Finish the settlements, wind up the Waitangi Tribunal

“ACT will complete the remaining historical Treaty claims, end the Waitangi Tribunal’s contemporary jurisdiction, and wind it up once its historical work is finished, ACT Leader David Seymour says.

“The Waitangi Tribunal has been part of New Zealand’s constitutional landscape for more than fifty years. It has made an important contribution, particularly in helping address historical grievances. But no institution should exist just because it always has.

“ACT supports completing full and final historical Treaty settlements as a pragmatic way to resolve past injustices. This includes where the Crown confiscated land or otherwise breached property rights. That work should be finished properly.

“But the Tribunal that exists today is very different from the institution established in 1975.

“Through urgent and Kaupapa inquiries, the Tribunal now passes judgement on day-to-day government policy. It proposes alternative policy settings and seeks to steer decisions that properly belong to elected Governments and Parliament. This is not the Tribunal’s role and never was.

“As we approach 2040, two centuries since the signing of the Treaty, it is time to complete the historical settlements and move New Zealand forward.

“Every New Zealander deserves strong legal protections and access to the courts, regardless of ancestry. ACT believes those protections should be strengthened for everyone, not maintained through a permanent separate system for one group.

ACT will move New Zealand beyond the Waitangi Tribunal with four reforms:

01 Complete the historical settlement process

Every eligible historical claim before the Tribunal should be heard and resolved. ACT will limit the Tribunal to historical claims lodged by 1 September 2008. End its role in reviewing current government policy and actions. Ensure that all existing historical claims will still be heard and completed.

02 Stop the activism

New Zealanders choose policy at elections, and a parallel tribunal shouldn’t override that. After 50 years of evolution, its modern role no longer continues to serve New Zealand well. ACT will end the Waitangi Tribunal’s jurisdiction over contemporary Crown policy and conduct, leaving it to focus solely on completing the remaining historical claims.

03 Protect everyone’s rights through the law

No group should need a separate tribunal for rights that should be protected for everyone under ordinary law. Equally, no Government should unlawfully take property, interfere with rights, or act outside the law. Every New Zealander should be able to challenge this in our courts. ACT has already announced that we’ll add property rights to the Bill of Rights protecting everyone’s rights through law.

04 Wind up the Tribunal when the job is done

The Tribunal’s historic work is finite and nearly completed. ACT will not set an arbitrary deadline that rushes the remaining claims. ACT will amend the Treaty of Waitangi Act so the Tribunal is automatically disestablished once all eligible historical claims have been completed.

“As 2040 approaches, we should complete the remaining historical settlements, protecting every New Zealander’s right under the same law and courts, and move forward under one law for all with one future together.”

Note to editors: ACT’s full policy here.