Te Pāti Māori proposing new law to make Waitangi Tribunal recommendations binding on the Crown

Te Pāti Māori Te Tai Tonga MP Tākuta Ferris in the House during the swearing-in ceremony. Photo / Mark Mitchell

Te Pāti Māori is proposing a new law that would make Waitangi Tribunal recommendations binding on the Crown.

The party said if the coalition Government could not be trusted to honour Te Tiriti on its own accord, then such legislation was needed to “keep them in line”.

Te Tai Tonga MP Tākuta Ferris submitted the member’s bill today. He said the Treaty of Waitangi (Empowerment of Waitangi Tribunal) Amendment Bill would also allow the Tribunal to consider all proposed legislation to ensure consistency with Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

These changes, he said, would allow the Tribunal to properly fulfil its role as the kaitiaki (guardian) of Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

“The three-headed taniwha government has made it very clear that the Waitangi Tribunal needs to be empowered. In only eight months, Māori have been sent back 70 years.

“This bill reflects the reality that Te Tiriti o Waitangi underpins, and allows for, democracy in Aotearoa.”

Some of the coalition Government’s actions have prompted strong responses including by people who consider the Government to be anti-Māori – a charge the Government rejects.

In May, tens of thousands of people took to the streets around the country to protest Government policies affecting Māori, including axing the Māori Health Authority, the upcoming Treaty Principles Bill and new legislation changing the rules around establishing Māori wards.

On Tuesday, the Government passed a law requiring councils nationwide to hold a binding referendum to keep their Māori wards if they were established since 2020. Te Pāti Māori described this as “targeted attack on tangata whenua”.

Ferris said he expected Government parties to support this bill to “retain the good will of our people and to stop themselves from eroding the foundation of their continued existence”.

“Māori consented to kāwanatanga on the basis that Te Tiriti o Waitangi is continuously honoured, and that the promises contained within it are kept.

“If the Government cannot be trusted to honour Te Tiriti o Waitangi on their own, we must empower the Waitangi Tribunal to keep them in line.”

Julia Gabel is a Wellington-based political reporter. She joined the Herald in 2020 and has most recently focused on data journalism.