NZ Centre for Political Research

yogi 7, it is good to see the people at least trying to fight this nonsense in Takapuna. What is always forgotten, is that when the Crown owns land, it also belongs to so-called 'Maori' cos they are citizens like the rest of us. They also fall UNDER the Crown's remit (which of course poo poo's the whole 'partnership' misnomer) and accordingly are able to avail themselves of all benefits that come with that. (Sadly they don't seem to want to contribute to that pie, content instead just to gorge themselves at our expense.) However, after watching that supercilious clown Fiddleson once again treat NZ citizens with utter condescension and contempt at the public meeting, I can't imagine sanity will prevail. Of course not, Finlayson won't be happy until he has carved off sufficient chunks of NZ to reward his previous (and probably still current one could argue) employers, the tribal ones.

To digress with something from the "you-didn't-think-it-could-get-any-worse files"........ Did you see this in the news? [url]http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/education/6709374/Schools-blind-to-bright-Maori/url]

Huh? So some kiwi kids are failing at school (cos they are either too stupid - from in bred genetics, too lazy - from the culture of choice, or just too unlucky to have been born to parents who don't give a rat's about anything other that their next P or alcohol fix), are supposedly failing because they are not recognized for their true gifts? Forget about academic achievement, now we are going to focus on socialising skills. 'Maori' are sure to do well in this regards because they spend half their lives semi-drunk or stoned and talking incoherent nonsense to one another. Easy homework eh?

This is just absurd. Can't succeed at something? Well, let's create another booby prize instead of fixing the barriers to their education. Let's water down the achievements of those kids who are smart and work hard (often Asian immigrant children who have to learn English too!) and instead look to praise kids for being cool in the playground. Bro. Monique will think you're pretty smart if you get a PhD in talking crap bro.

Whose land is it anyway

By Geoff Cumming
5:30 AM Saturday Apr 7, 2012


Land has long been a powder keg beneath the veneer of Pakeha/Maori harmony and the cordite whiff over a headland on Auckland's North Shore suggests that, 172 years after the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi, land deals retain their ability to blow up in people's faces.

At the 23rd hour, a painstakingly negotiated Treaty settlement for Ngati Whatua O Orakei is threatening to unravel as locals rise up to oppose one element of it - the sale of a block of Navy land, which was earmarked to be added to the Fort Takapuna reserve. The 3.2ha Navy site, fenced off and studded with buildings used for officer training and other activities, occupies the southwest corner of an 11ha headland between Narrow Neck and Cheltenham. Though the whole reserve is Crown-owned, its administration is split between the Defence Ministry, Department of Conservation and the Auckland Council.

To Maori, it is O Peretu - the living place of Peretu, a Tainui ancestor. Iwi who made customary use of (and sometimes fought over) the area include Ngati Paoa, Kawerau a Maki and Ngati Whatua. That was well before the Crown bought it in a dodgy land deal covering the entire North Shore in 1841. Its European military history goes back to the "Russian scare" of the 1880s and Pakeha locals know it by various names, including HMNZS Tamaki Reserve and Fort Cautley.

The fenced-off portion used by the Navy is known as HMNZS Philomel. The Defence Ministry's decision to sell and lease back the base for the Treaty settlement has torpedoed locals' firm belief that the site - should the Navy one day find it surplus to requirements - would be added to the adjoining public open space. That belief stems from the entire headland's inclusion in the Hauraki Gulf Marine Park Act, passed with multi-party support in 2000 (with a clause stating that, should the Navy ever leave, the site would be treated as recreation reserve and included in the park).

The singular folk of the Devonport peninsula are renowned for mouse-that-roared responses to outside interference and this Crown reversal is no different. They have been here before.

In the late-1990s, the Tamaki Reserve Protection Trust went to court to stop Defence selling a then much bigger portion of the headland. Their court victory - which hinged on the land's underlying reserve status - was followed by the parliamentary campaign to include the reserve in the marine park.

There's talk this time of occupying the land. Local board chairman Chris Darby is lobbying politicians to oppose enabling legislation, which would remove the site from the marine park.

Since the locals dusted off their battle fatigues, positions have quickly become as entrenched as the fortifications dotting the headland. Auckland Mayor Len Brown leapt in behind the local board, writing to Treaty Negotiations Minister Chris Finlayson to remind him of the previous court action and the land's subsequent inclusion in the park legislation - and that the locals are still around. This week, the council's Auckland Plan Committee voted to submit in opposition to the part of the enabling bill which cancels the site's reserve status. They also condemned the lack of consultation.

