The Minister for Māori Development is the minister in the

New Zealand Government The New Zealand Government () is the central government through which political authority is exercised in New Zealand. As in most other parliamentary democracies, the term "Government" refers chiefly to the executive branch, and more specifica ...

with broad responsibility for government policy towards

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...

, the first inhabitants of New Zealand. The Minister heads the

Te Puni Kōkiri Te Puni Kōkiri (TPK, also called in English the Ministry of Māori Development) is the principal policy advisor of the Government of New Zealand on Māori people, Māori wellbeing and development. Te Puni Kōkiri was established under the Māor ...

(TPK, or the Ministry of Māori Development). Between 1947 and 2014 the position was called Minister of Māori Affairs; before that it was known as Minister of Native Affairs. The current Minister for Māori Development is

Tama Potaka Tama William Potaka (born 8 January 1976) is a New Zealand politician and Member of Parliament in the House of Representatives representing the Hamilton West electorate. He is a member of the National Party and was chief executive of Ngāi Ta ...

Role

The role of the Minister for Māori Development differs from those of other ministers. While the Minister for Māori Development does have a government department to supervise (

, TPK for short, or the Ministry of Māori Development), he or she also has input into other portfolios to the extent that they affect Māori. For example, the Minister for Māori Development would expect to be involved in the development of

Māori language Māori (; endonym: 'the Māori language', commonly shortened to ) is an Eastern Polynesian languages, Eastern Polynesian language and the language of the Māori people, the indigenous population of mainland New Zealand. The southernmost membe ...

policy in the education portfolio, even though education is normally the sole responsibility of the

Minister of Education An education minister (sometimes minister of education) is a position in the governments of some countries responsible for dealing with educational matters. Where known, the government department, ministry, or agency that develops policy and deli ...

History

The office was originally called Minister of Native Affairs, or simply Native Minister. Most early Ministers of Native Affairs were not Māori, although a convention existed that there should be Māori in Cabinet (albeit without portfolio). Prior to the implementation of

responsible government Responsible government is a conception of a system of government that embodies the principle of parliamentary accountability, the foundation of the Westminster system of parliamentary democracy. Governments (the equivalent of the executive br ...

, Māori affairs (specifically the purchase of land from Māori by the Crown) had been handled by the

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

. Attitudes of early Ministers were varied. The first Minister,

William Richmond William Richmond or variants may refer to: * William Richmond (politician) (1821–1895), New Zealand politician * William Blake Richmond (1842–1921), English painter and decorator * William Henry Richmond (1821–1922), American coal mine operato ...

, considered Māori to be savages, and believed that his task was to "reform" Māori by making them more like Europeans. He was particularly hostile to Māori tradition of shared land ownership, considering it "beastly communism". Other Ministers were more friendly to Māori interests — James FitzGerald, the sixth Minister, believed that peaceful co-existence with Māori was vital, and considered the confiscation of Māori land to be an "enormous crime". Other Ministers have varied between these positions. The first Minister of Native Affairs to be ethnically Māori was James Carroll, appointed by the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

in the late 19th century. Another prominent Minister of Native Affairs was

Āpirana Ngata Sir Āpirana Turupa Ngata (3 July 1874 – 14 July 1950) was a prominent New Zealand statesman. He has often been described as the foremost Māori politician to have served in parliament in the mid-20th century, and is also known for his work in ...

, also of the Liberals. For the most part, however, early Ministers were Pākehā, although were frequently advised by Māori colleagues. Maui Pomare of the Reform Party and

Eruera Tirikatene Sir Eruera Tihema Te Aika Tirikatene (5 January 1895 – 11 January 1967) was a New Zealand Māori politician of Ngāi Tahu descent. Known in early life as Edward James Te Aika Tregerthen, he was the first Rātana Member of Parliament and was ...

of the Labour Party were examples of politicians who played a major role in the portfolio without actually holding office. After Carroll and Ngata, it was not until

Matiu Rata Matiu Waitai Rata (26 March 1934 – 25 July 1997) was a Māori politician who was a member of the New Zealand Parliament for the Labour Party from 1963 to 1980, and a cabinet minister from 1972 to 1975. In 1979 he resigned from the Labour Par ...

(1972–1975) that there was another ethnically Māori Minister of Māori Affairs. Under the Maori Purposes Act 1947, the Ministerial title and all other government usage was changed from 'Native' to 'Maori'.

1972 to present

Matiu Rata, appointed as the Minister of Māori Affairs in 1972, the first Maori since Ngata was Minister of Native Affairs in 1928. After the 2014 general election cabinet reshuffle, the title was changed from Minister of Māori Affairs to Minister for Māori Development. While Prime Minister John Key said that there was not really any difference in what the portfolio would involve, "it gives you a sense of where the minister lavellwill want to shape the portfolio". During the 2014–2017 term of the Fifth National Government,

Te Ururoa Flavell Te Ururoa James William Ben Flavell (born 7 December 1955), also known as Hemi Flavell, is a New Zealand politician. Born in Tokoroa, Flavell was a teacher, principal, and education executive before beginning a political career. He won the Wai ...

served as the Minister for Māori Development. Following the formation of the Sixth Labour Government, Nanaia Mahuta was appointed as Minister for Māori Development.

List of ministers

The table below lists ministers who have held responsibility for Māori issues. Initially, the title used was Minister of Native Affairs, but the title was changed to Minister of Maori Affairs on 17 December 1947 and then to Minister of Māori Affairs with the insertion of the macron in modern orthography under the

Māori Language Commission Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...

. In 2014, the title was changed for a fourth time to Minister for Māori Development. ;Key

References

External links

Te Puni KokiriMinister of Māori Affairs
at beehive.govt.nz
Minister for Whānau Ora
at beehive.govt.nz {{DEFAULTSORT:Minister of Maori Affairs Maori Affairs Race relations in New Zealand Māori politics

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...