On the eighth day of oral submissions on the Treaty Principles Bill, the select committee heard strong opposition from a range of influential figures, including former Prime Minister Jenny Shipley.

Shipley, who led New Zealand from 1997 to 1999, condemned the bill, arguing it disregards the principles of partnership under Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

“I am here because I view this bill as unconscionable in its proposal to rethink the way we engage as treaty partners—without reference to the treaty partner in drafting this bill,” she said.

The bill has sparked widespread debate, with critics warning it could undermine Māori rights and treaty obligations.

“When I left parliament 20 years ago, I couldn’t conceive that I would be here in front of you as I am today,” Shipley says.

Human rights advocate warns Treaty Bill could marginalise Māori

Rongomau Taketake of the Human Rights Commission, Dayle Takitimu, delivered a submission on the Treaty Principles Bill, cautioning that while bill’s stated goal of promoting equality is commendable, its implementation could have the opposite effect.

“This bill may claim to advance equality, but in reality, it advocates for the removal of a specific group from the treaty framework,” Takitimu told the select committee.

She warned that such an approach contradicts the fundamental principles of inclusion and fairness enshrined in Te Tiriti o Waitangi and urged lawmakers to reconsider the bill’s potential consequences.

Ko te mana o tēnei whenua, he mana Māori

Nā David Seymour o te rōpū ACT te pire nei i whakatakoto ki te aroaro o te whare pāremata.

Hei tāna, ko tētehi matenui i tā te whenua nei o Aotearoa whakamana i ngā mātāpono o te tiriti, ka noho tuarua te motika tangata o ētehi, ā, ko ngā kākāwahanui o te ao Māori tērā te whakaoreore nei i te kōrero, kāore te pire nei e whai mana ana ki waenga i te Māori.

Koirā tā Tukoroirangi Morgan o te Kāhui Rangatira ā-Iwi.

“It doesn’t reflect an accredible interpretation of the Treaty of Waitangi or its well-established principles.

“Rather, this bill seeks to supplant those principles which has been long established by those Waitangi tribunals in courts and have been widely applied. Including as the foundational document throughout Aotearoa.”

Ko Eru Kapa-Kingi anō hoki tētehi i whakatakoto kōrero ki mua i te kōmiti whiriwhiri o Pāremata, me tāna whakatau, kīhai ngā tūpuna, nā rātou te tiriti i haina i te tau 1840, i whakaae kia noho tuarua te Māori i tōna anō whenua.

“There was never meant to be a foreign government here to control Māori lives. But our harsh reality as tangata whenua is that having truth on our side is not the same as having power.”

“The undisputable truth on our side is that iwi and hapu never ceded their mana to any foreign power on any day in history.”