL NORMAN (Co-Leader—Green) Link to this

Tēnā koe, Mr Assistant Speaker Barker. I rise to speak on behalf of the Green Party in support of the Ngati Tuwharetoa, Raukawa, and Te Arawa River Iwi Waikato River Bill. This is a very important bill, not only for the protection of the river but also for restoring the mana of the Waikato River iwi, and the Green Party is very pleased to be standing tonight to support this bill.

It is a remarkable fact about the Waikato River that there is 14 metres of visibility at Lake Taupō, but by the time we get to the mouth of the river the visibility is reduced to less than 1 metre. The reason is that the Waikato River is tremendously polluted. Any steps that can be taken to clean up the river and that make any difference to cleaning up the river are tremendously important. They are important not only for the mana of the Waikato River iwi but also for the health of the river itself.

We cannot save a river unless we start with where a river starts, and a river starts in the catchment—in the soils, in the land, and in the treatment of that land. The vast majority of contaminants in the river do not originate from point sources. It is not the sewerage systems that contribute nitrogen and phosphorous to the river; it is the farmland. It is a simple fact that more than 75 percent of all the nitrogen in the Waikato River comes from non - point source pollution and not from point source pollution. If we want to control the pollution in the river, we must have control over the activities in the catchment that are adding the pollution to the river. Overwhelmingly, the pollution in the river is coming from farming and agricultural intensification and activities. That is a simple scientific fact.

Although it is tremendously important that this bill gives the river iwi the right to have someone on the consent hearings committee, the simple fact is that the vast majority of the pollution that enters the river never goes anywhere near a consent hearing, because it is a permitted activity. Until we are willing to regulate intensified farming activities and make them activities that can be consented rather than permitted activities, neither the public of New Zealand more generally nor the river iwi will have a say over the vast majority of the pollution that currently enters the river system. The vast majority of the nitrogen, phosphorous, and sediment that enters the river system enters because of permitted activities. They are not activities that require resource consents. A problem that is reflected from the top of the country to the bottom is that the overwhelming majority—more than three-quarters—of the contaminants in our river systems come from non-consented activities, or permitted activities.

If we are to address the real causes of pollution in the Waikato River, and if we are to give the power to the river iwi so that they can take control of all the pollution and contaminants entering the river system, we absolutely must make intensified agricultural activities consentable activities. Although it is fantastic that we are passing these bills that give co-governance and co-management arrangements to iwi, there is a sleight of hand in this bill, and the sleight of hand is that we are not giving full control over the catchment and the activities in the catchment that contribute the vast majority of contaminants in the river system.

If Parliament was really serious about giving the river iwi full control to clean up the Waikato River, which is something that the Green Party fully endorses, we would go further than simply this bill. We would go further by ensuring control over the activities that are putting the pollution into the river system, which includes the Waikato River, the Waipawa River, and the other river systems in the Waikato such as the Piako River and the Waihou River—all of those river systems that are terribly polluted right now from activities that are not consented. They are permitted activities under the Resource Management Act. There is no reason to get resource consent to pollute the Waikato River; it is allowed under law because it is a permitted activity. Until we get our heads round the fact that the vast majority of the pollution entering this system is from permitted farming activities, and not from consentable activities, such as a sewerage discharge or a dairy shed discharge, we will not address the pollution in the system.

So, I say to Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Raukawa, and Te Arawa river iwi that this is just the first step. I fully understand the depth of their feeling about cleaning up their awa and their river system. Goodness knows, we know that the existing structures to manage our river systems have profoundly failed to clean up this river system. All strength to their arm as they get hold of, and some control over, the real sources of pollution in their awa. It is only if those who love this river system and really care about it are able to get their hands on, and get control over, not only the resource consents around sewage but all the activities that are causing the vast majority of the pollution in the river system—all the permitted activities in the catchment—that those for whom this river is part of their identity will be able to clean up this river system.

So although this bill is tremendously important, the next step is much harder and it will require more than a small amount of money every year in terms of a clean-up fund. It will require control and regulation of intensive agricultural activities in the catchment to clean up this precious river. That is the real challenge that faces us tonight. So, yes, let us vote for this bill, yes, let us acknowledge the river iwi and their contribution, but let us be under no illusions in this House that by passing this bill somehow the river will be cleaned up.

