Last week the Supreme Court delivered the second of its two-part judgement on the first Marine and Coastal Area Act case to progress its way through to our highest court.
In their initial judgement, which was released last December, instead of interpreting the law as Parliament intended so only a minority of claims for the coast would succeed, the Supreme Court took an activist approach by declaring that “tikanga” or Maori custom should be at the heart of all coastal claim decision-making. In doing so they virtually guaranteed tribal control of New Zealand’s coastline.
The second ruling, which also favours Maori, opens up the country’s waterways for tribal claim. While the decision only affects the beds of navigable rivers that form part of the coastal marine area – namely whichever is the lesser of one kilometre upstream or five times the river’s width at the mouth – it would nevertheless give Maori sovereignty activists a foot in the door.
Just as the 2003 Court of Appeal ruling that “pockets” of customary title “might” exist in the Crown owned foreshore and seabed led to floods of opportunistic claims for the whole area, with, 20 years later, the entire coast on the cusp of tribal control, so too, it would only be a matter of time before all waterways will be under claim – especially as Ngai Tahu and more than 70 other tribal groups are already progressing demands for freshwater through the courts.
The controversy over navigable riverbeds dates back to the 1903 Coal-Mines Amendment Act, which vested them in the Crown: “Save where the bed of a navigable river is or has been granted by the Crown, the bed of such river shall remain and shall be deemed to have always been vested in the Crown, and, without limiting in any way the rights of the Crown thereto, all minerals, including coal, within such bed shall be the absolute property of the Crown.”
While the High Court accepted that Crown ownership had extinguished customary rights to riverbeds, the Court of Appeal argued the Marine and Coastal Area Act had resurrected those rights. The Attorney General disputed their reasoning: “At common law, customary interests, once extinguished, cannot be revived.” The Supreme Court maintained customary rights had never been extinguished at all.
What all of this means is that unless the Coalition reverses this Supreme Court ruling, a central part of New Zealand’s infrastructure, could become threatened by tribal claims. Over time, this could not only put at risk our crucial power system network including hydro-electric stations and water storage dams, but all other inland water structures and usages that have supported generations of progress and innovation since our pioneering era could become vulnerable as well.
Overturning the Supreme Court’s radical rulings must now be urgently factored into the Coalition’s legislative response.
The timing of this latest judgement should leave the Prime Minister in no doubt at all that the activist Judges in our top Court are challenging the sovereignty of Parliament. By erecting legal hurdles, they are attempting to prevent the Coalition from fulfilling its election pledge to strengthen the Marine and Coastal Area Act and stop the tribal takeover of our coast.
While the average timeframe for the delivery of a Supreme Court judgment is around six months, in the Edwards Marine and Coastal Area Act case heard by the Court last November, in spite of it challenging a Court of Appeal ruling and requiring a full clarification of the legal tests set out in the legislation – as well as resolving multiple disputes between claimants over customary rights awards – the most complex first decision in the staggered judgement was delivered just 17 days after the hearing, while the second was held over for 8 months.
That first, rushed decision, was issued just before the Government’s Marine and Coastal Area (Customary Marine Title) Amendment Bill was due to be passed by Parliament, successfully preventing the law change from going ahead. It resulted in an eight-month delay while the Coalition considered their ‘options’.
Then, earlier this month, just days after Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith finally announced the Coalition’s law change was back on track and would be passed by the end of October, the Supreme Court’s second bombshell judgement magically appeared. By upending the law relating to rivers they are no doubt hoping for another lengthy delay and the abandonment of the Amendment Bill altogether.
Supreme Court Justice Joe Williams – the former head of the Maori Land Court and Waitangi Tribunal, who was appointed by the Clark Labour Government to the High Court in 2008, by the Ardern Government to the Court of Appeal in 2018, and to the Supreme Court in 2019 – is one of the Judges committed to integrating tikanga into our law.
The Supreme Court revealed their objective in 2022: “The Court is unanimous that tikanga will continue to be recognised in the development of the common law of Aotearoa/New Zealand…”
In spite of the fact that tikanga fundamentally undermines the Rule of Law, transforming it from a system delivering equal justice into one favouring Maori, there’s been no debate over whether New Zealanders approve of our top court radicalising our legal system in this way.
Emeritus Professor Peter Watts KC is so concerned about this that in “Ellis v R : A Revolution in Aotearoa New Zealand, Welcome or Not” – a groundbreaking article published in The New Zealand Law Review – he accuses the Supreme Court, legally speaking, of being “engaged in a revolution” by opening the door to the potential application of tikanga to any question of law.
Professor Watts explains that by overturning more than 160 years of jurisprudence, the introduction of Maori co-governance into the law is a constitutional change of such magnitude that it should only have been undertaken by Parliament or through a public referendum process, not by the judiciary.
This week’s NZCPR Guest Commentator Roger Partridge, Chairman of The Initiative and the former head of Bell Gully, explains the profound implications of Professor Watts’ research:
“In a compelling analysis Emeritus Professor Peter Watts KC exposes how the Supreme Court’s decision in Ellis v R (continuance) represents a revolutionary departure from New Zealand’s constitutional foundations. He exposes how, by declaring tikanga relevant to any issue of common law or statutory interpretation, the Court has up-ended our legal system without a legitimate constitutional mandate…
“Watts’s analysis provides compelling evidence that Ellis represents a revolutionary change to our legal system, implemented without a democratic mandate or clear framework. His careful exposition of the historical and constitutional context demonstrates why parliamentary intervention is essential to restore appropriate boundaries and legal certainty. The stability of our legal system and the rule of law itself demand no less.”
While the Supreme Court’s radicalisation of New Zealand’s legal system demands the highest level of Parliamentary response, the Coalition nevertheless must deal swiftly with the case in hand – namely the Court’s attempt to change the Marine and Coastal Area Act to favour claimants.
In doing so, they should remain mindful of the fact that the laws relating to New Zealand’s foreshore and seabed are not set in stone.
Throughout most of our history, the Courts rejected tribal attempts to claim the coast – as the Chief Justice said in 1870: “I cannot contemplate without uneasiness the evil consequences which might ensue from judicially declaring that the soil of the foreshore of the Colony will be vested absolutely in the natives if they can prove certain acts of ownership.”
The Ninety-Mile Beach Case, a landmark Court of Appeal ruling in 1963 reaffirming Crown ownership of the foreshore and seabed under common law, remained in place until those activist judges in that 2003 Ngati Apa Case decided some “pockets” of “discrete” customary title might still exist:
“It is generally accepted that few mainland pockets of customary land remain in New Zealand… In the past, claims to property in areas of foreshore and seabed seem to have identified relatively discrete areas comprising shellfish sandbanks, reefs, closely-held harbours or estuaries, and tidal areas or fishing holes where particular fish species were gathered.”
