Government considered putting seabed law on hold

By RUTH BERRY, political reporter

The Government considered putting its foreshore plans on hold as late as March to allow the "longer conversation" with Maori recommended by the Waitangi Tribunal.

The option is included in Cabinet papers made public under the Official Information Act this week.

Under it , the Government would have legislated a "holding pattern", preventing the Maori Land Court and the High Court investigating foreshore and seabed claims until the matter was resolved.

The tribunal recommended the "longer conversation" as the best of several options it put to the Government in its report.

"Maori really want the process to begin again," it said. "They want the opportunity to sit down with the Government and properly explore the options that are genuinely available. ... they consider they have not had that opportunity."

Deputy Prime Minister Michael Cullen said that he never thought the option "could possibly be a flyer".

"The tribunal pointed out it is hard to have a conversation at regional level, let alone national level.

"There's nobody mandated to have that conversation. One of the problems we have in treaty settlements is getting a mandate from even individual iwi."

This meant the approach was "doomed to failure from the start", he said.

The papers say the tribunal's second option, which recommended the Government do nothing and allow the court inquiries to proceed, missed the "fundamental point".

The Government was less worried about ownership issues than it was about the effect on the Resource Management Act of court inquiries that would stretch out over years.

"A challenge to ownership calls into question whether the regional council can proceed to issue coastal permits and whether the Minister of Conservation can authorise reclamations.

"It is the potential for instability while those ownership questions are worked through that is a primary concern."

Dr Cullen, who had the task of designing the foreshore bill, said of the hikoi last week: "It was clear a lot of people still don't understand the legislation or indeed the underlying issues.

"Once the legislation is passed, those Maori owning land down to the foreshore will find their status is totally unaffected by it and I think that will make a significant difference."

Asked if there was anything the Government could have done differently, Dr Cullen sighed.

"No, no, the great majority of the public supports the Government's position. The polling is clear on that."

He believed the anger of those on the hikoi was about much more than the foreshore.

"Angry about the way Maori are being described in recent times by the Opposition. Angry thinking they are going to be losing things they are not. Feelings of hurt perhaps that they haven't been listened to as well as they would like.

"But what were we supposed to have done? And that's the question I put back to all the critics. What they usually come back and say is that somehow we recognise that Maori own the foreshore and seabed.

"Well A, they don't, and B, there would have been a much bigger hikoi with a different name if we'd said that."

The Government was displaying leadership by moving to pass the legislation, Dr Cullen said.

"I don't think the Government has done anything to harm race relations. Dr Brash's speech and continued attacks on Maori have been much more serious."