Critics considered the legislation to be anti-Māori
The Treaty Principles Bill has been voted down by Parliament at its second reading, reported the NZ Herald.
The bill has long been the centre of controversy: during its first reading, Parliament had to pause proceedings as MPs, including opposition MP Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke, performed a haka on the House floor to protest the legislation.
The bill’s critics, which include the New Zealand Law Society and the Waitangi Tribunal, regarded the law as anti-Māori and expressed concern that it would weaken Māori rights in addition to degrading the Treaty of Waitangi, according to the Herald. The bill proposal put forth by Act leader David Seymour replaces many Treaty principles developed over decades with three Cabinet-determined principles.
Last November, a large hīkoi to Parliament that saw tens of thousands of attendees was driven in part by the bill. A call for public feedback on the legislation also received a record-breaking 300,000 written submissions, far surpassing the previous peak of just over 100,000.
Ninety percent of the submissions challenged the bill and only 8% backed it. The result was downplayed by Seymour, who claimed that such high-profile legislation typically generated “spam” and responses that did not reflect actual public opinion.
Prior to the reading, Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka told Māori business leaders that the bill was “coming to cremation day”.
“Nehu [burial] day is coming, folks. Nehu day is coming for the Treaty Principles Bill. Can’t wait to see that nehu day”, Potaka said in a statement published by the Herald.
Seymour insisted on the necessity of the bill to clarify Treaty principles.
“Parliament’s silence has been filled by court findings, Waitangi Tribunal reports and government departments attempting to define the principles. The resulting principles afford Māori different rights from other New Zealanders”, he said in a statement published by the Herald.
Seymour remained confident that the bill would push through.
“We will never give up on equal rights. It hasn’t failed…what it has done is put an uneasy conversation on the table”, he told reporters after the reading. “It’s just been hijacked by a whole lot of people, mainly in the courts, the Waitangi Tribunal and the bureaucracy”.
Seymour said to Newstalk ZB that a referendum was likely.
“Sooner or later the logic of this bill is going to prevail. New Zealanders are equal, the Treaty does give us the provision to be equal”, he said in a statement published by the Herald.
Seymour added that the Act party would share next steps prior to the 2026 election. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Deputy PM Winston Peters, Seymour’s coalition partners, were absent from the reading.