Clearly, those Judges did not contemplate customary title extending over the entire New Zealand coastline to the 12 nautical mile edge of the Territorial Sea.
Nor did National in 2011, when the Marine and Coastal Area Act was introduced. Their intention was to ensure only a minority of claims in remote areas of the coast succeeded.
The Courts, however, as we now know only too well, had other plans.
In light of these events, it seems the Coalition has two main choices.
The first is to treat the Supreme Court’s judgements in the same way as all other Court judgements issued after the Coalition announced their law change on 25 July 2024, and overturn it – then press ahead with their Amendment Bill in the hope that their new requirements to strengthen the law are sufficient to stave off any attempts by the Courts to find ways to continue to deliver control of the coast to Maori.
The second is to use this opportunity to repeal a fundamentally flawed law that is now having a disastrous impact on New Zealand and restore the old law – the 2004 Foreshore and Seabed Act – while future options are considered.
The reality is that the Marine and Coastal Area Act is broken beyond repair. Even annulling Court decisions will not go far enough, because it is now very clear that this law is so defective that it will generate unworkable solutions and eye-watering legal costs for decades to come.
In fact, this Act is destined to become one of the most foolish and costly pieces of legislation in our country’s history – even surpassing the Resource Management Act!
Introduced as part of a coalition deal, this Maori Party law that aimed to transfer control of our coastline to Maori, has no public mandate. National’s Prime Minister at the time, John Key promised concerned New Zealanders, that “if there was not wide support then the current law could remain in place”. But in spite of 91 percent of the public opposing the law change, it was rammed through anyway.
The claims process itself is self-serving and self-enriching: Instead of delivering justice, it’s delivering whatever Maori want. The adversarial process which underpins High Court justice cannot operate properly when there’s no opposition. And with up to $458,000 in taxpayer funding offered to claimants but nothing for opponents, it’s not surprising the end result was almost 600 opportunistic claimants, and virtually no opponents at all.
Furthermore, as Judges have already pointed out, the dual pathway for lodging claims – the High Court with 202 applications and direct Crown engagement with 385 – is not only unworkable, but will create gross injustices and new grievances in the future.
With Judges predicting Court cases alone will not be finalised until 2046, the crippling costs of funding those claiming our coastline should be reason enough for the Coalition to repeal a law that is now so compromised it is beyond fixing.
On top of that, there’s another more sinister concern. While the public have been assured that tribal control of the coast will not affect public access, once the claimants’ wahi tapu designations are applied, such promises will become meaningless. With most applicants planning to exclude the public from most of their claimed areas, serious conflict lies ahead.
It is time for a reality check – time to stop the insanity.
In this current strategic environment of increasing geopolitical tension, allowing control of our country’s coastline and Territorial Sea to fall into private hands is madness. National security interests should demand that any measures that could undermine the sovereign control of our coast must be abandoned.
Putting the nation at risk to prop up a dangerous and highly destabilising law that was promoted by a Party that is now openly advancing anarchy, no longer makes sense.
The Coalition should announce the Marine and Coastal Area Act will be repealed and replaced by the old law, the 2004 Foreshore and Seabed Act.
*Please don’t forget that if you want to share these ideas with MPs, their email addresses can be found HERE.
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THIS WEEK’S POLL ASKS:
*Should the Coalition accept or reject the Supreme Court’s decision to allow tribal claims to the beds of navigable rivers?
*Poll comments are posted below.
*All NZCPR poll results can be seen in the Archive.
THIS WEEK’S POLL COMMENTS
| It is time that the coalition puts a full stop to this separatism. Lets cancel Maori seats, Maori wards, the racist Maori party (based on race??? Isn’t it apartheid ??? A political party based on Race?? Is there still such a thing in the rest of the world??) Legislate out the The Waitangi tribunal and any claims. The National party many years ago had set a date for when the claims should be made and then they back tracked.. It is time that theystop being afraid of upsetting the Maori population. Maori have a lot to be thankful to the people who came to NZ. Maori are not native, at most they are settlers (first or second???). They were primitive tribes, who did not even had discovered the wheel. They were slaving and cannibalizing each other, Driving itself to extinction. . They complain about colonization, but if it had not happen, and if they survived each other, they would still be at the stone age. How about we start charging them for everything that were developed by the rest of the world and they are using now? Also the judiciary is extending its powers and taking the role of the executive and legislative. This seems to be a trend happening throughout the world and it needs to be stopped. | Peteca |
| Partisan Maori judge cannot be objective. | Lawrence |
| Not to completely reject the decision would cripple New Zealand for evermore. | Lucy |
| they haven’t long to get the law changed before they are kicked out as luxon and most of his party are shit scared of upsetting the judges,lawyers hories and unfortunately NZ fist and ACT aren’t strong enough to put luxon in the rubbish bin for good so,we are all screwd and lost the use of the whole country by this time next year | Richard |
| The Supreme Court needs to be treated with suspicion as they are not working in the interests of all New Zealanders. Just like Luxon. Where are the rest of the National Party when it matters? | Peter |
| Totally and irreversibly reject the Supreme Court interpretation!!!! | Rodger |
| Outrageous Maori greed. Judges like Joe Williams and others at Supreme Court who espouse this mumbo-jumbo need to be fired. There needs to be only one law and that is English. | Monica |
| OR PREPARE FOR CIVIL WAR | Percy |
| NZ is effed. Most NZers are like ostriches with there head in the sand and it’ll be to late when/if they ever wake up, as I believe the Lion has already bitten the ostrich, we are watching the collapse of NZ, welcome to South Africa 2.0 | Wayne |
| Reject totally. The 2004 Act should be reenacted ASAP. Also stop the gravy train of all these Court hearings that are costing the Government (that is US) millions. What a waste of money that could be applied to the services we need in Health, Education etc. | Keith |
| We are one people, one Nation, one law for all.! | Willam |
| Throw the decision plus the Supreme Court in the rubbish bin where they belong. Bring back the Privy Council so at least some well educated respected Judges make decisions away from Govt interference. As desired by Helen Clark the Supreme Court in NZ is just a hotbed of Left Wing intellectuals who have no concept or connection to the desires of the average New Zealander. | Allan |
| This is a continuation of separatism and we have seen enough of control by Maori to see bullying and refusal of access for kiwis and tourists. The coalition needs to fe a lot stronger and Luxon is too weak. | Hugh |
