Te Ture Whenua Māori Act

Transcription

1 Te Ture Whenua Māori Act 1. What is the purpose of the reform? This reform is about making it easier for Māori land owners to make decisions about how their land is governed and used. It removes constraints in the existing legislation and makes decision-making easier and more efficient. It is the most significant reform of Māori land law since Te Ture Whenua Māori Act It will give land owners a greater ability to make their own decisions and utilise land in the way they choose to. The reform also protects the status of Whenua Māori as a taonga tuku iho with special significance to Māori, and promotes the retention of land. 2. Why is Te Ture Whenua Māori Act 1993 being replaced? The current Act constrains the decision making ability of the owners of the vast majority of Māori freehold land, meaning owners cannot utilise their land the way they want to. This reform makes decision-making by land owners easier and more efficient. 3. Why not amend Te Ture Whenua Māori Act 1993? In the last 150 years, almost 200 laws and amendments to laws have covered Māori land. Te Ture Whenua Māori Act 1993 inherited a patchwork of rules, many of which are now outdated. A new Act which brings all aspects of Māori Land Law into one piece of legislation is the best way to avoid this piecemeal approach and to give Maori land owner s greater ability to make decisions. 4. What consultation has there been on the reform? There has been substantial engagement with a wide range of people and organisations over two years from An early draft of the new Bill was released for comment in May hui were then held around the motu, attended by around 1,300 people. 392 submissions were received. The formal submission process ended in August, however there have been significant engagement since with whanau, trusts and incorporations, national Māori organisations, and local Government. 5. What changes have been made since the early draft Bill was released for consultation? As a result of submissions and further engagement a number of changes were made to the draft Bill. The key changes to the draft Bill are: the managing kaiwhakarite proposal has been removed; the purpose and principles sections are being revised in response to feedback; 1

2 whānau will have the option for individuals to obtain succession to land instead of having to form a whānau trust when an owner dies without leaving a will; and the Māori Land Court will be given greater discretion when considering applications to remove the status of Māori freehold land. Cabinet also agreed that existing Māori trusts and incorporations will continue as the same entity they are now, and not have to go through the cost of a mandatory transition process. Transition will be optional. 6. Will there be any further changes made to the Bill? All of the major changes to the Bill have now been made. Those changes reflect the feedback received from consultation hui and from submissions received. There will be some minor technical work carried out before the Bill is introduced to Parliament and further consideration is being given to the way the purpose and principles are worded. There will also be sections added to the Bill to deal with rating and valuation of Maori land, that are in the process of being confirmed. 7. Will the latest version of the Bill be made public like the earlier Exposure Draft? Yes. A revised version of the Bill is available on Te Puni Kokiri s Website Māori Land owners 8. How will the reform help the owners of Māori freehold land? The reform will make decision making easier, and more efficient. Actions such as registering a governance structure or a constitution will be facilitated by a new Māori Land Service, rather than needing the approval of the Māori Land Court. The Bill sets out clear decision-making processes that allow owners to choose whether or not they want to participate in decisions being made about land they have interests in. It will set minimum thresholds for agreement among owners for major land dealings. 9. What will the reforms mean for investment in Māori land? How Māori land is used is for the owners of that land to decide for themselves. The reform will create stronger legal structures for governance bodies, and allow for alternative security options (such as leases, or mortgages over fixtures) that safeguard retention of land. 10. Can decisions relating to ownership interests be challenged? Yes. If an owner wants to challenge whether a decision relating to their ownership interests was properly made, he or she can challenge the decision making process in the Māori Land Court. 2

