A kaupapa Māori environmental expert says it is “hard not to be outraged” after the Government confirmed it will scrap existing and proposed Mana Whakahono ā Rohe agreements under its replacement for the Resource Management Act, describing the move as “a racist reaction to having Māori around the table”.
The Government announced on Monday that Mana Whakahono ā Rohe agreements already in place, along with those that had been initiated, will no longer transfer into the new planning system.
Instead, councils will be able to negotiate new, more narrowly scoped iwi participation agreements focused on statutory planning processes and Treaty settlement obligations.
Kaupapa Māori environmental expert and founder of Poipoia Consultancy, Tina Porou, said the decision reflected a fundamental misunderstanding of what the agreements were intended to achieve.
“It’s hard not to be outraged and hard not to be super triggered and bitter and angry.
“But I think it’s also a massive opportunity lost and a real deep misunderstanding of what Mana Whakahono ā Rohe did and does, but also a racist reaction to having Māori around the table.”
Porou said the decision should not be viewed in isolation.
“This is definitely part of a wider agenda.
“That wider agenda is largely around removing the handbrakes to widescale privatisation, widescale economic exploitation of te taiao for the benefit of a very few.”
She said the reforms were “systemically trying to marginalise the Māori voice”.
“That Māori voice is protecting all of Aotearoa, not just Māori. It is protecting all of the waterways, all of te taiao that we love as a country.”
What are Mana Whakahono ā Rohe agreements?
Mana Whakahono ā Rohe agreements are binding statutory arrangements under the Resource Management Act that allow iwi authorities and local authorities to agree how they will work together on resource management issues.
They can cover planning processes, information sharing, engagement and how Treaty settlement obligations will be reflected in local decision-making. The agreements are designed to support or strengthen the relationship between tangata whenua and councils, but they do not transfer final decision-making powers away from councils.
Bishop says replacement agreements will simplify iwi participation
At Monday’s Post-Cabinet press conference, Resource Management Reform Minister Chris Bishop said the Government’s decision followed a sharp increase in Mana Whakahono ā Rohe agreements after the replacement legislation was introduced.
“When we came in, there were eight of them... they really weren’t utilised at all.
“There’s been a massive surge of interest in them, and we’ve just decided that the cleanest thing to do is basically put in place these iwi participation agreements.”
Bishop said the new agreements would continue to give effect to Treaty settlements while simplifying how iwi participated in the planning system.
“It’s about actually streamlining and simplifying what that looks like in practice.”
He said the agreements would help guide iwi participation in the new regional spatial planning process, including identifying wāhi tapu and other places of cultural significance.
“I think most Kiwis would say the system should protect that stuff, and we should do it up high in the system.”
Porou warns iwi certainty will be weakened
However, Porou rejected the Government’s suggestion that the replacement agreements would provide iwi with the same level of certainty.
“I think it goes to the heart of the broader {RMA} reforms.
“The Government is expecting that there will be a two-year negotiation with settled iwi to essentially reopen their Treaty settlements and have discussions over their engagement and participation in the resource management system.”
She said Mana Whakahono ā Rohe agreements were intended to provide certainty while those negotiations took place.
“Mana Whakahono were a way to at least provide some transition engagement between councils and iwi and hapū in the midst of what will be, again, an outrageous renegotiation of Treaty settlements.”
Federated Farmers lobbying preceded the change
The announcement follows public lobbying by Federated Farmers, which argued councils were rushing to sign Mana Whakahono ā Rohe agreements before the new planning system came into force and called on ministers to stop existing agreements from carrying over.
Asked whether Federated Farmers had influenced the decision, Bishop acknowledged the organisation had advocated for the change.
“Federated Farmers wanted us to get rid of Mana Whakahono agreements, which we’ve done.”
However, he rejected suggestions iwi were being pushed out of the planning system.
“I think most Kiwis, including Federated Farmers, would accept that iwi aren’t going anywhere. They are part and parcel of New Zealand life.
“The Crown has for 30 years signed a succession of legally binding agreements with iwi that we intend to honour, and the system that we are building honours those agreements.”
Bishop said iwi would continue to play an important role under the new planning system and noted they were among the largest users of the Government’s Fast-track consenting regime.
“Iwi are some of the biggest users of Fast-track... they are as frustrated as anybody else by the strictures of the RMA.”
Critics say agreements strengthen relationships, not veto powers
Porou said criticism from Federated Farmers was based on a misunderstanding of how Mana Whakahono ā Rohe agreements actually operated.
“They grossly misunderstand the law.
“They don’t and have not recognised that Mana Whakahono ā Rohe agreements must be agreed by the council, that they are mutually negotiated and they are not the devolution of decision-making.”
She said the agreements instead strengthened relationships between councils and iwi.
“In fact, they only enhance and provide more stability and effectiveness and efficiency for councils with very valued Treaty partners.”
She also rejected suggestions that the agreements undermined democratic accountability.
“I don’t understand why people are so vehemently opposed to having Māori around the table, when in fact those relationships become some of the strongest because we both have similar values, often for our communities.”
“But it’s clearly a racially driven outcome with no real basis in fact or evidence for sure.”
RMA overhaul heads toward final stages
The changes form part of the Government’s wider Resource Management Act overhaul, with the Planning Bill and Natural Environment Bill now reported back from select committee ahead of their remaining stages in Parliament.
The Government says the reforms will reduce consenting requirements, lower compliance costs and make it easier to build homes, infrastructure and renewable energy projects while continuing to protect the environment.
Despite her criticism of the reforms, Porou said Māori would continue advocating for te taiao regardless of legislative change.
“Nothing is ever lost. The work that our whānau has done over the last 30 years is momentum that can’t be taken away by one change in a piece of legislation.
“We’ve been here for a thousand-plus years. We’re going to be here for a thousand-plus more.”