| John Key is a bloody traitor to NZ along with his slimy disingenuous mate Finlayson who’s now profiting from the legislation they introduced. I’m ashamed to admit I actually voted for these pricks. | Warren |
| I agree wholeheartedly with Muriel’s article accompanying this Poll. | Stephen |
| Rivers and beaches are for all to enjoy. The water comes from the sky and belongs to nobody. The govt is the only body that should be in control of this | Ken |
| Who are we talking about ? I think I am confused. 1. Parliament? One Sovereignty over all? Aoteoroa, where is that ? 2. Coalition of parties ? How many ? Waitangi Tribunal? 3. Supreme Court ? Court of appeal ? etc/. etc/. etc. 4. Maori Sovereignty ? What applies to who? | Henk |
| They do not belong to anyone specifically but to all the citizens of this country. Then we trust our democratically elected officials to manage them to the advantage of ALL citizens. | lydia |
| there should be no singular ownership, but the crown should control all use of. | Noel |
| An absolute must. There is absolutely no redeeming feature in this developing situation. NZ citizens have equal right to these resources as contained in natural law and therefore claims by maori to have rights over the rest of the community is a madness leading to apartheid in NZ. The government MUST resolve this impasse immediately. | Neville |
| Its a no brainer which apply describes the so called Supreme Court (of socialist morons). | Richard |
| Time for the Supreme Court got back in it’s lane. Parliament makes the laws on behalf of the people who elected the representatives that make up this body. | Graham |
| Rivers and our seas belong to the nation | Tony |
| it is a no brainer! | Anne |
| We have to stop the avaricious greed that abounds in all these claims. | DICK |
| In addition to rejecting the Supreme Court’s decision, the Government should appoint judges to the court who are prepared to apply the law in a neutral, unbiased way, and as intended by Parliament, rather than according to their own political agenda. Having the Supreme Court based in NZ, instead of continuing with the Privy Council, was always going to leave it open to being hijacked by people with the distorted perspectives. | Gary |
| No brainer! | Andrew |
| Definitely reject. Maori as a “group, IWI etc” have never worked together as a collective. It has been tried and never succeeded. Time they grew up and got with the modern age, stop dividing the country by race. We are all New Zealanders. | Jackie |
| All Publicly owned land/ waterways should remain in the hands of all citizens. | Velma |
| When will the coalition government stop maori radicals Holding the country to ransom and destroying our future? Luxon??? | Carole |
| If the Coalition accept this decision then us non-Maori in the Ngati Pakeha iwi can also claim our “Tikanga” as we also have long standing customary rights to the coast line and navigable rivers of New Zealand. That is what being “One People” is all about. | Martin |
| Same ol same ol this dam Maori stuff drives us all insane. Beaches rivers farms and everything else belongs to all of us. | Barbara |
| It is time for the coalition to step up and do what it was voted into office to do (particularly NZFirst and ACT) – make everybody equal under law. This includes repealing the Marine and Coastal Areas act as a priority. When you create differences between people based on race and then implement laws that reinforce those created differences then that is the beginning of the end of society. | Richard |
| Equal rights for all Kiwis living in New Zealand. Please also reject the aotearoa’ Already the New zealand name is being ignored by most news, weather and interviewers on media. It’s pressure by stealth. | Rose |
| When is this going to end. One country New Zealand; one people New Zealanders. | Sue |
| One law for all | George |
| This Government needs to rapidly and emphatically restrain all NZ judicial activism. | Peter |
| This seems to be a never-ending nightmare. The coalition, and National in particular, must reject the activist court’s decision and legislate to prevent this from happening again. Act seems to be the only party with any spine in this issue. | Gavin |
| How much more apartheid will they allow next? | Brian |
| This greedy, racist rubbish needs to be stamped out, before NZ ends up with anarchy and civil war. I call on coalition govt to fulfil their election promises. Grow a pair, Luxton | Andrew |
| The Current Government have the power to change the law back to 2004 Seabed for all Kiwis, and sort out the radical judiciary. But they do not, why?? How are politicians benefiting from this social division? Vote for the party that believes in humanity, not your DNA and the TOW. Fifty years on and tax payers are still being fleeced under the guise of honoring a scrape of paper, only resurrected again in the 1970’s. | Sam |
| Why aren’t all New Zealanders treated equally anymore? | Christine |
| Of course it should. | Mark |
| Life is about timing. So it’s unfortunate that we have Luxon (our professional flower mouth waffler) as Prime Minister in these times. The supreme court is having their fun by just playing him. Making him look like a child. It’s not the court’s agenda that we need to worry about because the Government of the day can overrule their delusional decisions. It’s actually Luxon’s agenda that needs to be the centre of the country’s interest. As at this moment he does not have the wherewithal to qualify being in his current position. The National Party have failed our nation by selecting him to the position of Prime Minister. A job in which he is now exposed as being completely incompetent. Even Mike Hosking is too soft on him. He dares not to ask for information regarding his fight with the supreme court and or other matters pertaining to current Maorification overreach. Is the joke on us? | Garry |
| Do What YOU PROMISED. CLOSE IT ALL DOWN | TERENCE |
| And the judicial corruption, encouraged by a indecisive government, rolls on. | Rob |
| This is insane. Surely Luxon and Co must act now to remove this threat, once and for all. | Keith |
| who will own the bridges that cross these water ways | Noel |
| Reject and exterminate!!!!!. However if your waiting for this Govt to do it forget it ,they have had plenty of time to turn things around they are a huge disappointment and an absolute no show.NZ 1ST & ACT have been castrated there just going through the motions and NOT producing the goods. New Zealand needs new leadership new blood that has strength determination and a fire in their belly to fight for what is right and eradicate the layers and layers of shit from our country. We need to REFORM NZ and its going to get nasty there is no avoiding it so stand up and be counted your country needs YOU. | GlynJ |
| This country is on a downward spiral with all these ludicrous outlandish claims. The country willnever progress forward. | ARTHUR |
| Parliament is supreme in the British system we have inherited and unlike in Napoleonic systems (and the US) there is no court that can overrule Parliament. Pass the requisite legislation and remove any judge who refuses to abide by it – the procedures for that are already in place. | Barend |
| More creeping anti-democratic judicial activism. | Paul |
| should revert to helen clark’s foreshore and seabed act | Peter |
| Refer to at a Carta, the foundation document of English, and New Zealand law. Water is not up for grabs, we all own it | George |
| The Crown is ‘we the people’ and ‘we’ have not given the Supreme court any mandate whatsoever to make such a decision. Such a decision/ruling should only be made trough parliamentary process. Sack the judge now. | Bruce |
| Get rid of apartheid | John |
