The Green Party is condemning the Government's decision to weaken te Tiriti o Waitangi references across 19 acts of Parliament, calling it the Stealth Treaty Principles Bill.
"New Zealanders didn't want the Treaty Principles Bill, and they sure don't want it by stealth," says Green Party Co-leader Marama Davidson.
"Stripping te Tiriti out of seven acts entirely and dragging the Crown's obligations in another ten down to the weakest possible standard, is a deliberate diminishment of the founding document of this country.
"Treaty references in legislation are how the Crown's word gets translated into the decisions that shape whānau lives. The changes set the lowest standard the Crown can give itself. Weakening them weakens the protections people rely on every day.
"The Waitangi Tribunal has warned this Government, repeatedly, about its approach to te Tiriti. Those warnings are being ignored, along with the evidence, the history, and the weight of the agreement that founded this country.
"New Zealanders have already had their say on the Treaty Principles Bill. They submitted in record numbers, they marched in numbers this country has not seen in a generation. The Government should abandon this new Treaty Principles Bill," says Davidson.
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