Finlayson hit back at the mayor and told those who claim they were kept in the dark that the Crown had no obligation to consult with them.

The people of this National Party stronghold took a rare chance to go inside the Philomel fence last weekend for a public meeting, where they applied a blowtorch to Finlayson. The campaign leaders say their fight is with the Crown. But the meeting's vocal support for those who railed about soft deals for Maori show how readily land disputes can be subsumed by prejudice.

It's a row where the key issues have been lost in red mist and red herrings - but any political backdown in Wellington would have severe repercussions for a raft of Treaty deals in the Auckland region.

The dispute has overwhelmed otherwise positive reaction to the Ngati Whatua deed of settlement whose highlights include the iwi's purchase of Navy housing land for $90 million in Devonport, Belmont and Bayswater; a guardianship role at Kauri Pt in Birkenhead; stewardship of a 30ha reserve alongside Purewa Creek in Orakei and $18 million in cash.

The settlement follows the scuppering of a 2006 agreement for Ngati Whatua after other iwi with claims in Auckland complained they were being shut out. The upshot was a rethink in the way the Crown negotiates and a start on collective and individual agreements for 21 iwi in the Auckland and Hauraki regions. Ngati Whatua's settlement is linked to what's proposed in these other deals, which are nearing completion. But any political pressure to back out of Narrow Neck could jeopardise the lot - and the hard-won unity between the historically divided iwi - because of the flow-on effect.

Up on Takapuna Pt, as the headland is known, it is easy to see why this land is so coveted. The coastal strip, held by DoC, commands stunning views over Rangitoto Channel and the wider gulf. The public park includes heritage gems like Fort Cautley, administered by DoC. Sports fields behind the Philomel base add to the public open space and have been split from the Navy site as part of the deal. Since the headland was included in the marine park in 2000, locals and the council have cleared Navy buildings and a road from the northern slopes to extend the open space, which has become a magnet for recreation and community events.

Locals maintain they grew aware of the sale-and-lease-back deal only after the deed of settlement for Ngati Whatua was signed in November, sparking allegations of backroom deals and lack of consultation. But they only really woke up to the implications in February, when they learned of the planned law change to remove the block from the marine park.

Former Defence Minister and North Shore MP Wayne Mapp says he briefed the Devonport-Takapuna board about what was proposed a year ago. "I mentioned it to the local board in April last year but I don't think they took on board what I was saying."

Locals are dismayed that the Crown can introduce new legislation to amend another law - though this is not uncommon in Treaty deals and settlements that revoke reserve or conservation status.

That reality hasn't ended the fight. The local board's Darby is questioning future protection for the sports fields behind the Navy site and public access to the coastal reserve. He is mustering considerable support.

Darby is no redneck, having protested at Bastion Pt in support of Ngati Whatua in the 1980s and fought environmental battles in Ngataringa Bay. But he is a savvy politician and his line that "the resolution of one historic grievance will reignite another" has shaped much of the media coverage to date.

The local paper, the Devonport Flagstaff, is campaigning hard and supporting calls to occupy the land. National media have fanned the flames with inflated reporting of the value of the deal and by focusing on public spaces not affected by the proposed settlement.

Some locals suggest Ngati Whatua could demolish the Navy buildings and build high-rise towers or intensive housing on the site, which, Darby notes, is the equivalent of "40 800sq m residential sections". But under the deal the Navy will continue to use the base for at least 15 years and potentially many decades after that. It is part of the tribe's commercial redress - Ngati Whatua will pay $13 million but derive long-term rental.

Only once the Navy leaves can it look at redeveloping the site, in accordance with district plan rules.

Darby and supporters from the Tamaki reserve trust point to clauses in the marine park act which enshrined the land's underlying reserve status and ensured it would one day become part of the public reserve.

But the locals, the mayor and some other politicians seem to have overlooked another clause in the act - clause 14, which states that nothing in the legislation prevents the land being subject to a Treaty claim, whether existing or future.

Nor can they really argue this came out of the blue. Well before the legislation was passed in 2000, the Navy land was subject to treaty claim interest.

This was even referred to in the 1999 court ruling - the one taken by the trust - which confirmed the land's reserve status. The reference is to a 1995 discussion by Cabinet's Treaty Issues Committee about landbanking the site for upcoming settlements. And Ngati Whatua had first lodged claims on the North Shore in the early 80s.