| If we were in a democracy any law based on race should obviously be kicked to touch and the party making decisions based on race needs to be censured | larry |
| Absolutely, the Coalition Must reject the SUpreme Court’s decision to allow tribal claims to the beds of navigable rivers. Why on earth does the Supreme Court want to do that! | John |
| Reject out of hand with no further discussions about it. This attempt at river control by the nations part Maori’s is just another push towards co Governance — check the Marxists handbook and you will find disturbing similarities — also maybe check with Jacinda Ardern and her idealisms. | Alan |
| totally wrong | Maxwell |
| no special mandate for any Maori | john |
| One only has to travel the East coast from Opotiki to Te Kaha to see how welcoming local iwi are to visitors., especially those who thought they might want to go for a picnic on one of those beautiful beaches, or a swim, or just throw a line out. We turned around and went back the way we came. And apparently they want to set up a walking, riding, cycling trail to improve tourism up there…can’t imagine you would be allowed off the trail onto the beaches.!!! I can well imagine the whole coastline ending up like that. Has it already started in the Sth Wairarapa…did you thoughtless idiots REALLY vandalise the coast you were allowed to access via the paper road? | Heather |
| Enough is enough. | George |
| Democracy is under serious threat. | Allan |
| Thanks Neil | Jeremy |
| If you often wonder what could start a revolution in NZ, then this proposed change would and will be a certainty. | John |
| And as soon as possible. Sovereignty belongs to Parliament, not the courts or any particular group(tribe). The function of the Courts is to apply the law as it stands, not to invent it. | Laurence |
| This will lead to the civil unrest currently seen in other western countries, with just a New Zealand flavour to it. Very sad that our beloved country and the real Kiwi “way of life” is being threatened by these activists and woke ideology of politicians with no back bone!! | Graham |
| Common sense, although almost non existent today, should prevail | David |
| The Coalition should definitely overturn this and bring back the 2004 seabed and foreshore act. Why haven’t they done this already? What is wrong with this government? This is one of the promises that the general public voted them in on. Stop Maori Co-governence and everything concerned with it. If nothing happens to reverse the way this is going I can see this beautiful country, where people can live a good life, rapidly spinning into chaos and ruin. | Marilyn |
| Do we really need a Civil War, what ever Form it takes in NEW ZEALAND. This would appear to be part of the Current One World Government ‘Disruptive’ Agenda Perpetratored Locally by a few FUNDED Tribal Activists. | Geoff |
| Save nz | Mark |
| We need to refocus and return to the desirable “one country, one people and one language under the overall name of “New Zealand (not Aotearoa)…. and the process needs to be speedy | Frank |
| Reject this whole of the Supreme Court Decision Totally Urgent Law Change | leo |
| Reject absolutely. We (all New Zealanders) have equal rights to have shared access to all of NZ. The Tribes have sold their land multiple times over. Tribes contribute nothing. | Kathryn |
| The Courts are anti Non Maori and therefore racist. | Grant |
| Gutless politicians for decades have melted pike ice cream on a hot stone .Patetic creeps | doug |
| Look at Nauru to witnes what happens when tribalism takes over – From bing the 2nd riches nation inthe world to becoming a third nation withn six years of gaining power. | Bruce |
| Repeal the MACA | Penina |
| These endeavours alone are taking a severe toll on the economic and cultural wellbeing of all New Zealanders. To advance into law will further destroy future generations commitment to these shores. It may even be too late evidenced by record current migration. | Leigh |
| The New Zealand Supreme Court, through its unelected members, is exhibiting the same levels of biased irresponsibility as the United States Supreme Court. Why do we need a Supreme Court? | Tony |
| This is getting a big joke now, who are these so called judges? failed court clerks trying to run the country! I thought that was what parliament was for! | Laurie |
| The Supreme Court’s actions are treasonous. The Government must assert its authority and take control. Remove the MACA Act and replace it with The Foreshore and Seabed Act. | Mary |
| Let’s face it, the colonisation of New Zealand by immigrants from many nations along with their subsequent intermarriage with the original Polynesian colonists is now an accomplished historic fact. It’s time to for all citizens to accept we are indeed “one people” with equal rights under one Rule of Law. | Colin |
| The risk of creeping division/s need to be stop. Only the crown should own such assets. | Paul |
| I wish that Paul Goldsmith would reject straightaway all claims and restore the seabed and rivers back to the Cron i do not trust Luxon and i can see why National is losing favor with a number of New Zealanders | Ken |
| Maybe it is time to “fire” these judges who do not follow the law as passed and intended by Parliament. They have NO mandate to decide that they know better. We the tax payers vote for parliament to make our laws. These judges are not following the basic rule of democracy. Who do they think they are? They are proving to be of no value to this country. | mike |
| Time to stop all racist laws | Michael |
| And get rid of judicial activists | Sid |
| Isn’t time the Supreme Court Judges came out and admitted they have a private agenda. | Denis |
| No one should own the rivers or there beds | Alan |
| Damn the Supreme court and their race-based activism. This is New Zealand, not Aotearoa. | Mark |
| ASAP. The courts must be told that the parliament makes the laws in this country not the courts. | Geoffrey |
| had a gutsfull of maori trying to takeover NZ | graeme |
| Repeal the entire MACA act, return to the Seabed & Foreshore. The current situation is just a lolly scramble for iwi who really don’t care about how much it’s costing us as a country. | Dave |
| Activist judges should be removed from the courts. | Jeremy |
| This just isn’t going to go away. Thank you John Key for leaving the door ajar. Idiot. | Chris |
| Absolutely not | Stephen |
| NO WAY !!! ALL NEW ZEALANDER”S HAVE EQUAL Rights and ACCESS | Bill |
| I do think it is a good thing and gives more mana to Maori. If we don’t give some power Maori, then what’s the point of the treaty? We live in a country with two separate peoples with the aim that we can become one but how do you expect that to happen by taking away rights of a people? Why are you surprised of the radicals amongst Maori? If you feel like your rights and access to coastal areas are being encroached upon, imagine how Maori feel having their land stolen and culture destroyed. | John |
| The majority of New Zealanders have had ENOUGH. We are a DEMOCRACY. Stop this greed. New Zealanders have righted the wrongs of the past. Let’s move on as ONE | Bryan |
| they sought only peace & protection from their own wars not the reclaiming of a country they lost against the crown during those early years. they as much at fault as the victors back then. modern issues not envisaged then as they apply now they surrendered their rights totally. they lost i.e come 2nd. | mike |
| I worry for my family and grandchildren growing up in this country which seems to be hellbent on destroying itself. | Judy |
| The sooner the government stops the entire treaty gravy train the better. Also the Judiciary needs a complete overhaul to remove political bias. | David |
| Muriel’s headline says it all. I somehow wonder where this will all end up. It doesn’t fill you with confidence to invest in NZ’s future. | Lawrie |