3 11. What happens to Māori land ownership interests after an owner dies? It will be up to the whānau of a deceased owner to make sure the owner s land interests are succeeded to for future generations. If the owner has left a will, then as long as the successors are eligible whānau members the land interests will pass to them. If the owner does not leave a will the interests will pass to a whanau trust unless whanau members choose to have those interests pass to individual whanau members. 12. What if a trust or incorporation is happy with its current governance structure? Trusts and incorporations will automatically keep their current governance structures unless they choose to pick up one of the new structures under the Bill. 13. What will the reform mean for occupying Māori freehold land, putting housing on it and/or creating papakāinga? If Māori landowners decide this is what they want to do on their land then residential leases or tenancies will be able to be issued by the governance body for that land, without the land owners having to go through a judicial process in the Māori Land Court. If there is no governance body e.g. a trust, residential leases can be issued without Court approval if at least 75% of the ownership interests of participating owners agree. Māori land Service 14. What is the Māori Land Service? The Māori Land Service (MLS) will be a new service available to help land owners with: land registration; governance and capacity building; alternative dispute resolution; and to facilitate land utilisation. The MLS will help land owners choose the right governance structure for their needs and help land owners transition to that new entity. The MLS will also register the decisions land owners make about governance and land utilisation, and maintain records of Māori land ownership and titles and registry information. 15. How will the Māori Land Service make it easier to manage Māori land? The MLS will consolidate services currently available from a number of different agencies including Land Information New Zealand (LINZ), Te Puni Kōkiri and the Māori Land Court. 3

4 It will be available to help Māori landowners facilitate decisions on the governance or utilisation of their land. It will then register the decisions that land owners have made without land owners having to go to the Māori Land Court for a decision. 16. Where will the Māori Land Service be situated? The Māori Land Service will operate across the country. In order to assist owners of Māori land, there will be regionally based offices and mobile services. 17. How will the Maori Land Service assist with dispute resolution? The MLS will support Māori land owners to resolve disputes about Māori freehold land and to resolve their disagreements themselves; in a way that applies the tikanga, values, and kawa of the hapū associated with the land. The Bill proposes the establishment of a kaitakawaenga position to help Māori land owners resolve issues. The MLS may look to provide a panel of appropriately skilled people to act as kaitakawaenga. If the parties agree, they can nominate their own kaitakawaenga. The people will be required to have knowledge and experience of tikanga Māori and be able to act impartially. While a kaitakawaenga could make a decision that will be binding on the parties, they can only do so if the parties collectively ask for that to happen. 18. Who is responsible for Kaitakawaenga? The Māori Land Service will recruit kaitakawaenga taking into account their knowledge of tikanga and ability to act impartially, as well as general dispute resolution skills. However, parties will also be able to nominate their own. 19. What is LINZ and what role will it play? LINZ (Land Information New Zealand) is the government agency responsible for managing land information and New Zealand s Land Titles Register. All Māori freehold land comes under the land titles system in New Zealand. Maori land Court 20. What will happen to the Māori Land Court? The Māori Land Court is a court of law. It will remain the judicial body responsible for ensuring the law relating to whenua Māori is observed. The Court will still deal with matters involving Māori Land ownership when owners can t make a decision, there is a challenge to a decision or if there is a dispute of some sort. 4

5 It will still determine and change the status of Māori customary land and Māori freehold land; grant access to landlocked Māori freehold land, and make declaratory orders to correct inaccuracies in the Māori Land Register. However, the Māori Land Court will no longer deal with applications where land owners have made decisions for themselves e.g. what governance structure they choose and what land utilisation decisions they make. The Māori Land Service will facilitate and register such decisions. 21. Will the Court remain accessible? Yes. The Māori Land Court will remain accessible. The special aid fund will continue to be available to assist parties with matters dealt with by the court. Next Steps 22. What happens next? Technical work on Te Ture Whenua Māori Bill continues. It is envisaged that the Bill will be introduced to Parliament in early It will then pass through the normal legislative process, including being referred to Select Committee for consideration and further public submissions. Work continues on shaping the Maori Land Service and input from Maori land owners will be sought throughout the year. 23. When will these changes take effect? The timing for the Bill to become law will depend on the Parliamentary process, but it is likely to be late 2016 or early The Māori Land Service will be phased in over a three to five year period to ensure continuity of services for Māori land owners while systems to support the future are put in place and rigorously tested. 24. Will there be any more opportunity to have a say? When the Bill is introduced to Parliament it will be referred to a select committee. Standard practice is for the select committee to seek submissions from the public on the bills referred for consideration. 5