So the politicians who included the site in the marine park act also knew the land was the subject of Treaty claim interest. In the decade which followed, the possibility that the site might form part of a settlement continued to be flagged. It is shown, for instance, in a map in the 2007 Waitangi Tribunal report on Ngati Whatua's claims. Herald reports in 2006 refer to the possible sale of Navy housing to Ngati Whatua along with "other naval land" on the North Shore worth $90 million.

But the Tamaki trust's Mike Pritchard says locals thought the base's inclusion in the marine park would guarantee its safety.

If the Devonport vanguard have no legal case (they quickly backed out of planned court action), they nevertheless can rail about the morality of the Crown's about-face. Darby claims the decision to make the site available has the whiff of revenge for the earlier court case, which stopped Defence selling the block.

This is strongly denied in Wellington. It seems Defence was asked by Treasury and the Office of Treaty Settlements in 2010 to reconsider potential sites for Treaty deals after Ngati Whatua's 2006 draft deal hit the wall. In the interim, some Navy housing land had been sold off, reducing the quantum available for commercial redress.

Suggestions that an alternative commercial site be found do not wash with Ngati Whatua or the Office of Treaty Settlements. There is scarce Crown land of any size available in the Auckland region for commercial redress - and it is earmarked for negotiations with other iwi.

It's obvious, however, that the Crown failed to appreciate the depth of feeling this site would generate. Mapp says it was thought locals would understand because the Navy planned to stay for the foreseeable future, keeping it off-limits to the public. Ngati Whatua were receptive because it provided an income stream and restored a connection with land of historic value.

Mike Dreaver, the Crown's lead negotiator, says it was not a case of Wellington forgetting locals' wishes or the Marine Park Act. "It was assumed community interest related to the open space. If we had thought even harder about it and were aware of the potential response of the community, I think we would still have come up with this same proposal."

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/artic ... d=10797200

An update on the Whanau Ora providers who have had their funding removed.
There is no way this programme is going to work.
it is an expensive trial designed to ensure Maori work only with Maori support groups and it emulates many previous programmes that failed, such as a wrap around programme run by Maori providers many years ago which had questionable delivery outcomes relating to value for money and meeting the needs of many of its participants .

The Maori Party co-leader has berated the Social Development Ministry for being too tough on Maori organisations.

Maori Affairs Minister Pita Sharples needs to decide whose side he is on. Is it vulnerable children, many of them Maori, or is it the providers of social services, who have failed them?

His advocacy on behalf of five Maori organisations that have had lucrative Family Start contracts terminated by the Social Development Ministry suggests it is the latter.

The five - Te Roopu Awhina Family Start in Porirua, Turuki Health Care in Mangere, Papakura Marae, the Waipareira Trust and Te Ha o Te Whanau Trust in Opotiki - have been told they will not be funded to provide intensive home-based support to vulnerable families after June 30.

According to Dr Sharples the providers are the victims of "funding cuts" that will reduce the likelihood of positive change in communities with high and complex needs.

The claim does not withstand scrutiny. The providers have not had their contracts terminated because of a funding cut but because, in the words of the ministry's head of Family and Community Services, Murray Edridge, they provided "inconsistent and, in some cases, unsafe social work practice to families".

Terminating the contracts of the five providers will not reduce the likelihood of positive change. It will increase it if the funding is picked up by any of the other 27 Family Start providers, who are delivering useful assistance to the 15 per cent of the population at greatest risk.

Dr Sharples has also accused the ministry of failing to communicate properly with the affected organisations. "For Maori organisations, it's about kanohi ki te kanohi (talking face to face)," he told National Radio yesterday.
That claim also appears to be of questionable merit. According to Mr Edridge and Social Development Minister Paula Bennett, the ministry has bent over backwards to try to help the affected providers to come up to standard. Ms Bennett told Parliament yesterday that the Waipareira Trust alone had received 14 visits from the ministry since July last year. Mr Edridge says the failed providers could not have been in any doubt about the ministry's concerns. All had received regular feedback that they were not meeting the standards required.

In the end the ministry had to act. Its choice was between the interests of children and the interests of providers who, according to Mr Edridge, had consistently failed "to take the necessary steps to keep children safe". It chose to put the interests of children first. Dr Sharples should do likewise.

