The NZ Trust Board (Ōtamataha) Empowering Bill, which had its first reading in Parliament today, could finally see lands returned to two hapū of Tauranga Moana.
Ngāti Tapu and Ngāi Tamarāwaho have waited a long time for this day.
They were kicked off their land and had to watch on helplessly, as a city worth millions of dollars was built on top of their ancestral lands.
There could however be light at the end of the tunnel for two hapü in Tauranga Moana, if MPs agree to a legislation change that would see lands returned to them.
The Church Mission Society say they bought the land legally and then gifted it to the Crown. Ngäi Tamaräwaho and Ngäti Tapu disagree.
It's hoped through the return, the next generation will learn the significance of those lands.
The Bill was tabled before MPs today.
