(DIR) Home Ngāti Toa hikoi: Hundreds march to oppose fast-track bill (HTM) Source ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Hundreds have marched on Parliament in a hīkoi to oppose the Government's fast-track consenting bill, which Ngāti Toa Rangatira has described as "short-sighted". Marchers gathered at Wellington Railway Station for the hīkoi, making their way to the Beehive at about 1pm earlier this afternoon. At Parliament grounds, the hīkoi was greeted by Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka and RMA Minister Chris Bishop — who is in charge of the fast-track legislation. Iwi members presented trees and a petition that outlined their concerns. Ngāti Toa chief executive Helmut Modlik said the proposed bill "increases the likelihood of irreversible harm to our taiao, ecosystems and biodiversity". Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka and RMA Minister Chris Bishop accept a petition from a hīkoi on May 8. (Source: 1News) "It will allow big corporations to do anything they want in Aotearoa, without any say from the public, iwi, hapū, environmental experts and communities," he said. "We have witnessed the degradation that fast-tracked development has had on Te Awarua o Porirua Harbour that was once a food basket for Ngāti Toa. We will not sit by and let this happen again. Ngāti Toa is drawing the line on this kaupapa." Ngāti Toa environmental manager Rawiri Faulkner said the legislation "undermines the Government's obligations to uphold Te Tiriti o Waitangi and honour Treaty settlements." Helmut said: "Ngāti Toa will not let their whenua, awa and moana be degraded, poisoned and polluted again. Marchers gathered on Parliament grounds. (Source: 1News) "Our rangatiratanga over our whenua is undiminished and, as kaitiaki of our whenua, we say to the Government as our tūpuna said before us - ka aukatingia koutou - this is a line you may not cross." Representatives of Labour, the Greens and Te Pāti Māori were also present to greet the hīkoi as it arrived at Parliament grounds. ## Govt looking at 'improvements' to proposed bill Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka said it was a "very respectful" protest. "There are various ways to engage in the democratic institutions we have — I thought that was a very respectful one," he told media. The Government has faced the heat from environmental groups and mana whenua over its proposed fast-track consenting legislation — aimed at cutting red tape. (Source: 1News) RMA Minister Chris Bishop said he believed the views expressed by Ngāti Toa ultimately aligned with the Government's priorities. "The message I heard today was that the collective aspirations of Ngāti Toa Rangatira were not different to the Government's — which is to address our housing crisis, our infrastructure deficit, they want development." He added: "We heard the stories around sewage into the harbour. The Government's aspirations to fix those issues are the same as Ngati Toa's aspirations to fix those as well. (Source: 1News) "The fast track bill, we see, is a way to help ameliorate some of the problems of our past. "We've got to do that in a way that also protects the environment and doesn't cause more harm than benefits. That is absolutely the intention of the Government and we're working through a process around improvements to the bill." The Fast-track Approvals Bill would introduce a "fast-track, one-stop- shop consenting regime", to "enable faster approval of infrastructure and other projects that have significant regional or national benefits", according to its legislative statement. To access the fast-track process, project owners would need to apply to three joint ministers — those holding the infrastructure, transport, and regional development portfolios in government. It would get big projects off the ground more quickly but could be a bone of contention within the coalition. A project would then be referred to an expert panel for assessment, but ministers would ultimately make the final call as to whether a project proceeded. It has been criticised as anti-democratic as it reduced the public's say on fast-track projects. The Government has argued that an overly restrictive consenting process has slowed down progress on housing and infrastructure projects in New Zealand. ______________________________________________________________________ Served by Flask-Gopher/2.2.1