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Source: Radio New Zealand

Te Wharekura o Kirikiriroa have been named Ngā Toa Whakaihuwaka, the overall winners of Te Mana Kuratahi, the national primary schools kapa haka competition for 2025.

The group from Hamilton bested 62 other kapa haka from 17 regions who took the stage this week at Mercury Baypark in Tauranga.

Fellow Tainui group Te Wharekura o Rakaumanga from Huntly finished in second place.

While locals Te Whānau o Te Maro Hauhake from Tauranga Intermediate School rounded out the podium in third place.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Actor Te Kohe Tuhaka has paid tribute to late filmmaker and mentor Lee Tamahori, describing him as a trailblazer for Māori in cinema.

In a statement his family said Tamahori died peacefully today at home surrounded by his long-time love Justine, his beloved children Sam, Max, Meka, and Tané, his daughter-in-laws Casey (who is expecting) and Meri, his darling mokopuna Cora Lee, and whānau.

Lee Tamahori from Ngāti Porou, made his directorial film debut with the ground-breaking Once Were Warriors.

Born in Tawa, in Wellington he started Flying Fish, one of the country’s most successful advertising production companies.

His first short film, Thunderbox, was developed during the Te Manuka series with Don Selwyn and Larry Parr.

He went on to forge a remarkable international career, directing Hollywood and independent films such as Mulholland Falls, The Devil’s Double, and the James Bond film Die Another Day.

Tuhaka said in some ways he was relieved he was finally at peace following a battle with Parkinson’s disease.

“Having known his very valiant battle with his Parkinson’s and having worked closely with Lee over the years, I’m not surprised that he went into battle the same way he went into shooting a film, all guns a blazing.

“It’s a big loss for us here in Aotearoa and also throughout the world.

“The man pretty much shaped a lot of things in our film industry with the likes of Once For Warriors, but even prior to that working in the advertising business, he was a huge, a huge mentor to me in many, many ways on many, many kaupapa. So he will be, he will be missed, but he will definitely be remembered,” he said.

Tuhaka said Lee Tamahori was also one of the most important figures in connecting Māori to Hollywood.

He said he shone a lens on Māori stories, language and issues.

“So that legacy of being able to not only go international, work on the big stage there, but also have an eye and a heart to coming home, to telling our stories, to opening up doors for our crew, our young producers like myself, young actors like myself, the myriad of people he’s influenced in their careers from in front of the lens and behind the lens.

“So he did it seamlessly… we walked the path that he was paving for us as Māori filmmakers in this industry equally,” Tuhaka said.

“I really feel at this time, like, I think about all of the people that he’s worked with, and all the kaupapa that I’ve worked with him on, and just having memories of, you know, watching him work. And he knew exactly what he wanted, and he knew exactly how to get there.

“It was like watching a Ngāti Porou cowboy on a mean-ass horse, just going for it and everybody around him just had to hold on!,” said the actor and producer.

He praised the late filmmaker’s work ethic, saying he put younger people to shame with his energy and enthusiasm.

“My own thing on Lee’s legacy, is that fella was a mahi fella. So when it came to shooting, he had more energy and more drive than anybody else on set, which I would laugh at.

“I was just like, man, this fella, he is going for it, like really going for it. Knew what he wanted, knew how he wanted to get there, and just drove, drove, drove.”

“I believe his legacy will be one of being a mahi fella, a real trailblazer,” Tuhaka said.

Friends and colleagues are invited to pay their respects on Sunday, 9 November, at Te Mahurehure Marae, in Point Chevalier in Auckland.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

One of the biggest names in New Zealand film-making has died.

Lee Tamahori from Ngāti Porou, made his directorial film debut with the ground-breaking Once Were Warriors.

Born in Tawa, in Wellington he started Flying Fish, one of the country’s most successful advertising production companies.

His first short film, Thunderbox, was developed during the Te Manuka series with Don Selwyn and Larry Parr.

He went on to forge a remarkable international career, directing Hollywood and independent films such as Mulholland Falls, The Devil’s Double, and the James Bond film Die Another Day.

In a statement his family said Tamahori died peacefully at home surrounded by his long-time love Justine, his beloved children Sam, Max, Meka, and Tané, his daughter-in-laws Casey (who is expecting) and Meri, his darling mokopuna Cora Lee, and whānau.

