The Front Page: Co-governance controversy - Chris Hipkins and David Seymour face tough decisions

The issue of co-governance has become a controversy lightning rod over the past 12 months.

New Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has acknowledged the Government was facing significant backlash to ideas of co-governance and even owned up to Labour erring in its messaging around the concept.

The lack of clear messaging has contributed to heavy criticism being levelled at the Three Waters scheme, which features a number of co-governance elements in the proposed legislation. This has galvanised opposition to what would otherwise have been seen as a dull, but necessary water management plan for the country.

NZ Herald senior political correspondent Audrey Young tells The Front Page podcast that Hipkins faces a tough job in explaining to the public the Government’s plans for co-governance, particularly in regard to co-governance.

She says this challenge is made all the more difficult by the fact that former Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern did not do a good enough job of bringing the public along and outlining why this approach was necessary.

“I think it’s perhaps one of her biggest failures,” says Young.

“While she had a very good relationship with Māori, I don’t think she thought very hard about the non-Māori side of the Crown. It’s possible that she thought any anxiety was not warranted and so she never paid it any attention. But whether it’s warranted or not, it needs to be addressed.”

Young says that Hipkins has recognised that anxiety and understands that the onus now rests on him to ease those concerns.

Critics of co-governance have picked up this issue, with Hipkins accusing some of using the concept to stoke fear - but Young argues that this still comes down to the Government not doing a good enough job of explaining the matter to the public.

“Whether or not it is being used in this way is still no excuse for the Government not to have explained it better. Any political party is going to exploit another party’s weaknesses and the Opposition saw that as a point of weakness in the Government ... The fact is that the Government has not done a good job of explaining it - and finally they have admitted it.”

Young says that the next few months could prove critical for Hipkins as he tries to fill the vacuum he has inherited.

But he’s not the only politician that will be treading a dangerous line in the coming months.

In his criticism of co-governance, Act leader David Seymour has stated as a bottom line that he wants a referendum on the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi in modern New Zealand - a suggestion that National leader Christopher Luxon has thus far rejected entirely.

Young says that calling a referendum would not be politically prudent given the sharp backlash it would inspire.

“Bottom line might have a different meaning for David Seymour, but to me a bottom line means non-negotiable,” says Young.

“That’s a worry because I think it could very well ignite Māori in a way that goes well beyond the foreshore and seabed decision. I think it could ignite something we’ve never really seen before.”

So, how likely is Act leader David Seymour to pursue a referendum on the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi? How does co-governance actually work in practice? How much of a role does co-governance already play in society? And will Chris Hipkins be able to turn the tide on this issue?

Listen to the full episode of The Front Page podcast to hear Audrey Young break down the big challenge the Government faces in mending the division on this issue.