Rather than berating the ministry for being too tough on Maori organisations, he should be thanking it for looking out for those his party has pledged to represent - the most vulnerable members of society.

By doing so the ministry has acted not only to protect children but the reputation of the Whanau Ora scheme established at the behest of the Maori Party to promote Maori solutions to Maori problems.

Nothing will undermine public support for the scheme faster than evidence that money is being wasted or that ministers are turning a blind eye to non-performance.

Good on Paula let's hope she can withstand the pressure that Sharples will apply through john Key.
I would bet if she dug deep enough they would scrap the lot.

No backdown on axing Whanau Ora contracts

NZ NewswireApril 4, 2012, 5:04 am

The government has confirmed five Whanau Ora providers are going to lose their contracts, despite appeals from the Maori Party.

Social Development Minister Paula Bennett is adamant there's no going back on the decision to end funding for five providers of the Family Start programme, which offers home-based support for at-risk families.

The new Maori welfare delivery service is a Maori Party initiative, a flagship policy, and funding for it is assured through the support agreement signed with the government after last year's election.

"We cannot accept that our most vulnerable families should receive substandard services," Ms Bennett told parliament.

"We are going to re-tender and I imagine other providers will pick up the work."

Ms Bennett says nine providers are performing well and their contracts will be renewed, while five "have not been able to successfully implement best-practice advice".

Maori Party co-leader Pita Sharples says the ministry failed to properly communicate its concerns to the five failed providers.

"This has come as a surprise to some of them because they thought they were improving and on the right track."
Ms Bennett says the five providers had "numerous opportunities" to demonstrate their services had improved

Ohakune hill-climb event called off at last minute

Wed, 28 Mar 2012 6:34p.m.

By Charlotte Shipman

Pressure from local iwi has seen the cancellation of a car hill-climb event at National Park in the central North Island.

The event was to be run this weekend but has been called off by organisers worried that someone might get hurt.

Cameron Spooner has spent the past two years building a car especially for the Ohakune Giant 1000 Hill Climb. But just three days out from the event it was cancelled.

“Disappointed, yes, not angry,” he says. “It's a shame. I'm very disappointed for the community as well that we couldn't have an awesome event in Ohakune to benefit the town.”

The hill-climb race against the clock was first held last year when competitors wound their way up the Turoa Ski Field access road at up to 250km an hour – provided they managed to successfully navigate the track's 131 corners.

Max Hodder helped organise the event.

He says his committee had no choice but to can this weekend's race after local iwi threatened to block the road on Saturday to protest.

“Everyone stands to lose – the organisers, motels, hotels and the Ohakune people themselves,” says Hodder

Che Wilson says the mountain is a sacred site for Maori. Iwi were concerned about cars damaging native trees and animals.

The mountain roads are used by thousands to access the Turoa Ski Field every winter. Wilson says iwi know they must share the road and they are willing to compromise.

“We have to find a place where we're not accused of being the Maori group which is opposed to everything,” he says.

Hodder says he's determined the event will happen next year. Iwi say they'll back the race so long as it doesn't include the mountain road.

http://www.3news.co.nz/Ohakune-hill-cli ... fault.aspx

Finlayson can claim as loud as he likes that Maori have been hard done by and that history shows they were but ask him why the crown needs to replace land claims with millions of dollars,
land, developed iconic assett transfers and continuous rights spanning over a hundred years in most cases.
Also why do we have to fund their legal costs to prove their so called rights.
Both he and John Key have been asked several times to explain the settlement proceedure and they both ignore any such request.
Key is directly responsible for Finlaysons destruction of the relationship between Maori and Non Maori and the future looks very bleak as long as these two are involved

I absolutely agree. We should do more of this to show the Government up for what they are and how they are fraudulently giving so much of our country to one racial group. Finlayson is an utter disgrace and so is John Key for not stopping him. Finlayson seems to have unlimited powers to do whatever he likes, without any checks whatsoever. Somehow the Waitangi Tribunal's corruption needs to be exposed and Finlayson needs to be stopped in his tracks. Another grievance is surely being created for the rest of us. We should unite as a blended society and be treated equally.

Angry residents threaten to take over naval base

MARIKA HILL 01/04/2012
PHIL DOYLE/Fairfax
NZ SETTLEMENT STOUSH:

Furious Devonport residents are threatening to occupy a naval base in a move usually used by Maori to draw attention to disputed land.

