Hauraki-Waikato MP Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke has secured the backing of senior Labour and Green MPs for her Members’ Bill that would require all Members of Parliament to uphold Te Tiriti o Waitangi, while making clear she is focused on “getting on with the mahi” after weeks of internal turbulence within Te Pāti Māori.
The Bill, Members of Parliament (Duty to Uphold Te Tiriti o Waitangi) Legislation Bill / Te Pire mō te Here ki Te Tiriti o Waitangi, aims to extend the Treaty obligations that already apply to public servants under the Public Service Act 2020 to MPs themselves.
Maipi-Clarke says this would close a constitutional gap and embed accountability at the highest level of government.
“This is a non-negotiable first step into a cohesive left bloc,” Maipi-Clarke said.
“Constitutional change must start somewhere — discussions and commonality must start somewhere. This is that first step.”
Green MPs Hūhana Lyndon and Steve Abel, and Labour’s Willie Jackson, have all voiced their support for the intent of the Bill and will now take it to their caucuses for feedback.
Maipi-Clarke says that kind of cross-party kōrero is exactly the kaupapa she’s been building quietly behind the scenes.
“There’s been six months of work happening in the background, negotiating, talking, and discussing with the left bloc about where we can go together,” she told Te Ao Māori News.
“From select committees to Treaty settlement processes, there’s just so much work to be done.”
“We just gotta get on with the show”
Asked about speculation and recent commentary she could take on a leadership role within Te Pāti Māori, Maipi-Clarke was quick to dismiss it.
“Absolutely not. I couldn’t think of anything worse,” she said, laughing.
“I’m just trying to be an MP, and that’s hard enough. For me, it’s about doing my mahi for Hauraki-Waikato and getting the work done.”
She says she’s moved past the recent upheavals that have dominated headlines about Te Pāti Māori.
“Kāore anō au kia kōrero ki te ao pāpāho, but I did go face-to-face with my own people at my marae. That’s who I’m accountable to. For me, we just gotta get on with the show, get on with the programme, and get the mahi done.”
Maipi-Clarke reflected on the significance of this week’s third reading of the Takutai Moana (Marine and Coastal Area) reforms, saying it underscored how much work remains for Māori in Parliament.
“I was two years old during the foreshore and seabed hīkoi, my grandparents were pushing me in the pram,” she said. “To be sitting in the House 20 years later listening to the same rhetoric shows how far we still have to go. All those kids who were at that march are now inside the whare, we should be a lot further ahead.”
Looking to Te Hawaiki Hou
Maipi-Clarke says her vision is captured in the concept of Te Hawaiki Hou, a return to purpose and unity, grounded in Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
“Arā te Hawaiki hou, he hoki ki te ara, hoki ki runga i te waka kōkiri whakamua,” she said.
“We have to get back on the path and move forward together.”
As the anniversary of the Government’s controversial Treaty Principles Bill approaches, Maipi-Clarke’s proposal offers a symbolic counterpoint a push to entrench Treaty responsibilities rather than unpick them.
“By affirming Treaty obligations for MPs, we ensure Te Tiriti cannot be diminished through political decision-making,” she said.
“The past two years have shown how vulnerable those protections are without clear accountability.”
With support building across the left, Maipi-Clarke says her focus is firmly on kaupapa, not controversy.
“I have full faith in all my MPs and all the leadership around me. We’ve just got work to do.”
