A document about legal obligations to Māori divides Kaipara Mayor Craig Jepson (left) and Clutha Mayor Bryan Cadogan (right).
A South Island mayor says he doesn’t need guidance from afar on how his council should handle obligations to Māori.
Clutha Mayor Bryan Cadogan said a document titled “Local Government Legal Obligations to Māori”, circulated to councils nationwide by Kaipara Mayor Craig Jepson, was unwarranted and unwelcome.
Despite criticism from Cadogan and news that the Dargaville Ratepayers and Residents Association (DRRA) is petitioning Parliament to rescind or abolish the document, Jepson stands by it.
He said it was the kind of resource Local Government New Zealand (LGNZ) should have produced to help councillors understand their legal obligations. Since Kaipara District Council (KDC) had invested in it, he believed it made sense to share it.
Jepson commissioned the report from Wellington law firm Franks Ogilvie (of Hobson’s Pledge notoriety) for an unbudgeted $52,000 on behalf of Kaipara District Council’s (KDC’s) Remuneration and Development committee. It was narrowly adopted by one vote in July, Jepson telling councillors and other recipients that it had been endorsed by the council’s legal firm Simpson Grierson.
Last week, Simpson Grierson informed recipients it had not endorsed the final version.
Cadogan quickly distanced himself too. In an email shared with the Northern Advocate, he told Jepson:
“I very much doubt that I need your guidance, and suggest you take careful consideration of what motivates you to think others would want to follow your example.”
Jepson replied: “I’m glad you know it all Bryan.”
Cadogan said his leadership is guided by values and principles markedly different to Jepson’s. His background in shearing – an industry dominated by Māori – shaped his perspective and he said his council enjoys a positive, symbiotic relationship with mana whenua.
He said it didn’t take much reading to grasp the document’s tone and decide to shelve it. He said he would not be passing it on because it contained the type of anti-Māori rhetoric that only sets New Zealand back.
“There’s too much of this. I had the real privilege of chairing one of [former Foreign Affairs Minister and co-governance advocate] Nanaia Mahuta’s working groups three years ago and I saw for the first time the rage that a certain cohort of New Zealand holds.”
Cadogan said the document had never been discussed at a national local government level and he was surprised it originated from Northland. He and his wife attended Waitangi Treaty celebrations this year – an experience that made him feel proud to be a New Zealander.
“I really had a sense when I was up there, far more than way down in the southern states, that as New Zealand, we had something special, and we were one.
The Kaipara document was “totally incongruous with what I experienced up north”, he said.
He said it had been a personal mission to challenge discriminatory attitudes.
“... What I’ve seen in recent years is the emboldening of what I don’t believe is the true New Zealand spirit.”
Jepson brushed off Cadogan’s criticism, saying his quick response showed he hadn’t read the document thoroughly.
“He obviously has an ideological stance that is pretty hardcore himself.”
On Simpson Grierson’s involvement, Jepson said they peer reviewed what they were asked to peer review.
“I think they realise where their bread is buttered. We’ve got to remember they’re LGNZ lawyers as well, plus lawyers for a fair number of the other ‘wokey’ councils in this country, so they’re actually doing a little bit of backtracking at the moment.”
He acknowledged some sections added by the committee weren’t part of the legal review but were included for context.
He criticised Simpson Grierson, as KDC’s lawyers, for not asking the council before making public comment about the review.
Jepson also defended the document’s cost, which he said was only about a third of what KDC currently spent on agreements with local Māori, cultural advice and other iwi engagement.
“I think our ratepayers deserve to know whether those costs are legitimate or not, particularly when you have iwi with millions of dollars worth of assets and income, still taking money off our ratepayers for those sort of activities, we need to know whether that’s justified or not, and part of that is knowing what your obligations are.”
Dargaville Ratepayers and Residents’ Association (DRRA) is petitioning Parliament to rescind or abolish the document.
DRRA chairwoman Rose Dixon said the document was adopted by the council with no public consultation.
“[It’s] deeply offensive given our community’s demographics, with nearly half our population in Dargaville being Māori,” she said.
Dixon said it wasn’t just a local issue.
“ ... It’s a breach of democratic principles and the Local Government Act. We believe the council has overstepped its bounds.”
In its petition, the DRRA said the document represented an attempt to change the fundamental interpretation of the Treaty of Waitangi at a local government level.
“In our view, it is an example of the very same concerns that led to the national debate around the Treaty Principles Bill – namely, the redefinition of Treaty principles without public engagement.”
Jepson dismissed DRRA concerns.
“It actually represents an activist group in Dargaville pretending to be representing their ratepayers. They’re full of people that basically dislike the mayor, and have done since day one,” he said.
Sarah Curtis is a news reporter for the Northern Advocate, focusing on a wide range of issues. She has nearly 20 years’ experience in journalism, most of which she spent court reporting in Gisborne and on the East Coast