There have been two Waitangi Day Acts passed by the

New Zealand Parliament The New Zealand Parliament ( mi, Pāremata Aotearoa) is the unicameral legislature of New Zealand, consisting of the King of New Zealand ( King-in-Parliament) and the New Zealand House of Representatives. The King is usually represented by h ...

: the Waitangi Day Act 1960 and the Waitangi Day Act 1976. Neither made 6 February (

Waitangi Day Waitangi Day ( mi, Te Rā o Waitangi), the national day of New Zealand, marks the anniversary of the initial signing – on 6 February 1840 – of the Treaty of Waitangi, which is regarded as the founding document of the nation. The first Wait ...

) a public holiday; this was done by the

New Zealand Day Act 1973 The New Zealand Day Act 1973 made 6 February a public holiday in New Zealand. The day had been known for some time as Waitangi Day and commemorated the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi. In 1960 the first Waitangi Day Act was passed by the sec ...

. The first Waitangi Day Act was a token gesture towards acknowledging the

Treaty of Waitangi The Treaty of Waitangi ( mi, Te Tiriti o Waitangi) is a document of central importance to the history, to the political constitution of the state, and to the national mythos of New Zealand. It has played a major role in the treatment of the M ...

. The second changed the name of the day from New Zealand Day back to

Waitangi Day Act 1960

For some years before 1960,

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 C ...

, especially Ngapuhi, had campaigned for

to be a public holiday in recognition of the

. The promise of a public holiday was part of

Labour Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

's 1957 election manifesto. Labour was subsequently elected as the

second Labour government The second (symbol: s) is the unit of Time in physics, time in the International System of Units (SI), historically defined as of a day – this factor derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes and finally t ...

, but decided that New Zealand could not afford another public holiday. The Waitangi Day Act was a compromise which allowed them to claim they had kept their promise, without actually creating a holiday. The Act consisted of three clauses and established that the sixth of February would be known as

and 'shall be observed throughout New Zealand as a national day of thanksgiving in commemoration of the signing of the

.' It did not make

a public holiday, but allowed the

Governor-General Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...

to declare it one in any region, in substitute for that region's anniversary public holiday. The Act contained the English-language version of the

as a schedule, the first time that the Treaty had appeared anywhere in New Zealand legislation. Māori were generally disappointed by the act, and continued to press for a public holiday. The National Party opposition spent most of the debate on the Act criticising the government for breaking their promise, but also felt that New Zealand could not afford another public holiday.

1963 Amendment

In 1963 the second National government amended the Act to make Waitangi Day a holiday in Northland, abolishing the

Auckland Anniversary Day Auckland Anniversary Day is a public holiday observed in the northern half of the North Island of New Zealand, being the area's provincial anniversary day. It is observed throughout the historic Auckland Province, even though the provinces of New ...

holiday in that area. {{infobox legislation , short_title = Waitangi Day Act 1976 , legislature =

, image = Coat of arms of New Zealand.svg , imagesize = 180px , long_title = An Act to make provision for the observance of the 6th day of February in each year as a public holiday to commemorate the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi , introduced_by =

Allan Highet David Allan Highet (27 May 1913 – 28 April 1992) was a New Zealand politician. He was an MP from 1966 to 1984, representing the National Party for Remuera, holding the then largest majorities in the House. Early life and family Highet was b ...

, administered_by = , datepassed = 1976 , royal_assent = , date_commenced = Immediate , amendments = , related =

Holidays Act 1955 A holiday is a day set aside by custom or by law on which normal activities, especially business or work including school, are suspended or reduced. Generally, holidays are intended to allow individuals to celebrate or commemorate an event or tra ...

, Waitangi Day Act 1960,

, repeals = , status = Current

Waitangi Day Act 1976

In 1973 the New Zealand Day Act made the day a public holiday and renamed it New Zealand Day, and also abolished the Waitangi Day Act 1960. Many Māori felt that the new name drew attention away from the

, and campaigned for the name to be changed back. Following a change of government in 1975, the new National government passed the Waitangi Day Act 1976, which changed the name of the day back to

. It also gave Northland its own anniversary day holiday and included the English and Māori language versions of the

as a schedule.

Debate on the bills

New Zealand Parliamentary Debates New Zealand official publications are frequently quoted by their abbreviation; they include those listed below. Past copies of most by year or session are held in bound volumes in major public libraries. AJHR, AtoJs, or Appendix to the Journal of ...

, vol. 325 (1960), pp. 2949–3132. *New Zealand Parliamentary Debates, vol. 404 (1976), pp. 1367–79. *New Zealand Parliamentary Debates, vol. 405 (1976), pp. 2272–9. *New Zealand Parliamentary Debates, vol. 407 (1976), pp. 3215, 3424.

External links

A history of Waitangi Day from NZHistory.net.nz

Statutes of New Zealand Treaty of Waitangi Māori politics 1960 in New Zealand law 1976 in New Zealand law

Waitangi Day Act 1960

1963 Amendment

Waitangi Day Act 1976

Debate on the bills

See also

External links