In fact, we are passing a tremendous responsibility on to the river iwi and those involved in the co-governance. The question is whether we are giving them sufficient powers to achieve what they really wish to achieve and what the Green Party really wishes to achieve, which is to clean up the river system. That can be done only by getting our hands on the more than three-quarters of the pollution that comes from currently permitted activities, which require no resource consent whatsoever. Those permitted activities add the nitrogen, the phosphorous, and the sediment into this river system that are destroying the life in this river system. Cleaning up the river system can be done only if we also give to the river iwi and the co-governors of this river system the power to have a say over intensive agricultural activities in this catchment. That is the next challenge.

So I welcome this bill, and I congratulate the previous Labour Government and the National Government, which have been involved in this, as well as, particularly, the iwi. But the challenge to clean up the river system is still great, and that is the next step. Tēnā koe.

DAVID GARRETT (ACT) Link to this

Anyone who heard my speech on the third reading of the Waikato-Tainui Raupatu Claims (Waikato River) Settlement Bill will not be surprised that the ACT Party stands opposed to the Ngati Tuwharetoa, Raukawa, and Te Arawa River Iwi Waikato River Bill, the successor to that divisive bill. It is not, I have to say, a very pleasant position to be in, to be the only party in the House opposing such a measure, which, no doubt, has the utter support of all of those in the gallery.

It is notable, in listening to the speeches that have gone before, that both National and the Greens have been speaking in code. National has talked about co-governance, partnership, and sharing. What it really means is granting iwi a right of veto over activities that they do not approve of. The Greens’ co-leader Russel Norman has talked at length, but, as usual, not explicitly, about sources of pollution and permitted activities. What he is actually intending, or what he should be saying, is that the Green Party seeks to make farming—the lifeblood and the backbone of our economy—an activity that farmers will have to apply for a consent for. That was what all that stuff about nitrates, sulphates, and sediments actually meant.

HONE HARAWIRA (Māori Party—Te Tai Tokerau) Link to this

Tēnā koe e te Kaiwhakawā, tēnā tātou katoa. Tēnā koutou, e ngā iwi kua tae mai nei i tēnei hāora o te pō kia rongohia i te tautoko o te Pāremata nei ki tā koutou nei pire. Hākoa, kua tū kē te pokokōhua nei te whakatakoto i ōna kōrero kaikiri, e tika ana kia mōhio, ko rātou anake e kore e whakaae ki tēnei pire.

[Greetings to you, Mr Assistant Speaker, and to us all. To the tribes who have arrived here at this hour tonight to listen to this Parliament speaking in support of your bill, I acknowledge your presence. Even though this boiled head stood and expressed his racist views, it should be noted that they are the only ones opposing this bill.]

LOUISE UPSTON (National—Taupō) Link to this

Tēnā koe e te Mana Whakawā. Tēnā koutou ngā iwi rangatira o te awa o Waikato, tēnā koutou i ngā āhuatanga o te wā. Nō reira, e Te Ariki Tā Tumu te Heuheu, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa. E te Minita, tino rawe tō tiaki i ngā take pire mō Te Tiriti o Waitangi. Nō reira, kia ora mō tēnā.

[Greetings to you, Mr Assistant Speaker. Greetings also to the chiefly people of the Waikato River, in respect of the circumstances of the day. Salutations, indeed, to you, paramount chief Sir Tumu te Heuheu, and greetings to you all. To you, the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations, what a wonderful job you are doing. So thank you for that.]

As the member of Parliament for Taupō, I am thrilled to stand here in the presence of representatives of Tūwharetoa, Raukawa, and Te Arawa River iwi who are here today. The settlement of the upper Waikato is significant for the communities that I am proud to represent. The National Government is delivering on its promise to complete final, durable settlement of all remaining historical Treaty of Waitangi grievances by 2014.

Settlements recognise the wrongs of the past, help iwi unlock economic potential, and provide a welcome economic boost, particularly in regional and provincial areas. This is vital in an electorate like Taupō. It is the Waikato River that connects my constituents, from Taupō through Tokoroa, Pūtāruru, Karapiro, and Cambridge, and that is why I am thrilled to speak on this bill.

