Hon Christopher Finlayson

CHRISTOPHER FINLAYSON (National) : I intend to take only a relatively short call in the second reading debate on this legislation, which the National Party supports. The members of the Māori Affairs Committee enjoyed the relatively brief submissions, which focused on Part 2 and Part 4. But I will acknowledge in passing the Maniapoto Maori Trust Board. My friend Mrs te Heuheu and I had a very pleasant visit at Te Kūiti a few weeks ago with that board. It does good work, and we are delighted to be able to make those minor changes and to acknowledge the great work it does.

Of course, Ngāti Maniapoto have not had their Treaty settlement yet, and I certainly hope that they do manage to achieve it in the next few years. I recall going to their trust board. It has had some outstanding New Zealanders as members on the board and in people from Ngāti Maniapoto. I noticed the photo of the Hon Koro Wētere, for example, on the wall. This iwi has made a huge contribution to New Zealand over the years.

I will not dwell on Part 2, although like my friend Mrs te Heuheu I acknowledge the presence in the Chamber of representatives of the Ngāti Tūwharetoa Māori Trust Board. They, too, were very generous in welcoming representatives of the National Party to Taupō a few months ago. We enjoyed our visit with them, and we are delighted at the huge progress they are making in terms of their various Treaty settlement claims.

I want to say something about Part 3, because it raises two important issues. The first relates to the constitution of the tribunal. As the previous speaker and other speakers have said, the numbers on the tribunal will be increased from 16 members to 20. As I said in my first reading speech, I certainly hope that the Government will properly resource the tribunal, particularly by appointing increased numbers of historian members. In my experience of appearing before the tribunal, I think that that is the area where there is a real need, and with the retirement of various distinguished historian members of the tribunal over the years, I believe that they need to be replaced, and replaced very soon. It is all very well to increase the numbers on the tribunal, but the tribunal needs to be properly resourced so that it can deal regularly with the various applications before it, rather than undertake the stop-start approach it is forced to because it is starved of funds.

The second point I wish to dwell on in terms of Part 3 is a drafting matter, but it is a sensible measure and relates to section 6 of the Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975. Because of drafting practice, section 6 over the years has become larger and larger due to repetitive amendment. It is proposed that when one has a Treaty settlement, instead of amending section 6 of the Treaty of Waitangi Act, the enactments to which the jurisdiction of the tribunal is subject will be referred to in a new schedule 3 to the 1975 Act, and I think that that is a very sensible move. It is hardly a matter of great contention. It will mean that when an incoming National Government gets on with the business of settling these very important claims, instead of constantly coming back to Parliament to amend the Treaty of Waitangi Act, the settlements and the enactments to which the jurisdiction of the tribunal is subject can simply be set out in schedule 3 of that Act.

It is very sad, though, when one looks at the proposed new schedule 3, to note just how poor the performance of this Government has been in the last 9 years. It has had every opportunity to build on the huge contribution to this incredibly important process that was initiated by Doug Graham and Jim Bolger, but members should look at the record over the last 9 years. When one looks at the proposed new schedule 3 of the bill, one sees the failure of this Government writ large. It is very disappointing that all the statutes referred to in schedule 3 relate to settlements that were begun under a National Government. This Government has failed in many areas, but nowhere more starkly and more sadly than in the area of Treaty settlements. It is all very well to deal with the machinery of the 1975 Act, but it is quite another thing to embark on the settlement process with enthusiasm, optimism, and faith in the future of our country. That approach has been singularly lacking under the various useless Ministers in charge of Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations in this Government.

So there we have it. This bill is largely an uncontroversial piece of legislation, but I felt I should make a brief statement about the changes to the Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975, because that will be an area where the John Key - National Government will be working very hard for Māori and for all New Zealanders.