| This is just ridiculous to argue over such things. We all arrived in NZ one way or the other, either born, by boat or by plane. NOBODY owns the rivers or sea! The very idea is something out of a fairytale | Pauline |
| This is getting out of hand! The Crown should own it – not any individual or group. | Kylie |
| Helen Clark got this one right, Foreshore & Seabed Act should be re-establlshed. | Paul |
| Parliament makes the law, not unelected judges. The judiciary is overdue for a cleanout of the acivists amid their ranks. | Geoff |
| Here we go again Maori do not own the river beds they belong to all NZERS BRING BACK THE King’s Chain | Ian |
| Maori never owned anything and should have no special rights. Give them nothing. | Des |
| It should be for all. | Tony |
| This is our COUNTRY,! The country for all people of New Zealand. | Suzanne |
| but I doubt the National govt has the “guts” to stand up against them. The Govt set the laws and the courts only administer them. | mike |
| reject & censer the judges pushing it | Chris |
| with Key’s Luxon as “leader” the right decisions to return NZ from race-based politics to a Democracy are never going to happen. | Giles |
| there is far too much of this crap happening get some balls and stop it | jjames |
| Absolutely reject the Supreme Court who have taken an activist approach and failed to interpret the law how it was intended. Maori activism has spread through both the NZ legal and parliamentary system like a cancerous desease. | Greg |
| 1 people 1 country | John |
| These decisions suggest that the Supreme Court has lost its collective mind if it ever had one. | Paloma |
| WILL MAORI GREED EVER BE SATISFIED? | Tony |
| Everyone owns the rivers riverbeds. | Mervyn |
| National are not reading the room | Ian |
| This is just another grab of the country that belongs to us all. Colonials and all races not just for Maori | Andrew |
| Absolutely NOT – overturn it with simple concise unambiguous legislation. | Francis |
| i agree 100% with sams great answer at last some posertive reading that needs implementing | natalya |
| definately not all people must keep free access to all water ways what is wrong with the law system?????? | adrian |
| Stop the madness. | Brian |
| It is time for the coalition to step up and do what it was voted into office to do (particularly NZFirst and ACT) – make everybody equal under law. This includes repealing the foreshore and seabed act as a priority. When you create differences between people based on race and then implement laws that reinforce those created differences then that is the beginning of the end of a peaceful society. | Richard |
| This is what the overwhelming majority of New Zealanders want | AndyE |
| The courts should be upholding the governments laws and intents – It is not their right to,deviate from that. The govt must act Now | Gail |
| Back to the future. That will split the Labour TPM prospects too. | Kevin |
| Without a doubt. Maori as a people group should have no more rights over anything than any other citizen of New Zealand | Angela |
| a sun tan in 2025 does not confer the right to destroy OUR country. indeed, maori owe the taxpayer 100 yrs of unpaid rates & taxes | mark |
| Not even a real question! | Fred |
| This should not be a Supreme Court decision. | Sheryl |
| I hope the coalition government will reject the decision but fear they won’t. The dominant party, the Nats are proving to be little different than the Labour party. Their handling of the economy and race relations aren’t too dissimilar to Labour. | Peter |
| Has Parliament the power to remove Supreme Court judges? | Margaret |
| If the people of NZ do not wake up very quickly to the already big issues of dominance by entitled activists then there is no hope for New Zealand, economic or otherwise. | Dane |
| This the legal system taking advantage of the situation for financial gain. The courts in this country follow the money. Corruption at the top. No surprise there. | Tony |
| Rejecting everything connected to this divisive and unjust ruling is the only way . AND !! continue to reject every other attempt to establish more of this kleptocratic nonsense. These gangsters need to be shown the door. | Michael |
| This decision must be overturned immediately | John |
| Let’s move forward, together, not separately | Neville |
| Absolutely it must not proceed. | sally |
| this is the only answer !! | Jill |
| We must STOP this bullshit by the Higher Courts and return to the original facts / truths of the Treaty of Waitangi. | Brian |
| Maoris never stop their GIMME, GIMME, GIMME. There is no difference between the foreshore and the rivers. IT IS ALL CROWN LAND. Maoris have no right to it. It belongs to all New Zealanders. The money wasted on legal fees and Court Costs would be so much better spent on projects to advance the prosperity and development of the whole country. When will the Coalition get some sense and just pass the necessary laws to make Crown Land what it should be? | CHRIS |
| come on Mr Luxon, show our country that you do have a pair and get rid of the court ruling. maybe it is time you told them that you make the laws, not them | william |
| Reject the decision immediately!! | Sue |
| Total madness. | Gary |
| REJECT | NEVKATH |
| Absolutely REJECT the decision. Senior courts have betrayed NZers for decades… ever since Elias J began to be “played” by Ngapuhi… as an “auntie”… sure sign of abuse. | Gill |
| It’s time the court should be put back in place | George |
| Why do these stirrers want to divide us? | Glenda |
| Of course they should reject it, but they won’t. They are running an agenda totally at odds with what we were told in 2023. | Rod |
| This is an absolute travesty. Where is common sense, honesty and integrity. The radicals are promoting dissension and divisiveness. As one of the politicians said recently the only iwi should be in kiwi. | Dianne |
| The country is being destroyed in front of our eyes by racism and greed. | Donald |
| This will lead to civil war with Maori radicals extinguishing property rights for non Maori in N.Z. | Derek |
| All n zero must have equal rights under the lawlaw. Anything else is wrong | Michael |
| What is wrong with this country in how we meekly accept the blatant capture of our Supreme Court. The government MUST put them in their place or accept the unrest that will inevitably occur in NZ. | Geoffrey |
| Totally wrong | Kevin |
| No way, throw it out. Racist ! | Mike |
| It must be rejected. This crap has gone on for far too long. | Neville |
| Racist nonsense | Gary |
| We need to get rid of the maorification of all legislation asap as there are no maoris living just maori pretenders who have more DNA from their non Maori ancestors. | Judy |
| Outright reject it asap. Who hell do these woke judges think they are. When are they going to be pulled back into line and interpret the law as government proposes?. Boy am I getting sick of all this maori greed. I simply do not trust them anymore. Come on Luxon, pull your finger out and fix it. Saw that weasel Finlayson bleating about the government hurting maori, he must be wanting to increase his share at the public trough. | Peter |
| Because New Zealanders will not be able to ha e access to beaches and rivers. We will beocked out. | Peter |
| STOP THIS DIVISIVE ATTACK ON OUR PEOPLE AND COUNTRY! | Robin |
| Absolutely. All water and waterway’s foreshore belong to the people. Never, never let it fall into the hands of the greedy Maori. They will prevent anyone else from using it, or charge fees for everything. | Laura |
| Maori are not indigenous to New Zealand so PLEASE STOP the crazy claims being made by Maori on all things! Come on Coalition government. GET REAL. | Barbara |