The purpose of the settlement is Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Raukawa, and Te Arawa River iwi participation in both the restoration and protection of the Waikato River. These iwi identify with the upper Waikato River. As has been said before, this bill is a companion to the Waikato-Tainui Raupatu Claims (Waikato River) Settlement Bill, which was introduced to Parliament in April this year. The negotiations with the iwi gathered here today have been separate to negotiations with Waikato-Tainui, hence the need for separate legislation. It is also important to recognise the mana of these iwi in relation to the upper Waikato River.

This bill gives effect to co-governance and co-management agreements with each iwi. It also, importantly, sets up the Waikato River Authority, and the funding that is so vital for the Waikato River Clean-Up Trust of $210 million, which will be distributed over a period of 30 years. This fund is contestable for iwi, local authorities, and the community, and will be administered by the 50:50 Crown-Māori membership of the Waikato River Authority.

I will speak about a few things in particular regarding this bill, and regarding the river. It is a significant resource. At 425 kilometres long, the Waikato River is not only the region’s but the country’s longest and most significant river. As Minister Chris Finlayson has said, the river is important to our region’s economic, social, and cultural well-being. There are more than 470 resource consents, accounting for nearly 250.6 million cubic metres of surface water per day. Just to give the House an idea, that is the equivalent of filling about 100,000 Olympic-sized swimming pools. The river is used for domestic, industrial, and community water supplies and irrigation. It is used for recreation: swimming, duck shooting, boating, fishing, or simply enjoying being beside the water’s edge. The Waikato River also supplies about 13 percent of New Zealand’s electricity generation, with eight hydro dams dotted along its middle section. The Waikato River contributes, though, nearly 50 percent of our total electricity generation, if we include the geothermal fields and the cooling of Huntly in the mix.

As we have heard today, the Waikato River is degraded and polluted. Approximately 90 percent of the wetlands are gone. We have already started work with the Lake Taupō Protection Trust to improve the health of Lake Taupō, but we now must place our attention on the clean-up of the Waikato River. We recognise the deep significance of the Waikato River to Ngāti Tūwharetoa, to Raukawa, and to Te Arawa River iwi. We also recognise the strategic importance of the Waikato River to the social, cultural, environmental, and economic well-being of all New Zealanders. I rowed on the Waikato River as a schoolgirl, I now live by the Waikato River, I am proud to say that my children play in the river, and our family camps on its edge during summertime. The Waikato River is significant to many—to those who live in the region and to those who visit.

Last year the Prime Minister chose to launch the very first cycleway on the edge of the Waikato River, and I think this is significant in terms of the message of how important the Waikato River is to tourism. When the Waikato River Trail is completed, there will be a magnificent walk and ride along 100 kilometres of our river. Later this year the world rowing championships will be held on the river—the biggest sporting event since the 1990 Commonwealth Games—so I know that the iwi present will join me in hoping that the Waikato River brings our team extra-special luck, and brings it some gold.

This bill produces the framework for a new era in the relationship between the Crown and Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Raukawa, and Te Arawa River iwi, and for restoring and protecting the health and well-being of the Waikato River for future generations. We have seen real success in Taupō, with the Taupō District Council’s relationship with Tūwharetoa winning the prestigious Institute of Public Administration New Zealand award for Crown-Māori relationships at the recent public sector excellence awards. That was a night to remember.

This Government is giving clear direction and certainty about the co-governance and co-management of the Waikato River. It is providing more than words to the concept of partnership that is inherent in the Treaty of Waitangi. This is one of seven deeds of settlement that the Government has signed since November 2008, which compares with an average of 1.6 deeds per year under the previous Government. This is a result I am proud of; this is a bill I am proud of. Kia ora mutu.

Hon STEVE CHADWICK (Labour) Link to this

Kia ora ki te Whare. I rise to take a quick call in real good-faith support for trying to get the Ngati Tuwharetoa, Raukawa, and Te Arawa River Iwi Waikato River Bill through its first reading tonight, so that those who have travelled so far can enjoy the fact that we have got through this momentous stage tonight in the House.

I pay tribute to those who have come from Te Arawa. They are sitting in the gallery, smiling away. They know who they are, and I know that Minister Turia, Shane Jones, and Hone Harawira have welcomed them appropriately and with dignity to the House tonight. I also pay tribute to Timi te Heuheu, who is here from Tūwharetoa.