“His legacy endures with his whānau, his mokopuna, every filmmaker he inspired, every boundary he broke, and every story he told with his genius eye and honest heart. A charismatic leader and fierce creative spirit, Lee championed Māori talent both on and off screen.

“He ultimately returned home to tell stories grounded in whakapapa and identity, with Mahana and his latest film The Convert, reaffirming his deep connection to Aotearoa. We’ve lost an immense creative spirit.

Moe mai rā e te rangatira.

Haere rā e hika koutou ko ō mātua,

Unuhia i te rito o te harakeke,

Ka tū i te aroākapa,

Aku nui, aku rahi e,

Aku whakatamarahi ki te rangi.

Waiho te iwi e,

Māna e māe noa.

Farewell, beloved Lee, go to your elders,

Plucked from the heart of the flax bush.

You stand now before the ranks of ancestors

My great ones, my esteemed,

My towering figures who reach to the heavens.

Leave us, your people,

To bear the ache of your absence.”

Friends and colleagues are invited to pay their respects on Sunday, 9 November, at Te Mahurehure Marae, in Point Chevalier in Auckland.

More to come…

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

A sudden law change means the only legal obligation for schools to teach te reo Māori is if parents ask for it.

The government is removing a requirement for schools to give effect to the Treaty of Waitangi that included “taking all reasonable steps to make instruction available in tikanga Māori and te reo Māori”.

Government ministers said they were making the change because treaty obligations were the Crown’s responsibility and teaching Māori would still be protected by law.

Asked what regulation or legislation would require schools to use te reo, the Education Ministry said under the amended legislation schools would “be required under s127 of the Act to provide Māori language education on request of a parent or caregiver”.

“This is the same requirement in relation to te reo Māori that was in place between 1989 and 2020,” it said.

“The proposed amendment will also require a school board to seek to achieve equitable outcomes for Māori students. It must take reasonable steps to ensure that the policies and practices for the school reflect New Zealand’s cultural diversity.”

Some teacher and principal groups reacted angrily to this week’s change which took them by surprise.

The move followed the publication last week of draft curriculum documents that teachers said contained fewer Māori words and meaningful references to the treaty.

However, the revised primary school English curriculum included guidance for teaching children to read Māori words in English texts during their second and third years of schooling – something the government had previously flagged as a new development.

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Source: Radio New Zealand

Dr Alex Barnes, a Pākehā father who grew up in the kōhanga reo and kura kaupapa movement, says proposed changes to the Aotearoa New Zealand’s Histories curriculum risks “leaving our past to chance”.

The government released the full draft of the curriculum for year 0-10 students in October with Education Minister Erica Stanford calling it another significant step toward delivering a world-leading system for every learner.

ACT Party leader and Associate Education Minister David Seymour also celebrated the draft curriculum, saying the proposed social sciences changes would “restore balance” and remove political bias.

The Ministry of Education said the new curriculum still reflected Te Tiriti o Waitangi and te ao Māori principles, while giving students broader opportunities to learn about global history.

However, the proposed changes – particularly to the social sciences curriculum, which dropped Aotearoa New Zealand’s Histories and added more international topics – has faced backlash from educators as being “dishonest”, “regressive” and “not an honest reflection of our past”.

The changes are part of a growing wave of criticism of the government’s approach to Māori language, culture, and Te Tiriti o Waitangi in schools. On Tuesday, the government announced it would remove schools’ legal obligation to give effect to Te Tiriti o Waitangi, a move that has again alarmed educators and Māori leaders.

Barnes, who has studied how the Aotearoa NZ’s Histories curriculum was implemented and its impact agreed with the critics, and was concerned about the government’s plan to fold the histories curriculum into the wider social sciences framework, rather than keeping it as its own subject.

“Integrating it dilutes its power,” he said.

“It weakens its importance and leaves it to chance whether our histories are taught accurately or prominently.”

He told RNZ that approach risked undoing the progress made over the past year.

“That effectively removes it as a key part of our education system.

“People want accurate history. Māori and non-Māori. They’ve been saying for years, ‘I didn’t learn this at school.'”

Barnes has spent over 20 years in education and adult learning, and completed a PhD on te Tiriti-based co-governance education in Aotearoa.

He was also one of the kairangahau (researchers) at the New Zealand Council for Educational Research, studying how the Aotearoa New Zealand’s Histories curriculum was implemented, and found it helped schools connect learning to local places and stories.