| This country is heading for disaster frquently enabled by the courts. The coalition needs to step up and frankly pull some of our judges into line. | Dennis |
| All these claims are built on lies, The treaty only gave maori equal rights , But palmer brought in multi claims with his treaty principals bill which opened the flood gates to millions of lies | Colin |
| giving Maori the sea bed and fore shore give them a open cheque book it belongs to all nzers | Barry |
| If New Zealeanders don’t wake up really quickly this once united country wil be ‘Down the river without a paddle’- just like Lake Taupo water (vote still to come) will be over Huka Falls into the abyss! | Stuart |
| These activist judges are simply taking the piss out of ineffective legislation | Les W |
| Partisan Maori judge cannot be objective. | Lawrence |
| Absolutely reject and repeal the MACA and reinstate the old Foreshore and Seabed Act. While they are at it they should also remove from office the activist judges like Joe Williams who seem to think they are the law makers and can undermine the sovereignty of parliament to make laws. | Neil |
| We have had enough of the Maori nesation of our country. NOT WHAT WE VOTED FOr. | Heather |
| Yet another step down the apartheid road. It has to be stopped and revert to common crown ownership of all foreshore and waterways. | Frank |
| stop this Maori noncence | Gerard |
| We either reject this decision NOW, or we will be at war over it later | BrUcE |
| Where is all of going to end? badly for all concerned, I expect. Luxton needs to pull his head out of his arse and man up, This maorification of everything to the benefit of an annointed few needs to be nipped in the bud, now! | Trevor |
| Absolutely | Rayner |
| As a matter of interest, in the UK the land between high and low water marks belong to the Crown – obviously this wasn;t entered into the Treaty | Ken |
| The decision by the Supreme Court is atrocious. It is well overdue for the coalition to appoint impartial Judges to the bench – sooner the better. | Chris |
| Definitely not another demonstration of separatism. | jane |
| They have to show their authority and put the judges in their place. | Andrew |
| no, the supreme court of our country has become radicularised and for that reason alone amongst others should be wound up It seems incapable of ,making any sensible decisions based on law not contaminated by Tikanga. Jo williams you are a disgrace,your preference is for conflict and pain and civil war ,with no winnerd. | gale |
| supreme court can’t be trusted | George |
| ABSOLUTELY REJECT! | MARTIN |
| aNARCHY AND RACIST | Thomas |
| tHE DECISION IS RACIST | lESLIE |
| I believe that this has been let go for far to long and its going to be extremely hard to unwind No one in parliament has the guts to stand up and say ENOUGH you have to ask what are they afraid of | Peter |
| More Maori takeover | Hylton |
| When will this stop? | Bruce |
| The judges are out of control. | Mick |
| Will this Maori take-over never end! | David |
| Time to grow some balls even if you have no brains. Listen to the people and was is good for the country long term. We are one country. | rod |
| They are there for everyone just not one race of people | Gordo |
| The rivers belong to all of us. Maori don’t have a claim as they are not the indigenous people of New Zealand. How can they own the water when it comes from the sky. These people just want everything handed to them on a plate. The coalition government needs to stand up to all of this bullying and intimidation News Zealanders have had a guts full. | Jill |
| This a dangerous area as our hydro and water storage facilities are at risk for the greedy activist Radical TePati Maori to claim tribal control and charge astronomical fees for using rivers which are there for all nationalities This needs to be stopped in its tracks now!! | June |
| FTM! | Peter |
| The Coalition should absolutely REJECT tribal claims of ALL rivers, navigable or otherwise. | Heather |
| All instances like this that create racial separation, need to be stopped. Already established cases need be reviewed and amended. | Hugh J |
| This is really getting insane!! It’s time the maori chiefs had some sense and stop this stealing of the coasts and rivers of New Zealand | dominique Greenslade |
| Will this never end!!! | Sylvia |
| This is patently ridiculous !! | Colin |
| No way | Edward |
| The reason we live in NZ is because of the Queens chain. As a fisherman we would be better off living elsewhere. | Tony |
| Absolutely object, not that it will make any difference. When the referee is against you, you have only one outcome. | Sam |
| we need a cleanout of the Supreme Court full stop | Russell |
| We cannot have 2 different peoples trying to run the country. That is NIT democracy | Noel |
| ENOUGH | mike |
| URGENTLY email Winston Peters he,s NZealanders best CHAMPION then email other MP,s its dividing NZ & fast action is needed especially among those LEFTIES ETC in the supreme @ lower courts. WINSTON is our champion & hates the division the maoris are doing.WAKE UP LUXON @ REMEMBER YOUR PROMISES VOTERS SURE WILL. | Cindy |
| When will this nightmare end? How can we stop this as our politicians don’t seem to want to do their job and govern for all of us as they promised to do. We have been totally let down. | Bev |
| Very definitely !! | Murray |
| A no Brainerd. | David |
| If this stupid decision goes through, Maori will be claiming every single river bed for miles upstream which they navigated just before they discovered Antarctica and landed on the moon! | Mark |
| Anarchy just round the corner if this is not rejected…Has the government lost all its power!!!! | peter |
| No country can survive as an entity when divided in this way. We must all move together or we simply cannot endure. | Roger |
| Or we as a country re doomed | Iain |
| treasonous claim. | murray |
| Absolutely no way Maori should have any special “rights”, period. All of New Zealand’s lakes, waterways, and coastal areas MUST be vested in the crown for all NZ citizens to share in equally with full unfettered public access. Any laws that do otherwise MUST be repealed NOW! | Steve |
| Without doubt, quibble or need! | Graham |
| Just who is running this Country ? Maori ceded sovereignty to the Crown forever in the Treaty of Waitangi . Government must stop this nonsense in its tracks and rid the Judiciary of its ideological activists . Tikanga clearly has no role in our legal system . Further , it is no more customary behaviour that varies from tribe to tribe . Government must put its foot firmly down and put an urgent stop to this nonsense . Hugh Perrett | Hugh |
| another all Maori claim for Maori , never any consideration for non- Maori citizens or for that matter New Zealanders at heart with Maori blood. | Reg (John) |
| The courts are endeavouring to undermine govt, look at what’s happening with tikanga | Gaye |
| Of course, what was deemed Navigable back then would not be nowadays with much larger vessels. | Brian |
| Sovereignty is one rule for all | Cliff |
| not only reject this treachours decision but run these bastards out of our coountry | bill |
| Judicial activism in NZ, as in many other countries, is deconstructing the underlying fabric of society and the constitutional frameworks of such countries. In NZ’s case, the rot was clear with Justice Vook’s Court of Appeal ruling nearly 40 years ago. Parliament did not act appropriately at the time, indeed with the 1987 Constitutional reforms some could argue the rot was encouraged to spread. | Ian |
| Reject and fast | Jak |
| Time the Supreme Court was bought into line | Gerry |
| Without a doubt immediate rejection. The Coalition should get off their backside and vote against it | Rob |
