UPDATE: Deed of Settlement and Te Korowai o Wainuiārua Trust 

Kia ora whānau, 

We’re excited to announce the next stage of our Settlement is underway. 

The Minister of Finance, Grant Robertson, has now signed the Deed and we’re awaiting the delivery of an original executed copy for viewing and safe keeping at our office in Raetihi.

Now that our Deed of Settlement has been signed and the Post-Settlement Governance Entity, Te Korowai o Wainuiārua Trust is established, Parliament will be considering our proposed Treaty claims settlement legislation which, once passed, will confirm that our settlement is final, and make it legally binding. This legislative process happens over the course of three parliamentary readings of the Te Korowai o Wainuiārua Claims Settlement Bill.

On Tuesday, the Bill was introduced to Parliament (the House of Representatives), triggering its first ‘reading’ in the House, when all Members of Parliament first consider our settlement Bill.

The Minister of Treaty Settlements will speak to the background to the Bill, and a short debate by members of the House occurs, after which the House decides if the Bill should be ‘read’ at first time. We expect this to happen in December following the General Election.

Next steps:

1. Following the first reading, the Bill goes to the Māori Affairs Select Committee to review the proposed legislation and hear public submissions.
2. Once the Select Committee reports back to the House, there is the Second Reading when all of the House considers the Bill and the Select Committee report. Once final amendments (if any) are made, it is reprinted and ready for the final reading. 
3. The third reading is the final stage in the House— this is when the legislation is officially passed. 

The third reading will be an important, historic event for our people. You will be invited to attend Parliament to witness this as it will be the final step in our Settlement journey.

Once passed by the House, the Bill is sent to the Governor General to give the legislation the “royal assent”.  At this point the Settlement Act has been passed into law and the Deed of Settlement is now unconditional. 

The Deed of Settlement and the Bill provide that our ‘Settlement Date’ is to be 40 working days after the Act is passed into law. This is the date at which our Treaty settlement is deemed to be final, our historical claims will be settled, and the Crown transfers the remaining financial and other redress to Te Korowai o Wainuiārua Trust.

We will continue to keep you updated every step of the way whānau. 

Te Korowai o Wainuiārua Trust Update and Management Structure: 

Following the signing and the introduction of the Bill, the agreed On-Account funds totalling $10.9million are due to be transferred into the new Te Korowai o Wainuiārua Trust bank account next week. These funds will then be placed in low-risk bank term deposits until Settlement Date, which is expected to occur late 2024 or early 2025.

On 15 July 2023, Te Korowai o Wainuiārua Trustees unanimously elected Aiden Gilbert and Nuthaniel Tonihi as Chairperson and Deputy Chairperson (respectively) of the Trust. 

We have retained the services of Chris McKenzie for strategic advice, Deborah Edmunds for legal advice and Steve Hirini as our interim General Manager. We have also retained Pieta Gilbert as our registrar and expanded her role to provide secretariat support services.

Aiden Gilbert and Nuthaniel Tonihi will work closely with the management team on establishment and legislation work until Settlement Date and the first election of the Te Korowai o Wainuiārua Trust Trustees. 

We will continue to keep you up to date with monthly e-pānui, which will also be posted on our website and Facebook. 

If you have not received this update via email, or have any other enquiries, please do not hesitate to contact us on (06) 385-4900 or at enquiries@uenuku.iwi.nz