“Teachers and principals saw the histories curriculum as a chance to deepen understanding of whakapapa, place, and identity,” he said.

“It gave schools a framework to connect students to their own stories while recognising how local and global histories intersect.”

Barnes is also a graduate of the early kaupapa Māori education movement and now works in Māori health and wellbeing research. He said learning Māori histories from a young age shaped his sense of connection to the whenua and people of Tauranga.

“I grew up with local pūrākau, stories from hapū and iwi about the origins of the whenua and the waka there. It gave me a deep sense of identity and belonging,” he said.

“The fact that I was Pākehā didn’t really matter. I was part of the whānau.”

He said that same sense of belonging is what the Aotearoa New Zealand’s Histories curriculum offers tamariki when it’s taught well.

“There’s a strong desire for our kids to develop pride in who they are, their sense of identity and belonging to Aotearoa,” he said.

“You can only be Pākehā in Aotearoa because that identity exists through our relationship with Māori. Understanding both Māori and non-Māori history builds pride and confidence in all children.”

Barnes said the curriculum also encouraged schools to build relationships with local hapū and iwi, helping students understand the significance of the places they lived.

“Trips to wāhi tapu (sacred places) or wāhi whakahirahira (place of spiritual or historical significance), sites important to hapū, iwi, and whānau open up a knowledge base that might not have been possible before.”

He said teaching Aotearoa’s histories helped children make sense of the world and see how communities – Māori and non-Māori – valued collectivity and whānau.

“History isn’t static, it lives in the present. When taught well, it helps us understand each other.”

RNZ approached the minister of education for comment regarding concerns and was redirected to the Education Ministry.

Deputy secretary Pauline Cleaver said it would consider feedback over the six-month consultation period and maintained the framework still reflected the Treaty and te ao Māori principles.

“In Social Sciences, students will be taught about Māori as tangata whenua, the Treaty of Waitangi, the Kīngitanga Movement and Māori concepts such as tūrangawaewae and mana.”

Cleaver said Māori history remained a key focus, while global history had been added in response to student interest. Consultation is open until 24 April, 2026.

“The goal is to reflect the diversity of New Zealand and deliver great outcomes for all learners.”

She said, in relation to the government’s decision to remove the requirement for schools to give effect to Te Tiriti o Waitangi, that under changes passed in the House this week, schools would still be required to offer Māori language education if requested by parents, and boards must take steps to achieve equitable outcomes for Māori students and reflect New Zealand’s cultural diversity.

“These requirements ensure Māori language and culture remain an integral part of our education system,” she said.

‘Histories should stay accurate’

David Seymour celebrated the draft curriculum, and said in a statement that it delivered on ACT’s coalition commitment to “restore balance to the Aotearoa New Zealand’s Histories curriculum”.

“The Marxist ‘big ideas’ such as ‘Māori history is the foundational and continuous history of Aotearoa New Zealand’ and ‘the course of Aotearoa New Zealand’s histories has been shaped by the use of power’ are gone,” he said.

“In their place is a new and balanced History Curriculum… No longer will it indoctrinate young people for political purposes – history education will be for the benefit of the children.”

However, Barnes believed that removing the curriculum’s focus on colonisation or Māori perspectives did not create “balance”.

“If we take out the histories of pre-colonial Aotearoa, colonisation, and its impacts, that continues an imbalance,” he said.

“Everything is political, but accurate history doesn’t mean indoctrination. It means honest discussions about what shaped Aotearoa.”

As a pāpā, Barnes said he wanted his daughter to grow up with a holistic understanding of history. One that connected identity, language, environment, politics, and economy.

“I want her to know she belongs, that her identity is valid, and to understand how our history shapes the present and future.

“Histories should stay accurate, intact, and prioritised, not left to chance.”

He said teaching accurate and inclusive histories was vital for tamariki to build identity, belonging, and understanding of Aotearoa’s place in the world.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Tauranga iwi Ngāi Te Rangi says the fight for te reo Māori is not over yet and that it’s going to continue promoting te reo regardless of what the government does.

The Waitangi Tribunal released its Taku Kura Reo, Taku Reo Kahurangi report on Crown policies concerning the use of te reo Māori in the public service in October.

The claim brought by Ngāi Te Rangi focussed on commitments in the coalition agreement between National and NZ First to ensure all public service departments have their primary name in English, except for those specifically related to Māori’. Secondly, to ‘equire the public service departments and Crown Entities to communicate primarily in English – except those entities specifically related to Māori’.