| Reject, reject, reject! All tribal claims to any of what rightly belongs to all of us! ASAP! | Lee |
| And the sooner the better. | Mike |
| The movement that weakens our nation moves forward, like slow moving lava. | sven |
| They belong to all of new zealand | Alec |
| Hit the Reject button. Whatever these Supreme big wigs are smoking, don’t pass it around. | Nick |
| Because it’s just plain wrong. | Jon |
| Elaine | Elaine |
| marori are going too far | john |
| It’s in all our interests to have equal rights and access to land is equally important to us all | John |
| For the off New Zealand as a peaceful common sence nation this Undemocratic chaos should stop immediately.Only those that have been most productive & have sacrificed everything to live in a fare & just will be the ones Disadvantaged.Stop this chaos immediately!!! | Michael Andrew |
| Its time this nonsense was stopped. We have a few tribal rule proponents whose philosophy is “the more we get the more we want.” This Government is sitting on its hands. More and more of the population with less and less right to claim they are Maori are jumping onto this gravy train and mainly at taxpayer expense. | Bruce |
| Separatism rears its ugly head again. It is time for the coalition to grow a spine and shut this down now. | Elizabeth |
| The Supreme Court’s decision has opened up another racist elite provoked Road to Crisis…which the Coalition must overule and remove forever. | Chris |
| Someone has to put a stop to this land-grab by a bunch of power hungry/money hungry single issue activists. They know there is no honesty behind the claims, but are playing the racist/victim of colonisation card for their own benefit, and not even to benefit their own people who will not get a look in. | TOBY |
| REJECT! The Country is stuffed as it is. | Bruce |
| This Supreme Court is not applying the law as written and intended by Parlament but illegally altering the context and intent to suit their own adgend. Parlament make the laws of this country, not the Courts. This Govt must severely chastise Court and remind them in “NO UNCERTAIN TERMS’ who run the country. That of course is if they have the guts to do it. | Richard |
| This Govt must stop this vexatious nonsense of Maori ownership of foreshore, seabeds and rivers. | Mike |
| Sick and tired of judges twisting the law to suit their own biased views. Just rewrite the law immediately to block any loopholes . | Mike |
| Of course – hard to believe just how foolish politicians are when laws should be in the best interests of the majority of NZers. Pretty depressing stuff. | Maurice |
| This would ultimately result in iwi charging people for water access. Already, the Tuwharetoa Maori Trust Board, on behalf of Ngati Tuwharetoa, can charge commercial operators for using the lakebed of Lake Taupo and its tributaries. These commercial operators are in turn forced to pass these charges to members of the public, who buy goods and services from the commercial operators. | Kent |
| As a Country we are already on a slippery slope that is divisive and this decision will only add more grease to that slope. | Gary |
| Rivers lakes aquifers & the coastlines of NZ are for everyone’s enjoyment & this judgement needs overturning & the government makes the Laws of NZ not Judges or lawyer. The ongoing Maorification will be NZ demise. | Derek |
| Can ‘we” somehow have the maori party charged with Treason as they appear to be destabilizing a democratically elected goverment with the intent of taking over the country?: | chris |
| The supreme court should be very strongly put in its place. | Wayne |
| Reject, and promptly introduce legislation to right this Supreme Court wrong | Peter |
| If consideration is given to settlers like maori, other groups of settlers should also have their chance to claim a share, for example, Chinese, Indian, Colonials, Dutch, French, ALL inclusive. | Sharron |
| Maori have no more rights than any other person born in NZ | Elizabeth |
| ONE PEOPLE or ANARCHY | John (Hone) |
| Claims must never progress and happen | Noel |
| Unbelievable!!! | Chris |
| Stupidity prevails in current National Party proceedings. They dont listen to Public opinion, and dont carry out election promises. They deserve ACT and NZ First to gain all National votes in the next election, it would have to be ALL to keep Labour out. | Greg |
| Must take strong action to remove this attempt to overturn the democratic processes that serve the peoples of New Zealand | Richard |
| Imagin what the Maoris would do with the price of power if they were gifted the rivers???? | Brian |
| Reversion to the 2004 Act is the only rational response. It will generate protests but better now than latter when the law is entrenched. | Graeme |
| We are all getting sick of radical Maori and activist Judges trying to take over the country. Maori were never a united nation just tribes fighting each other. | Steve |
| This is madness,that will just drive a wedge amongst New Zealanders | Philippe |
| Remove the Supreme Court Judges who are biased towards all things Maori and replace them with Judges who do not support anyone based on their ancestry. | Steve |
| How on earth can this be an acceptable position for ALL New Zealanders | Peter |
| John Key has a lot to answer for. To trust Pita Sharples to come back from the U N with A result that was acceptable to ALL New Zealanders was a bit dumb. The appointment of radical Supreme Court judges by Ardern is the root of our current problems. | Rod |
| It’s New Zealand for New Zealanders not tribal lands. | Leonard |
| Utter madness. Tikanga law has no legitimate place in lawful process for all NZ’ers. Joe the fox in charge of the hen house. Deplorable undermining of correct and due legal process. Out with these misfits. | John |
| Coalition should cancel 2004 Act. New Zealand belongs to everyone. make it clean to the Courts that any decision otherwise will be cancelled by Parliament not the Supreme Court | Francis |
| Seabed, beaches, rivers, mountains, – what next? | Graham |
| Many of us would quit the country if this passed | Greg |
| We don’t want communism in NZ – we don’t want separatism either – we are relying on the coalition to save us on this one . Save us! Please… | patricia |
| Come on Government, do your bloody job. Fix this nonsense now stop procrastinating | Bill |
| Natural resources belong to no one | Raymond |
| Reject with vigour!! | Clive |
| A radical attempt for another foot in the door by a minority group of modern aged axe grinders | Ken |
| This country is not the country I emigrated to many years ago. It has become so radicalised it is doomed | Gareth |
| The Supreme Court does not make Laws. It is there to enact those Laws Government makes. | Robyn |
| Absolutely | evans |
| Totally reject! If they don’t we’re on the way to APARTHEID! But hey, that’s what Ardern, Hipkins and Luxon want! | peter |
| Object, inform the public what’s involved in Marine and Costal act ASAP | Brenda |
| This coalition government need to have the balls to firmly reject the Supreme Court decision & fire all of the radical ‘Judges’. | David |
| I think it is a silly question. Of course this should never be allowed | Roy |
| Parliament makes the Laws. The Judges need to do what the Courts are meant to do. Comply with the Laws. | RICHard |
| Your questions always follow the same theme which gives the obvious answer.Reject it of course,but unless the coalition does something quickly this country will be further into tribal rule be.cause the people who comment on your articles don’t have the ear of the scared government. | P |
| Total rejection as per this claim, it is wide open for results none of us desire. | Ian |
