Kelvin Davis’ rallying call to Māori as he finishes politics with rockstar ending

Kelvin Davis is urging Māori to not back down as he accuses the coalition Government of seeking to undermine Te Tiriti o Waitangi through his final speech in Parliament.

The former Labour Party deputy leader, first elected in 2008, has signed off from politics with a valedictory speech that was both confronting and amusing as he summed up his four-and-a-bit terms as an MP.

Davis had no issue launching into the complex history of the Government’s historical treatment of Māori, recalling how the four original Māori seats were established to “keep us in place” before sending a warning to the Government.

“Each time you come for us, each time you try to put us back in our box, we will not back down. We never have and today is no different.”

A central focus of the speech was attacking the Government’s Treaty Principles Bill, which aimed to redefine the Treaty principles - a proposal that had prompted strong backlash across Māoridom.

Davis said he believed the bill was a “backdoor way of undermining Te Tiriti itself” and argued a debate about the principles should be held at the appropriate time.

“It is a fiction that we haven’t had an adult conversation about Te Tiriti ... no one should attempt to delegitimise 184 years of discussion just because they had belatedly decided to enter the conversation,” Davis said in a reference to the Treaty Principles Bill’s creator, Act leader David Seymour.

“There will be a time to have a discussion about changing the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi and that time will be when Te Tiriti o Waitangi is finally honoured in its entirety.”

Of his contributions in government to changes benefiting Māori, Davis highlighted how Labour helped transform Waitangi Day celebrations from a “national embarrassment” during National’s reign ending in 2017 to one of “unity and commemoration” by implementing several measures aimed at removing the influence of politics, such as politicians from all parties being welcomed on to Waitangi together.

“It got to be so pleasant, so enjoyable, so impressive and devoid of conflict that media complained it was boring,” Davis said to laughs from his colleagues.

Davis feared this environment would change as the Government and Opposition parties were having separate welcomes at this weekend’s Waitangi Day celebrations.

Kelvin Davis (right) alongside NZ First's Winston Peters (centre) and Shane Jones at Waitangi. Photo / John Stone

The former Te Tai Tokerau MP skimmed through his achievements for Māori as a minister, having held roles in charge of Oranga Tamariki, prisons, Māori/Crown relations, Māori education and tourism.

On his time as Corrections Minister, Davis said his “lowlight” were the riots at Waikeria prison that occurred over several days from the end of 2020 to the beginning of 2021.

He hailed the heroism of prison staff, who he claimed prevented fatalities, but his primary message was to Opposition MPs whom he urged not to use such examples of unrest to score political points.

“There will be a time to criticise the minister, but during those live and dynamic situations, the most unhelpful thing to a safe and timely resolution is political posturing and grandstanding.”

Davis asked a “favour” of the National Iwi Chairs Forum: to develop criteria to assess ministers’ contributions to honouring Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

“Politicians are only ever rated and judged according to their worth to Pākehā and according to Pākehā criteria. That needs to change if we are to bring people together.”

He commended Māori public servants for embracing their whakapapa and encouraged them to “not be subjugated by this regime”.

Former Labour deputy leader Kelvin Davis warned the new Government was trying to undermine Te Tiriti o Waitangi. Photo / Mark Mitchell

After a quick and briefly emotional thank you to staff he’d worked with over the years, Davis turned his attention to his close friends in Labour and his speech took on a more humourous tone.

To Willie Jackson, Davis said he was thankful for his support over the years; apart from in the beginning when Jackson supported Hone Harawira, a former competitor of Davis.

He then commented on the extraordinary level of family connection he had with fellow Northland-based MP Peeni Henare.

“Our lives and whakapapa are so convoluted, intertwined and confusing that on one side of the whānau, I’m his uncle and on the other side, he’s my auntie.”

But the best gag was saved for former Labour MP Stuart Nash. Davis noted how valuable it was to have a friend who, “you can go to when you need to be able to shut the door to his office and vent and rage when things are going against you, someone who will listen and not judge, who’s been there through thick and thin.

“If I can say one thing about my mate Stu, it would be that I did a lot of listening,” he said to roars of laughter.

Known for his reluctance to stroke his own ego, Davis pulled the ultimate rockstar move of ignoring the custom of waiting after his speech for hugs and congratulations.

At his final word, he grabbed his papers, left his seat, and walked right out the door as applause rang through the debating chamber.

Kelvin Davis didn't wait around for congratulations after his speech. Photo / Mark Mitchell

Adam Pearse is a political reporter in the NZ Herald Press Gallery team, based at Parliament. He has worked for NZME since 2018, covering sport and health for the Northern Advocate in Whangārei before moving to the NZ Herald in Auckland, covering Covid-19 and crime.