It was the first of a flurry of applications the Tribunal received for an urgent inquiry after the government came to power in 2023. Hearings took place in June 2024.

The Tribunal found the Crown breached the principles of te Tiriti / ​the Treaty, including rangatiratanga, partnership, active protection, equity and good government.

Judge Te Kani Williams said any diminishing of Crown support for the revitilisation of te reo was a matter of serious concern.

“As the Tribunal has previously observed, te reo has been matched only by Māori land as a galvanising force for Māori protest in recent decades.

“The language remains in a vulnerable state (something the Crown readily acknowledged in our inquiry) and te reo advocates are quick to remind us that there is no margin for complacency.”

Ngāi Te Rangi chairman Charlie Tawhiao told RNZ the iwi was compelled to take the claim to the Tribunal because the “attack” on te reo is also an attack on Māori cultural identity.

“From our perspective, it’s led to Māori thinking harder about the fact that the fight for our reo is not over yet. So we’ve got to continue to keep promoting te reo amongst our whānau, particularly the mokopuna we’ve got coming up behind us, and ensure that regardless of what the Crown does, that te reo won’t vanish or be extinguished.”

Tawhiao said if iwi leaders didn’t model to the next generation that they would not tolerate the attack on te reo, then they would end up paying the price with “another silent generation of Māori”.

“I think at a higher level, protecting and upholding te reo Māori as the first language of this whenua, this place we now call Aotearoa, is an obligation, not only for us as iwi Māori, but actually for all thinking Kiwis in our view.

“But the recovery and the progress has been remarkable… not only for Māori, but there’s a whole generation of tangata Tiriti who have also taken efforts to learn te reo Māori, not because they must, because they want to.”

Tawhiao said despite the efforts to recover te reo Māori there remained a “stubborn and outdated” view that the indigenous language of Aotearoa had no value.

After the Tribunal had finished writing its report, Judge Williams said they “were appraised of further steps being taken by the Crown to relegate the placement and status of te reo Māori behind English”, referencing Internal Affairs Minister Brooke van Velden’s announcement that New Zeland’s passport was being redesigned to place the English words above the te reo text.

Tawhiao said it is just the latest of a “whole basket of policies” designed to assimilate Māori.

But for Ngāi Te Rangi he said the best thing they could do was to follow the words of the late Kiingi Tuheitia, to be “Māori everyday, in every way”.

“I think that’s something we’ve got to encourage our people to do, that our cultural identity doesn’t require or depend on any government acknowledging it. But at the same time, we don’t want to be spending our time defending our very identity and who we are, which is where people were starting to feel.”

The iwi would continue to encourage its people to carry on speaking te reo wherever they chose to and however they could, he said.

“Just as an example of what happened to te reo, when I was learning as a young fellow, and I was visiting my dad one day, and every time I met with him, I talked to him in Māori, so he talked back to me so that I could hear, first of all, did I make sense? Did he hear me? But secondly, to hear how he spoke so I could learn more.

“And I remember we were sitting in a coffee shop having a cup of tea and I was talking to him in te reo Māori and then some people came in and he was looking nervously at them and I said, ‘what’s up?’. He said, ‘well, it’s a bit rude to talk Māori in front of Pākehā people’. And I thought, oh God, and I said to him, ‘Dad, it’s an official language now, we’re allowed to speak Māori’. You know, we’re recovering from that trauma.”

Tawhiao said unlike his father he never lived through that trauma, but he lived through its impacts.

The next generations have lived with the revival of te reo Māori, and he said he didn’t want to see that progress stifled by “continued outdated views that come from an age that’s long past”.

Judge Williams, quoting from the landmark 1986 Tribunal report on the te reo Māori claim, said, “To recognise Māori officially is one thing, to enable its use widely is another thing altogether.

“There must be more than just the right to use it in the courts. There must also be the right to use it with any department or any local body if official recognition is to be real recognition, and not mere tokenism.”

