Tribunal changes in wind

There’s cross-party consensus that the Waitangi Tribunal is flawed but Justice Minister Andrew Little is wary about making changes when so many Treaty of Waitangi settlements are still under way.

NZ First MP Shane Jones and National MP Chris Finlayson, previously treaty negotiations minister, have both raised concerns about the tribunal, which was set up to investigate Ma¯ ori claims and make recommendations to the Crown.

Finlayson says sometimes you ‘‘just have to do the right thing and blast forth’’ with changes, even if some Ma¯ ori are opposed.

Jones wants serious changes to the tribunal’s powers and plans for NZ First to use it as a ‘‘major campaigning plank’’ at the 2020 election. A tribunal decision last month that has brought settlement negotiations with yet another iwi to a grinding halt has intensified criticism from Jones and Finlayson.

In its report, the tribunal accused Finlayson, who was minister at the time an Agreement in Principle was signed with Whakato¯ hea, of prioritising a political objective of concluding settlements over a fair process.

‘‘I have a view there seems to be a tendency that the Crown is always wrong and in relation to the Whakato¯hea matter a huge amount of work was done to bring people along and (the tribunal) seemed – in my opinion – to listen to a few dissenters,’’ Finlayson said.

The tribunal was in need of an ‘‘attitude change’’ according to Finlayson and, while he could understand it was difficult to review the model when settlements were still in train, it was the right thing to do.

Jones said the tribunal had traditionally served ‘‘a magnificent purpose’’ but in more recent times had become a ‘‘mortgage broker looking for new business’’.

‘‘In recent times the Waitangi Tribunal has become a judicial beagle, chasing all sorts of scents whilst lacking common sense.

‘‘I will be taking to our annual general conference proposals to tighten up the writ of the Waitangi Tribunal; I’m not happy with their approach to so-called kaupapa claims, where they become a dumping ground for all manner of problems that they cannot resolve.’’

Little, who is also Treaty Negotiations Minister, didn’t expect the process to be perfect but said if he were designing the tribunal now he would do it differently.

‘‘I just know some of the issues I’ve been dealing with have raised my eyebrows. I have questions about it but in the end we’ve got 80 to 85 settlements done and dusted and we’ve got 50-odd more to go and we’ll deal with the frustrations, such as they might be, in order to kind of build that sense of the future.’’

He said he wasn’t looking at ‘‘changing the process midstream when so many have actually been through the process and achieved their results’’.

Finlayson said he would fully support Little if he wanted to move ahead and review the Waitangi Tribunal.

‘‘I think it’s getting to the stage where it would be timely to have a review of the tribunal and its operations,’’ he said.

The tribunal could be another point of tension for the coalition Government if Labour chooses not to act on Jones’ criticisms. The two parties are already on opposing sides over whether Ma¯ ori should have any interests in, or rights over, fresh water.

‘‘In recent times the Waitangi Tribunal has become a judicial beagle, chasing all sorts of scents whilst lacking common sense.’’ NZ First MP Shane Jones