Select committee recommends controversial Treaty Principles Bill not proceed

Friday, 4 April 2025

New Zealanders 'don't deserve to be let down by their leaders', and the Treaty Principles Bill should be able to proceed to a referendum, says the ACT party leader.

After hundreds of oral submissions, hundreds of thousands of written submissions, the justice committee says “no thanks” to the Treaty Principles Bill.

The select committee’s report on the controversial bill recommends, by majority, it not proceed.

ACT leader David Seymour says the wave of opposing submissions doesn’t show the real feeling outside the select committee chambers.

ACT leader David Seymour has slammed a select committee recommendation to bin his Treaty Principles Bill and doesn’t believe a wave of scathing submissions is a reflection of New Zealand’s true opinion.

If opponents think they’ve got the numbers then they should let it go to a referendum, he said.

ACT leader David Seymour, who guided the Treaty Principles Bill into Parliament as part of his coalition deal. (File photo)

The select committee for the controversial Treaty Principles Bill has recommended the proposed law not proceed.

The justice committee kicked ACT’s bill to the kerb following hundreds of thousands of written submissions, hundreds of speakers, and mammoth opposition marches across the country.

In a testy encounter with reporters after the report’s release, Seymour said in spite of the recommendation the process had been “very successful”.

The submissions were not proportional to the overwhelming opinion of the New Zealand public, he said.

Labour MP Willie Jackson says Seymour wouldn’t change his mind on the Treaty Principles Bill even if there was 100% opposition to it. (File photo)

All New Zealanders should have equality, he said, and the bill would “succeed handsomely” if they were given a vote in a referendum.

Seymour pointed to ACT’s End of Life Choice law as an example of the gap between submissions and public opinion. In submissions, 90% opposed the law - but when put to a referendum, it passed by 65% to 34%, he said.

Labour MP Willie Jackson said Seymour was desperate to rewrite New Zealand’s history so it “really doesn’t matter what anyone says”.

“It doesn’t matter what some of the most learned people in the country say … it’s almost like the Flat Earth Society with the ACT Party.”

The ACT leader, also the sponsor of the Treaty Principles Bill, made his submission in support of the bill at the Justice Committee at Parliament on Monday.

Jackson said even if there had been 100% opposition to the bill, Seymour would not have changed his mind.

“What he put in was a rewrite of the Treaty … the amount of division it’s caused is not good for this country.”

Those that backed Seymour were “absolutely out of sync” with the law, and the expert opinions in the country, Jackson said.

The select committee heard 80 hours of oral submissions, with former prime ministers, leading academics, doctors, King’s Counsels, and everyday people making presentations.

The hundreds of speakers were curated from a record 300,000-plus written submissions.

PM Christopher Luxon agreed to the Treaty Principles Bill proceeding to second reading - but says it will be spiked there. (File photo)

A clear majority of speakers opposed the bill, which drew record crowds to the Hīkoi mō te Tiriti across the country, culminating in tens of thousands marching to the steps of Parliament in November.

The bill was part of the coalition government deal - National agreeing to support it through the public submissions stage. However, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has said his party would not support it in its second reading in Parliament - killing it.

Jenny Shipley gives submission on the Treaty Principles Bill

The Māori Party view in the report was that the bill was a distortion of Te Tiriti “based on a false historical narrative”.

There are numerous Treaty principles, developed through courts, the Government and Waitangi Tribunal over decades. Only decisions from the courts have created a binding precedent on Treaty principles. The principles are used to guide the Government on how to apply the spirit and intent of the Treaty.

ACT’s bill would replace them in law with the three found here. The law would need majority support in a public referendum to come into force.

What were the main themes?

The report outlined the main themes from submissions:

The general themes of those in support were:

lack of clarity and certainty about the principles
the importance of equality for all
use of a referendum to facilitate a national conversation around the Treaty/te Tiriti
promoting social cohesion.

Some of the general themes of those opposed were:

inconsistency of the bill with the Treaty/te Tiriti
flaws or inadequacies in the bill development process
the bill’s promotion of formal equality over equity
the negative effect of the bill on social cohesion
uncertainty of legal and constitutional implications
the negative effect on the Crown–Māori relationship