I say to Mr Garrett before I begin that we are a democracy, and we respect his view though we differ markedly from it. By exposure to debate in this House, and by association through marriage, through our children, and through our ancestors, some of us have acquired a deep and abiding love and a spiritual relationship with the lands our families come from. In my family, we share that love with Tariana Turia and the Whanganui—I am sure she wishes they had a such clean-up fund as this bill will set up tonight—with the Tongariro and the Waikato through my Tūwharetoa lines, and, I have to mention, with the Tukituki, through my Ngāti Kahungunu lines.

We all learn by association and by talking to each other about the value of being bicultural in this land. We are two people walking one pathway, and we need to remember that and show tolerance in this House. So we listened to that member, Mr Garrett, and I felt a bit sorry for his view, but it is the view of only 5 percent of the country. We have a long way to go and we are getting there. If we keep engaging in the democratic debate with those represented in this House, we will get there. I congratulate the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations, the Hon Chris Finlayson, on carrying on and improving the Treaty settlement process. My colleague the Hon Maryan Street gave acknowledgment to that. I think that the Hon Michael Cullen went out on a limb in relation to Treaty settlements. It was considered quite a risk at the time. It was edgy territory to go into in Treaty settlements, but we were delighted about the Te Arawa Lakes Settlement Act and for our 14 lakes to start to move towards a co-management model.

I am sure that if Mr Garrett went and saw these Treaty partners working together, he would see that this is not just tokenism. Local government, the regional council, and the people who are stakeholders in our lakes are beginning the long journey—and it will be a long journey of over 20 years—to clean up our lakes. But it takes a leap of faith and a leap of trust, and, then, underpinning legislation that must be enabling. We cannot tell people what to do and hope it will work. We have to keep talking to each other, and this is a wonderful example.

I can remember in a little way Lady Raihā Māhuta coming into my office when I was the Minister of Conservation and saying what they wanted in terms of the conservation management plans in the legislation we have here in the House tonight. I thought: “Gosh, this is new, but this is the right thing to do.” I remember going off to Michael Cullen to say: “I don’t know how we do it, but we do have to work with conservation coming to the party here alongside iwi and the Crown.” He said: “OK. We will try to find the right instruments.” I think we are learning in Treaty settlements from each process that has gone before.

I thank those who have gone on this settlement journey and who have taught us that there are new ways, and that there are some risks with those new ways, but that when we work together in that position of partnership and trust, we can get there. It is not hard, and this bill underpins that approach.

I thought we were all going to agree in the House tonight, so it was with some sadness that I heard the ACT view. But kei te pai; they are a little group, and they need to be awhi-ed to understand the new way of working together, and we will work with them to try to show them that there are other ways. That is as nice as I can be there.

I want to talk about the clean-up fund. I am sure that those at Te Arawa, Ānaru Rangiheuea, Rāwiri Te Whare, and all of our kaumātua in the gallery know that this is something that we longed for with our Te Arawa Lakes Settlement Act. One gets the settlement amount, and it is meant to be enough to clean up, but it is never enough. It is really a nominal amount, and we all know that. But here is a genuine attempt. Over 30 years it is a bit of a stretch, and I am sure that in the future the partners will be coming back to the Crown to say they might need more.

I want to mention here the Greens’ perspective about catchment. I believe they are right, but I think that as this co-management model goes—I was going to say down the river—on this journey, the Greens will see that it is logical to put catchment plans in there, and they will come to say that that is how they want to manage this. But it is their right to put that on the table too, because we never get it all right.

I am pleased that there is a conservation management plan in this legislation. I think this approach is something that will be watched from all around New Zealand. In Canterbury we are looking at the Hurunui and the Mackenzie Country and the pressures of dairying there. They will be looking at managing those wonderful South Island rivers. I am sure that Tainui will be looking at this model and saying that they need to look at how they manage their precious resources in the future.

I acknowledge all those who have gone before, and thank I them for the lessons they have taught us as we have gone on this journey. I acknowledge the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations with his wonderful lofty goal of getting all Treaty claims settled by 2014. We hope that the settlements are just and durable. The Labour Party will work in cooperation with the Minister to achieve that goal. This is a wonderful evening; thanks for coming.

