10. DAVID CLENDON (Green) Link to this
to the Minister of Energy and Resources
Does he agree with Crown Minerals’ testimony to the Waitangi Tribunal’s inquiry into the management of the petroleum resource, which confirmed that the Crown has an obligation under international law and the Treaty of Waitangi to investigate claims of customary rights?
Hon GERRY BROWNLEE (Minister of Energy and Resources) Link to this
I understand that the comments referred to by the member came at the end of a very long cross-examination in front of the Waitangi Tribunal, and I do not want to make any comment on that matter at all. But I say that New Zealand is a sovereign coastal State and the Crown is therefore the only legal person that has any right to explore, exploit, conserve, and manage natural resources on the continental shelf as recognised by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and ratified by the Continental Shelf Act 1964. I suggest that if the member wants to argue that the United Nations has it wrong, he needs to take that argument to a different forum. He may also like to consult with his colleague Dr Kennedy Graham, who is an expert on the effect that United Nations declarations such as this one can have.
Does the Minister agree with Crown Minerals’ testimony that the ownership of oil in the exclusive economic zone is “a live issue”?
Hon GERRY BROWNLEE Link to this
No, I do not. Section 10 of the Crown Minerals Act reserves all petroleum, including that in the foreshore and seabed and the outer limits of the territorial sea. Section 5A of the Continental Shelf Act refers back to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, which I spoke of before, and makes it clear that all rights that are exercisable by New Zealand in respect of the continental shelf and its natural resources for the purposes of exploring the shelf and exploiting its resources are vested in the Crown.
Rahui KateneIs the Minister aware that in its 2003 report the Waitangi Tribunal found that the expropriation of the pre-existing Māori rights to petroleum arose from a context that was riddled with breaches of the Treaty; and what will he do to assure iwi that further breaches will not be created either through his actions or those of Crown Minerals?
Hon GERRY BROWNLEE Link to this
Firstly, there is no intention to overturn the 1937 Act that nationalised the particular minerals that the member mentions. As for ongoing participation, I have given in verbal form my commitment to the aggrieved parties in the most recent case that we would do better in the future.
Does the Minister agree with Crown Minerals’ testimony to the Waitangi Tribunal that the Crown does not own the oil in our exclusive economic zone?
David GarrettHow can he possibly disagree with the contention that the Crown has an obligation under international law to investigate Māori claims to petroleum, when he is part of a Government that has signed up to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples?
Hon GERRY BROWNLEE Link to this
Quite simply, because I do not entangle the requirements of both declarations.
Is the Minister saying Crown Minerals was wrong when it said the Crown does not own the oil in our exclusive economic zone?
Hon GERRY BROWNLEE Link to this
The questioner asks me to agree with the proposition he set out in his primary question. I made the point that I will not make a comment on that, and I will not do so now.
Can he rule out granting compensation to iwi for the confiscation of petroleum resources, as required by articles 10, 26, and 32 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples; if not, why not?
Hon GERRY BROWNLEE Link to this
Quite apart from the fact that domestic law takes precedence over United Nations law, although United Nations declarations can clearly give credence to domestic law, I am afraid that I am not able to bind any future Government.
Does the Minister believe he acted appropriately when he disregarded a claim raised by Te Aupōuri iwi about ownership of oil off the Reinga coast?
Hon Nanaia Mahuta Link to this
How does the Minister reconcile his answers with the requirement to engagement effectively with iwi, and with the Government’s expressed support of the Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples; and why is the Minister ignoring comments of support party MP Hone Harawira with regard to deep-sea mining in Northland?
Hon GERRY BROWNLEE Link to this
The Government is currently engaged in a very, very constructive dialogue with our support partner the Māori Party about the future of the foreshore and seabed. Quite clearly, customary rights and territorial rights will be better recognised under the new arrangements than the previous Government was prepared to allow.