The public stoush is over a 3.2 hectare chunk of Auckland land, valued at $30 million, promised to Ngati Whatua in a Deed of Settlement in November.

Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations Minister Chris Finlayson fronted up to about 300 angry residents in Devonport yesterday in attempt to quell the rage.

These scenes of public anger could increase as the pace of Treaty deals speeds up. Five settlements were pushed through parliament on a single day last week.

The Devonport dispute was sparked after local councillors and residents raised fears the Crown was selling a prime piece of real estate to Maori illegally and without public consultation. Concerns also mounted that access to the waterfront would be cut.

However, the Crown insists it has every right to sell the land and public access will actually improve from the Treaty deal.

Yet these reassurances have failed to cool the anger brewing in the normally quiet seaside suburb of Devonport.

In an unlikely move, residents are threatening to occupy the Royal New Zealand Navy base.

In an editorial in the Devonport Flagstaff newspaper, the editor said "polite conversation" was not enough to keep the naval base land in public ownership.

"An occupation is the last and perhaps best resort," editor Rob Drent wrote.

Ngati Whatua spokesman Ngarimu Blair said there is a misconception the deal involves the coastal area, sports field and surrounding reserve.

"We're not buying that. We never were. We're only talking about the navy barracks, the sheds, carpark areas and building which we are purchasing and is set well back from the coast."

The RNZ Navy, which leases the land, will be offered a minimum lease of 15 years under the agreement.

Adjoining Takapuna Reserve and Narrow Neck Beach – totalling 11.9ha and covering the shoreline – remains in the public's possession and unaffected by the deal.

Plans are also under way to formalise a public walkway on the eastern strip of the base. Currently the navy can revoke access at three months' notice.

"We're the last people to restrict public access to great pieces of land on the harbour or river. We did the same thing for our land at Bastion Point," Blair said. "We're very sensitive to these issues."

The row surfaced this month when Devonport Board chairman Chris Darby raised alarm bells.

"There's significant disquiet on this. It's been dropped on us ... without any engagement with Auckland Council," he said.

Maori interests have come before the concerns of Auckland, he said.

"What we have now is the strong interests of Aucklanders not being taken into account."

Darby said the legal argument boils down to a High Court decision in the late 1990s which kept the land protected from public sale.

However, Finlayson said they are within their legal rights to sell the land to Ngati Whatua.

In a letter to the community paper, Finlayson called on residents to remember how Maori suffered significant land losses in Auckland and this needs to be addressed. "There is no way the scale of redress to Ngati Whatua Orakei can be anything like what they lost."

Shortly after the Treaty was signed the Crown purchased 3000 acres of what is now downtown Auckland for 281. Within six months, it had on-sold 90 acres of that land for 24,500.

- © Fairfax NZ News

TV3 's news bite of the meeting with Finlayson yesterday attended by several hundred local people showed how angry they are.
Maggy Barrie tried to take the microphone off a member of the public while he was speaking and The HONORABLE Chistopher Finlayson stated at the end of the news Bite that there were always people who didn't agree with his settlements but they were people that didn't think Maori should have anything.
This could be the foundation for a real protest if people communicate with each other and back the people of Takapuna.
I read somewhere that Finlayson had also given Ngati Whatua the Takapuna Grammer property.
What does it take to stop this guy, obviously John Key supports him and as long as he does the seperatism theory marches on

