This article was first published by Stuff.
Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka has announced a review will take place into the Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975 and the Waitangi Tribunal, in a move the ACT Party says will “rein in [the] activist tribunal”. The Opposition has called it unnecessary action taken in bad faith.
The review comes as part of a coalition agreement between National and NZ First, and aims to refocus the scope, purpose and nature of the Tribunal’s inquiries back to its original intent, Potaka said.
The Waitangi Tribunal is a standing commission of inquiry, set up in 1975 to investigate potential Crown breaches of the Treaty of Waitangi.
“Over the past 50 years, the Tribunal has made significant contributions to the Māori Crown relationship and informed the settlement of both historical and contemporary Treaty claims impacting generations of whānau across the country,” Potaka said.
“Given the progress of historical claims and settlements and concerns about the Tribunal’s current workload, it is timely to review the legislation that determines how it undertakes its inquiries.”
Potaka said the review of the Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975 would ensure the Tribunal “continues to effectively meet the intent of the legislation - considering claims relating to breaches of Te Tiriti o Waitangi/The Treaty of Waitangi - and providing timely, well-reasoned findings”.
An Independent Technical Advisory Group (ITAG) will lead the review, supported by Te Puni Kōkiri. The review will consider whether the Act provides clarity around the Tribunal’s jurisdiction, how different types of claims are managed, and how the legislation aligns with other legislation.
The ITAG will be chaired by legal expert Bruce Gray KC, and will include senior public servant Kararaina Calcott-Cribb, lawyer David Cochrane, and respected Māori leader Dion Tuuta.
ACT Leader David Seymour said the party supported the completion of historic treaty settlements as a way to resolve injustices from the past, however he argued the Tribunal had now become “increasingly activist”.
“It’s tried to become a source of authority in its own right and appears to regard itself as a parallel government that can intervene in the democratically elected Government’s policy-making process – like during the Treaty Principles Bill debate,” he said.
“It’s time to put the Tribunal in its place.”
The Waitangi Tribunal was significantly critical of Seymour’s Treaty Principles Bill, as well as the fast track legislation and closure of the Māori Health Authority, among other Government decisions.
Labour Māori Development Spokesperson Willie Jackson said the review was “completely unnecessary and in bad faith”.
“Just last week, a scathing review by the Auditor-General gave government departments a year to improve their performance in meeting their obligations to iwi and hapū, advising that the Government faces a greater risk of legal action because they have failed to fulfil Treaty settlements,” he said.
“Instead of acknowledging what could be a huge upcoming fiscal cost to the Crown, and making changes, the Government is instead reviewing the Waitangi Tribunal’s role.”
Jackson said the Government has also “passed 20 pieces of legislation since coming to power undermining Te Tiriti o Waitangi, and the Tribunal’s role”.
Green Party spokesperson for Māori Development, Hūhana Lyndon, said the review was an “attack on Te Tiriti o Waitangi”.
“Across this term, we have seen the actions of this Government trigger a record amount of urgent claims with the Waitangi Tribunal,” Lyndon said.
“Let’s be clear, this is not about improving the Waitangi Tribunal like the Minister says, it is about making it easier to trample all over Te Tiriti and punch down on tangata whenua.”
The announcement was met with disgust by Te Pāti Māori, who described the review as a “deliberate” and a further move by the Government to undermine Te Tiriti.
“Make no mistake, this review is a continuation of efforts to erase our voices and control the narrative of our dispossession, for the economic benefit of those who desecrate our people and our whenua,” said Te Pāti Māori MP Tākuta Ferris.
- Stuff