The Tribunal’s recommendations

• Take immediate steps to reverse actions and policy concerning the use of te reo in agency names and government communications.
• Ensure new governments comply with the Crown’s obligations to te reo Māori under both existing legislation and te Tiriti / the Treaty and its principles.
• Strengthen the wording of Te Ture mō Te Reo Māori 2016.
• Make Te Tohu Reorua i te Reo Māori me te Reo Pākehā – Māori-English Bilingual Signage 2016 guidelines compulsory.
• Amend the 2024 Government Workforce Policy Statement “so that the payment of te reo allowances to government officials continues regardless of whether te reo skills are a requirement to perform their role or not”.
• Increase the bilingual aptitude of the public service.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

The Crown has apologised to Auckland and Hauraki iwi Ngāti Paoa for its actions which led to the iwi becoming “virtually landless.”

Around 500 iwi members travelled to Parliament to witness the third reading of the Ngāti Pāoa Claims Settlement Bill.

The rohe, or region, of Ngāti Pāoa extends through Hauraki and parts of the Coromandel Peninsula to Auckland and includes islands in the Hauraki Gulf.

For Rangitahi Pompey, it’s the end of a long road, as her father was one of the many people who carried the baton for Ngāti Pāoa through the long years to settle their historical grievances with the Crown.

“I often speak of him and talk of how he ate, drunk, slept and died, Ngāti Pāoa. Everything about him was for the people and that was at the calling of his father to come home.”

It was just over 40 years ago, in March 1985, that Ngāti Pāoa leader Hariata Gordon lodged the tenth claim to the Waitangi Tribunal – Wai 10, the Waiheke Island Claim. That claim was heard and reported on by the Tribunal in 1987.

Many of the Ngāti Pāoa claims were lodged with the Waitangi Tribunal and heard during the Hauraki Inquiry in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

Pompey told RNZ it’s been a long journey and although the settlement has passed, it’s not over for the iwi.

“So even though we are where we are, we have still got things to do. We still have things to achieve and today, I guess we step into a new space where we can start to realise those dreams. Realise and bring to fruition the dreams of many people.”

It will be the mokopuna, the children and grandchildren who will carry the iwi into the future, she said.

Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations Paul Goldsmith said in the settlement the Crown acknowledged the effect of its actions including raupatu (confiscation), the impact of the Native Land Courts and Crown purchasing which left Ngāti Pāoa virtually landless.

“The crown also acknowledged it breached the Treaty of Waitangi and its principles when it invaded the Waikato, attacking Ngāti Pāoa and shelled the unfortified village of Pūkorokoro in 1863 causing the death of iwi members.”

Goldsmith said no settlement can fully compensate Ngāti Pāoa for what they lost.

The settlement included $23.5 million in financial reddress, the opportunity to purchase seven commercial properties and the return of 12 cultural sites of significance including sites for a marae and papakāinga development in the suburb of Point England, he said.

The settlement consolidates the Waiheke Station Trust into the Ngāti Pāoa Iwi Trust so that all settlement assets are held by one organisation.

“This consolidation was strongly supported by iwi members during the ratification process” said Goldsmith

Ngāti Pāoa Iwi Trust chair Herearoha Skipper said this was a time to remember the Ngāti Pāoa leaders who, over decades, had sought justice from the Crown.

“In particular, we acknowledge the work of the Ngāti Pāoa Negotiators, Morehu Wilson and Hauauru Rawiri. Sadly, Morehu passed in 2022, and it is with aroha that we have his whānau join us on this momentous occasion.”

Skipper said there are other aspects of the Ngāti Pāoa settlement package that will need to be finalised.

“The Pare Hauraki Collective Redress Bill was introduced to Parliament in December 2022, but has not yet had a first reading. The Marutūāhu Iwi Collective Redress Deed needs to be signed by the Crown, on the basis of what was offered and without change. Without these, the Crown will not have fully delivered the Ngāti Paoa settlement package.”

“The Ngāti Pāoa Iwi Trust is confident that these matters can be resolved before the next general election.”

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

Source: Radio New Zealand

Te Pāti Māori’s co-leaders and their offside MPs are set to meet on Thursday to try to find headway in their open conflict.

The party is in crisis, with party president John Tamihere calling on Mariameno Kapa-Kingi and Tākuta Ferris to “do the honourable thing” and step down while Tamihere said there was “a process in play” for the two MPs to be expelled from the party.

That’s after a petition saying Tamihere should be the one standing down.

As well, there are allegations of intimidation and financial mismanagement

Iwi leaders are hopeful they can bring Te Pāti Māori MPs back together and make the party a credible force leading into next year’s election.

National Iwi Chairs Forum chairperson Bayden Barber believes outstanding issues can be patched up.