Mayor blasts secret land-deal meeting
By John Weekes
5:30 AM Sunday Apr 1, 2012
Auckland Mayor Len Brown.
Auckland Mayor Len Brown has spoken of his fury at being kept in the dark over a deal to give highly-prized coastal land to Maori.
Brown says the government briefings on the deal to give $13.8 million of land in Devonport to Ngati Whatua did not "cut the mustard".
His comments came after it emerged at least two councillors were told of the deal a year ago - but a secrecy arrangement bound them to keep the mayor in the dark.
Brown's anger came after a copy of the secret briefing to the Hauraki Gulf Forum was used to berate treaty settlement minister Chris Finlayson and National Party MPs at a public meeting yesterday.
He said he had told Finlayson he was concerned at the lack of consultation.
"A confidential briefing for the Hauraki Gulf Forum - an autonomous body - does not cut the mustard."
The document setting out the April 2011 briefing was accepted at the forum - which has seven Auckland Council delegates - by councillors Mike Lee and Wayne Walker.
It stated: "While we believe it is important to ensure the forum is consulted on this matter, it is imperative that this matter is treated as confidential and not discussed outside the forum's meeting."
Lee said he was opposed to public land being used for settlements but that his feelings on the subject were not strong enough to break the confidentiality obligation.
Forum members come from three government ministries, six councils and local iwi. Christine Fletcher, Sandra Coney, Mike Lee, Denise Roche, Paul Downey, Des Morrison and Wayne Walker were Auckland Council's members. Roche and Coney had left by the time the secret briefing occurred.
Hundreds of people gathered at the Devonport Navy Gym to discuss the settlement yesterday. Finlayson faced a barrage from the crowd as he tried to explain that the deal to give Ngati Whatua the 3.2ha of land had been done transparently.
It was Takapuna-Devonport Local Board chairman Chris Darby who revealed the secret briefing.
"You ignored Auckland. You say that you have consulted Auckland Council, you have not."
Political scientist Bryce Edwards said a string of scandals were denting the Government's reputation, even in right-leaning neighbourhoods.
"The two big ones are the foreign purchase of land and the ACC saga. Both of these are particularly erosive for the Government."
Edwards said it was unusual for Finlayson, one of the Government's most respected ministers, to face such a vigorous public grilling, especially in a National electorate.
"At the moment, the Government doesn't seem to have the authority it had during its first term

Signs of things to come!

Wheels clamped at Matauri Bay beach
By Mike Dinsdale
4:30 AM Sunday Apr 1, 2012

Maori landholders are carrying a portable eftpos machine to charge motorists for the removal of clamps from their cars at a popular beach.

But an intermediate school principal who had to pay $800 to the "renegade" group of Matauri Bay residents to free cars from wheel clamps on a school trip will get the money back after police were called in to investigate.

Kamo Intermediate School principal John Smith paid $800 to free four cars clamped when students recently went to Matauri Bay for a surfing lesson.

A group calling itself Ngati Kura Inc clamped the cars and turned up with a portable eftpos machine for Smith to pay the money.

Matauri X, the incorporation that administers Maori-owned land at Matauri Bay, said Ngati Kura Inc was a renegade band of hapu members with no authority to impose wheel-clamping in the area.

Maori Land Court-appointed administrator of Matauri X, Kevin Gillespie, said the hapu group would get the money back for Smith and had removed the clamping signs from the bay.

"We are going to do something about it and we are aware that there is a minority [of hapu members] that are causing problems," Gillespie said.

People were welcome to visit Matauri Bay without fear of being wheel-clamped, he said.

Smith said he lodged a complaint over the clamping with Kaeo police and was delighted at news that he might get the money back.

He said the affair had left a sour taste for the school and its parents. "Matauri X is on our side and trying to get the money back from the other group - we have been caught in the middle of their dispute," Smith said.

He said the school needed every cent of funding and welcomed getting the $800 back.

Ngati Kura Inc is believed to involve a small group of Ngati Kura kaumatua and kuia opposed to Matauri X selling sections on a subdivision designed to save the incorporation from financial ruin.

The then board of Matauri X - under then chairman Hemi Rua Rapata - borrowed $2.5 million from finance company Bridgecorp without the approval of shareholders in 2001 to invest into a water-bottling company.

The company went bust and the debt ballooned to more than $20 million because of penalties.

The landowners were then forced to subdivide some of their 500ha at Matauri Bay, or face financial ruin.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/artic ... d=10795889

The Dishonourable C. Finlayson on the job again

Five Treaty settlement bills passed at once
Newstalk ZB
March 29, 2012, 6:48 pm
Five Treaty settlement bills have been passed at once - the biggest number in any one year since the process began.

Parliament's sat under extended hours to pass the Ngati Manawa, Ngati Whare, Ngati Maniapoto, Ngati Porou and Ngati Pahauwera bills in one go.

Treaty negotiations minister Chris Finlayson says previously the largest number to be passed in one year was three.

"This is a very significant number of Treaty settlements to be progressed against a historical average of around 1.7 bills per year."

Mr Finlayson says today marks the end of a long journey for the tribes.

Chris Finlayson has definitely over-stepped the mark on this one and his services should be dispensed with forthwith. They won't be though because he seems to have unlimited powers and Key does nothing. There has to be an Agenda here and in my mind it is nothing short of treason.

