ACT policy would see Waitangi Tribunal wound up after final settlements

ACT has announced a policy to wind up the Waitangi Tribunal once its remaining Treaty settlement work is completed, arguing the tribunal’s original purpose will have been fulfilled.

Speaking to RCR, ACT Deputy Leader and Minister for Courts Nicole McKee said the Waitangi Tribunal was established in 1975 to hear contemporary complaints relating to land, before its jurisdiction was extended in 1985 to investigate claims dating back to 1840.

McKee says more than 50 years of work has resulted in many Treaty settlements across New Zealand, with only a small number of issues remaining. She argued the Tribunal has since moved beyond its intended role and has attempted to exercise powers that ACT does not believe it should have, such as the Tribunal summoning ministers to appear before it.

“We’re saying, wait a minute, we are elected officials, elected on portfolios or promises to come and make these changes. And we have a tribunal trying to stop us from doing it,” McKee said.

ACT would allow the Tribunal to continue operating, but once the outstanding issues were resolved, the Tribunal should be “wound up,” she said, adding that the remaining work should be completed before the 200th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi.

But NZ First leader Winston Peters said in a post on X that, while he agreed with abolishing the Tribunal, such an action would not go far enough. He compared ACT’s proposal to a 1990 speech by then-Prime Minister Jim Bolger, in which Bolger said the tribunal would be wound up by 2014. “We have a policy coming that will deal with this properly. Watch this space,” said Peters.

McKee confirmed that winding up the Tribunal would not remove access to the justice system for Maori. The Maori Land Court would remain, alongside the wider justice system, which McKee said should operate under the principle of “one law for all”.

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