| reject all return to the 2004 act. This will be ugly but not doing it will be way worse, it will be civil war. Get a backbone Luxon show your a leader. | Nigel |
| Such a dumb step should not have madeit this far | Collin |
| The river beds belong to us all as do the seabeds and coastal areas | Gavin |
| A step toward Civil War | Bill |
| For heavens sake, when is this government going to realise we need very quick action to stop this. It can be done overnight as we saw when Ardern wanted quick action. Just do it and stop this take over . Then do,something about reigning in and even getting rid of activist judges. Enough is enough. | Gail |
| The Govt policy must be follwed mot interptred by judges | John |
| Abolish the Supreme Court, another legacy of Helen Clark, while they’re at it. | Trevor |
| New Zealand is for all the people who live here and no race should have special rights to anything | Peter |
| We are now one nation. | Neil |
| Govt must act immediately to stop another take over by evil maori. You think power is expensive now? If maori thieves take over no one in NZ will be able to afford power. Also seabed and foreshore MUST be returned to govt control. Supreme court judges whom change the law to suit maori must be removed and sent to jail for treason. | Allan |
| GREED AND MISTRUST BY Maori as they manipulate the facts to gain rights and priviledges not sought by most mainstream new zealanders. | Colin |
| If we are equal then no favouritisms in our laws! | Doug |
| It is disgraceful that activist appointments to the Supreme Court are hijacking the system. | Grant |
| Parliament write the laws not a panel of Leftist judges | Richard |
| Nothing will happen. Our politicians are like jellyfish – no spine, no guts and no balls! | Anne |
| All New Zealanders are entitled not just the favoured 17% that makes up the part Maori population | Felicity |
| Parliament makes the rules not Judiciary | Les |
| Farcical woke behavior of Supreme Court | Chris |
| Stop the Division | Jenny |
| Time to sack all the woke corrupt judges who are showing a sad lack of judgement | Chris |
| Under no condition should this bill be accepted. ” The beds of navigable rivers” belong to ALL New Zealanders, period! | Treva |
| Parliament will need to change basic law to make Maori Custom inadmissible in New Zealand Law. This would make ALL equal within the law, and stop privileging one race, and by the way one class within that race, over all the others. | Brenton |
| Why do we have racist Judges like Joe Williams in the first place. New Zealands coastlines and rivers belong to its citizens. Not a select elite few. | Wayne |
| Out with tikanga having any influence in the functioning of the majority of New Zealanders. | Hugh |
| without delay otherwise the Nats are toast | Mike |
| its passed time all this racist bullshit was stopped dead | john |
| All rivers and the coast belong to all Kiwis. | Don |
| Such treasonous judges must be removed permanently. Courts do not create our laws. Elected parliamentarians do. | Colin |
| Tikanga HAS to be scrapped as soon as possible. All BS | Peter |
| This maori crap should be scrapped. In a hurry. | Peter |
| The Court has assumed power it does not have. The Prime Minister needs to step up or, as noted in a fine opinion piece from Anthony Willy, step aside to allow a person who believes in democracy to lead., | Peter |
| Reject | Kylie |
| They should not only reject it, they should move to reinstate the 2004 Act and rid us of the Key/Finlayson hangover once and for all. Whereas Churchill said: ‘Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few’, in NZ we could say that ‘Never in the history of NZ was there a greater treasonous cock up by so few politicians as in the 2011 Act’ | Doug |
| I used to send a couple of my friends an email of Dr Newman’s articles here for them to read, my first friend said to stop sending them as she couldn’t be bothered to read and my second friend told me she no longer reads as she finds it too upsetting. I almost feel like giving up myself. What is going on in this country is deeply disturbing. | Paul |
| Not only reject the decision but, as suggested, revert to Helen Clark’s act. Moreover, disband the Supreme Court and defund it. It was created by parliament so it surely must be extinguishable by parliament? | Alan |
| English common law shall continue to be part of the laws of New Zealand. Emeritus Professor Peter Watts KC is on to it. English common law is derived from The English Constitution. We need professor Watts and other Committed Constitutionalists to reverse engineer any other constitutional foundational departures by judges of our English common law birth rights and provide actionable solutions. As Professor Watts explains, these Ordinances did more than just establish jurisdiction – they made English common law the foundation of New Zealand’s legal system. This was confirmed by the Charter and Secretary of State’s Instructions of 1840, which described English law as the settler’s birthright. (See A Mackay A Compendium of Official Documents Relative to Native Affairs in the South Island (Government Printer, 1873).) The English Laws Act 1858 put this beyond doubt, providing that English law shall continue to be applied in the administration of Justice accordingly. The English Constitutional Laws from which our English Common Law is derived. Bill of Rights (1688) (Statute), An Act declaring the Rights and Liberties of the Subject and Settling the Succession of the Crowne. Act of Settlement (1700), An Act for the further Limitation of the Crown and better securing the Rights and Liberties of the Subject. Coronation Oath Act (1688) Crown & Parliament Recognition Act (1689) Declaration of Rights (1688) (Contract) Observance of Due Process of Law (1368) The Petition of Right (1627) Habeas Corpus Act (1679) The Statute of Westminster (1275) Union with Scotland Act 1706 / Union with England Act (1707) Magna Carta (1215) (Great Charter of Freedoms) Magna Carta (1297) Confirmatio Cartarum (Latin for “Confirmation of the Charters”) The English Constitution is the solution. https://www.englishconstitutionsociety.co.uk/ | neil |
| The Supreme Court is committing what amounts to legalised treason against the people of New Zealand | Allan |
| The govt should move swiftly to restore the 2004 Foreshore and Seabed Act. No further amendment should be considered. Helen Clark got it right in 2004. Our coast, rivers, freshwater supplies belong to ALL NZers. End of story. Put the judges back in their lane. Come on Judith, if you can crush cars you can stamp on our rampant judiciary. What or who is holding you back? | Wendy |
| National should close the door to Activists by returning Ownership to the People of NZ, for our common good | Glenn |
| Up the creek without a paddle | Brian Damage |
| Just crazy | Nev |
| A true necessity without delay | Basl |
| Where will this dangerous activism end? The Coalition must assert is authority. | mary |
| This whole thing has become a complete debacle. The sooner National ditches MACA and restores Crown ownership of the foreshore and seabed the better! | Donald |
| The Supreme Court judgement must be overturned. It is appalling how biased they have become. Why on earth doesn’t the Coalition rein them in? | Maureen |
| Grief – if this judgement isn’t annulled it will only be a matter of time before tribal groups attempt to extract even more money from the power generators. It will open the door to corruption on a massive scale. It doesn’t bear thinking about! | Pete |
| Cancel the supreme court decisions and repeal the marine and coastal area act asap! | Jason |
| The activism of the Supreme Court is disgraceful. They are meant to interpret the law, not make it. They need to be brought back into line before they do even more damage. | Graham |