This really is a dreadful case of government bias in favour of coalition partners over-riding the public good. Fancy being able to take land out of a reserve fought for by the community to protect it forever as a community asset, to give as a Treaty settlement. It stinks!

I'm totally aghast at the whole seedy affair. In my view the original Ngai Tahu settlement was fraudulent anyway. In 1840 there were no walking tracks over most of the South Island with the Maori population residing mainly around the coastal areas, so the people hadn't even been over most of the land. The Treaty didn't even cover the South Island in the first place. To now say there will be 'top-ups' is the ultimate in deceit and fraud. Heads should roll. It really seems as though this business is just escalating with no brakes in sight. It gets more and more seedily greedy as it goes along with a huge wrong being exacerbated as each year passes. We will all be due a huge claim ourselves!! I wonder if 'Maori' would be as generous as us. I should re-phrase that to be 'more stupid than us'.

Mike Butler: Settlement top-ups for two tribes

Treaty of Waitangi top-up clauses in Waikato-Tainui and Ngai Tahu settlements could be triggered this year, a government spokesman confirmed this week, although the Office of Treaty Settlements said that information on the total value of settlements under the relativity mechanism would not be released “at this time”.

Both Ngai Tahu and Waikato-Tainui negotiated relativity clauses, of the sort that used to characterise union wage negotiations, as part of their original settlements, entitling each iwi to a percentage of all future Treaty settlements once they exceeded $1-billion in 1994 dollar terms.

A report in the Otago Daily Times newspaper (1) noted that for the first time, the Government has acknowledged that amount could be reached this year, which would entitle Ngai Tahu to 16.1 percent and Waikato-Tainui 17 percent of all future treaty settlements.

Ngai Tahu chairman Mark Solomon said that he expected that the mechanism will possibly be triggered “this year, or next year at the latest." A spokesman for Treaty Negotiations Minister Chris Finlayson said the clause was not triggered at the end of the 2010-11 financial year, "but it is possible the mechanism will be triggered this year", while noting that Waikato-Tainui and Ngai Tahu would be advised first.

Last October, I asked the Office of Treaty Settlements under the Official Information Act whether any payments had been made under the relativity mechanism to finally receive a reply on Thursday, the day the Otago Daily Times published the relativity trigger report, which confirmed no such payments had been made and said no information would be released on the total value of settlements.

An Office of Treaty Settlements report from February 2010 put the total settlement redress at $958,289,025, which was under the threshold, and included a helpful breakdown of 28 settlements to that date with an amount for each. (2) A check on their report from March 2011 (3) showed no total and no corresponding table, which indicated at that stage that the office had gone coy on the total redress paid to date.

A spreadsheet that may be found by clicking on the “Treaty Transparency” advert on the home page at NZCPR.com shows that total redress agreed to and mostly paid so far is $2.079-billion. A further 16 settlements worth a total of $375.85-million are currently going through parliament. Once legislation has passed, the total would reach $2.455-billion.

The Office of Treaty Settlements did point out that $149,564,340 was the value of Crown forestry assets transferred to CNI Iwi Holdings Ltd, and that rentals accumulated from 1989 to settlement date and held in trust by the Crown Forestry Rental Trust were not Crown assets. Therefore, the $874-million figure on the NZCPR spreadsheet for the 2008 CNI settlement must have $724,435,660 deducted.

The Reserve Bank inflation calculator reveals that $1-billion in 1994 dollars equates to $1.5269-billion today. Therefore, after deducting forestry rentals as described, the total financial redress paid once the 16 settlements in parliament are passed into law would be $1.7306-billion, or $203.664-million over the level that triggers the relativity mechanism for Waikato-Tainui and Ngai Tahu. The 17 percent relativity figure would give $34.62-million to Waikato-Tainui and 16.1 percent would give $32.78-million to Ngai Tahu.

My calculations may be wrong. The Office of Treaty Settlements or Mr Finlayson could release the calculation method. I’m sure the financial controllers of both tribes will have a good idea of what is coming their way.

With four further settlements awaiting tribal ratification, 16 agreed but at the detailed negotiations stage, a further 15 under negotiation, and a number of others yet to be negotiated, Waikato-Tainui and Ngai Tahu both have a few more substantial pay days to look forward to. I wonder what the other tribes think of that. And I wonder what the thoughts are of the non-Maori majority for whom five or six million dollars in Lotto or Big Wednesday is far more than they could imagine.

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