Prime Minister Bill English rejected claims that iwi consultation on resource management would give iwi co-governance rights. Their claims were roundly rejected by Mr English, Environment Minister Nick Smith and Maori Party co-leader Marama Fox, who said yesterday that councils would retain their decision-making powers on consents. it’s very confusing about which iwi people are required to consult, or the particular issues that iwi might be concerned with. But Act leader David Seymour said the ministerial override powers should have been scrapped altogether. The compromise struck by National and Maori Party had made the legislation ‘‘even worse’’, he said.

Source: Otago Daily Times April 04, 2017 21:00 UTC