At a hui he led yesterday, party co-leaders Rawiri Waititi and Debbie Ngarewa-Packer agreed to meet with the estranged MPs.

Barber said after the meeting at Parliament the factions of the party would be brought together for a hui on a marae in Pōneke.

He told Morning Report the first priority he stressed at the meeting was the need for “a ceasefire” on all social media barbs which hadn’t been helpful.

He also wanted to see a hui to thrash out the issues in the hope of a resolution so that Te Pāti Māori could go on to play a part in the next government.

While the problems among the party’s caucus were serious they weren’t “insurmountable”.

“Our view would be let’s get to a hui and face to face between the parties and go from there.”

He wanted a a pause on any “consitutional stuff” such as moves to expel the two disaffected MPs.

While there was talk of a coup and expulsion, the two factions weren’t talking to each other.

Barber said the crisis appeared to have begun when Kapa-Kingi objected to the loss of the whip role within the party, however, he was a little unsure on the core problem.

“It’s headed south since.”

Ferris had agreed to a meeting this week, while Barber was still trying to contact Kapa-Kingi.

“We’ll sit down, put those issues on the table … let’s get to a hui face to face on the marae in Pōneke and let’s work things out.”

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Source: Radio New Zealand

Te Pāti Māori’s leadership is willing to meet with estranged MPs Mariameno Kapa-Kingi and Tākuta Ferris, the National Iwi Chairs Forum says.

Ngāti Kahungunu chairman Bayden Barber sat down with the party’s president and two co-leaders at Parliament this afternoon.

“It was a great meeting and we’re looking forward to bringing the factions of the party together to have a hui on a marae here in Pōneke.

“We just got agreement from this side so that’s a great start. Need to talk to Mariameno and Tākuta, but from Rawiri and Deb they were supportive.”

The National Iwi Chairs Forum would be reaching out to Kapa-Kingi and Ferris this evening to put the same hui request to them, Barber said.

“The sooner the better, we want it to happen ASAP.

“We’re keen to try and find a resolution this month because we know that as it gets beyond this year, there’s a very low chance of having success in the election. So yeah, there’s time pressure to get this sorted.”

After what he had heard today, Barber said he still believed things could be patched up.

“[The leadership] laid it all out, timelined the whole thing and that was helpful to understand the context but at the end of the day, the question goes back to, is this surmountable?

“We think it is, as iwi chairs, and hence why we’ve called a hui and they’ve agreed to attend. We look forward to having similar conversations with Mariameno and Tākuta shortly.”

Using the waka-jumping legislation to boot Kapa-Kingi and Ferris out of Parliament had not come up today, Barber said.

“We’re looking for a solution to maintain unity within the Māori Party. That’s what we’re focused on because that’s going to get us the most chance of success at the next election.

“If it comes down to that outcome, that’ll be something for them sort out.”

‘Nothing that would preclude’ waka-jumping in party’s constitution

Te Pāti Māori’s co-leaders were asked if they would waka-jump the rogue MPs this afternoon.

“We haven’t considered that particular option at this time,” Rawiri Waititi said.

“We’re allowing our national council to work through the constitution and we need to be able to allow them to do that without having to deal with that through the media.”

Political scientist Dr Lara Greaves has had a look at the constitution and said it did not prohibit the party from using the legislation.

“There’s nothing that would preclude any kind of enactment of the party hopping legislation. There’s nothing explicit in there.”

She said the Māori Party’s constitution was an “interesting” political document that gave the party’s president a lot of power, relative to other positions in the party.

“The president has a key role in dispute resolution.”

She added timing was also a key consideration for any party invoking the waka-jumping rules.

“If it’s six months before the election, that’s when there’s no by-election.

“So we’re starting to run into this really strange period where we have potential by election, or by elections, running close to the election or the cut off stage.”

Greaves said it would be easiest for for Kapa-Kingi and Ferris to meet with the party’s leadership and stick it out, over going solo and setting up their own party.

“Starting up a political party is incredibly hard with incredibly long hours. You’ve got to find money, you’ve got to find resources. We’re a year out from a general election.

“You’re going to split the Māori vote, potentially the Māori Party vote, allow Labour to come through the middle.

“They’re ultimately in quite a stressful situation where it might be a case that they bow out quietly or resign or retire at the election instead of going through that whole rigmarole of starting up a political party.”

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