PAUL QUINN (National) Link to this

Ā, tēnā koe e te Mana Whakawā. Tēnā tātau e te whānau Pāremata i roto i tēnei, te Wiki o te Reo Māori. E Te Arawa, Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Raukawa, tēnei te mihi atu ki a koutou katoa. Nau mai ki te Whare Pāremata. Kua tangihia ngā mate, moe mai koutou. Tātau te hunga ora i tēnei pō, kia ora huihui tātau katoa.

[Greetings to you, Mr Assistant Speaker, and to us, the parliamentary family in this Māori Language Week. To you, Te Arawa, Ngāti Tūwharetoa, and Raukawa, greetings to you all. Welcome to Parliament House. The deaths have been mourned, so rest there, the dead. To us, the living, gathered here tonight, greetings to us all.]

As always, it gives me great pleasure to stand and speak to a Treaty settlement bill. As I regularly say, it is one of the principal reasons that I was keen to enter this House—namely, to progress Treaty settlements. In this particular case it gives me additional pleasure because I can claim to be Te Arawa, but on the eastern coast. As my friend Roger Pikia would remind me, it is a bit of a stretch to take that across to the western side of the rohe. In any event, it is great to be amongst many friends, and I acknowledge them—Rāwiri Te Whare and others, Timi te Heuheu, and Eru George. I welcome them all.

As previous speakers have said this evening, the Ngati Tuwharetoa, Raukawa, and Te Arawa River Iwi Waikato River Bill represents the second limb of a broader package involving the settlement of the Waikato River. It is a companion bill to the Waikato-Tainui Raupatu Claims (Waikato River) Settlement Act, and falls out of the renegotiation of the previous arrangements, which have already been mentioned, by the previous administration under the guidance of the then Minister in charge of Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations, Dr Cullen.

I hope members opposite forgive me, but I think it is appropriate that we reflect on how we have got here today. One might think that I am being a little churlish, but the difference in terms of what we have before us now tonight and what was presented to the Māori Affairs Committee in December 2008 in some ways, one might say with tongue in cheek, reflects the different approaches of the two major parties. In the bill drafted under the previous administration we had a multitude of bodies of administration, and in this bill under the new administration we have reached a model of excellent efficiency.

I look forward to the select committee receiving this bill, and I can assure the iwi who are here tonight that this bill will be dealt with expeditiously. I assure them that the Māori Affairs Committee has worked very well together and works towards consensus.

My concluding comments are in respect of the comments made by the Greens. I have to wonder whether the Greens have read the bill, because if they read Parts 2 and 3, then they would find that all of the issues that they raised in their contribution to the debate tonight are addressed. With those few closing words, I, along with the National Government and most of this House, look forward to approving the first reading of this bill.

SUE MORONEY (Labour) Link to this

E te Whare, tēnā tātou katoa. Ka nui te mihi i roto i te wiki o te reo Māori. Tēnā koutou e ngā iwi o te awa, Te Arawa, Raukawa, Ngāti Tūwharetoa, tēnā koutou katoa.

[Greetings to us all, the House. I acknowledge you hugely in Māori Language Week. I acknowledge you, the tribes of the river, namely Te Arawa, Raukawa, and Ngāti Tūwharetoa. Greetings to you all.]

It has been one of the highlights of my short time in Parliament to be here for the third reading of the Waikato-Tainui Raupatu Claims (Waikato River) Settlement Bill. It is indeed a great honour to be here for the first reading of this Ngati Tuwharetoa, Raukawa, and Te Arawa River Iwi Waikato River Bill, which partners that one. I say with a great sense of pride, as a Waikato-based member of Parliament, that our area, our region, will take a leadership position over the co-governance of our special taonga, the Waikato River. In fact, I feel so proud about this that in a recent media interview I was having, the journalist thought that he would put me on the spot and ask me to name one thing—just one thing—that I thought the current Government had got right, and it was this.

Hon TARIANA TURIA (Minister for the Community and Voluntary Sector) Link to this

Tēnā koe e te Kaiwhakawā o te pō. I move, That the Māori Affairs Committee consider the Ngati Tuwharetoa, Raukawa, and Te Arawa River Iwi Waikato River Bill , that the committee report finally to the House on or before 31 August 2010, and that the committee have authority to meet at any time while the House is sitting (except during questions for oral answer), and during any evening on a day on which there has been a sitting of the House, and on a Friday in a week in which there has been a sitting of the House, and outside the Wellington region despite Standing Orders 187, 189(a) and 190(1)(b) and (c).