They NRC says:
“The Bill would severely limit the CMT regime…as a result of the amended tests for exclusive use and occupation and the definition of substantial interruption – these in combination set an unfeasible bar for most applications to succeed.”
They say the Bill risks “undermining
relationships between tangata whenua and the Crown and the broader community
with potential flow on effects for local government relationships.“
Clearly, the NRC wants most of the
marine and foreshore area to pass into customary title.
Let’s be clear about what this means in practice. Customary title would give Maori the right to veto all resource consents in their area - no new commercial activities could happen without their consent. They would also have the right to impose wāhi tapu which would prevent all users from an area (except those exercising customary fishing rights!). Many of the applications for customary title are seeking wāhi tapu over significant parts of their claimed area and in some cases all of the area.
Did they even ask the community for feedback before making their submissions? No.
The question must now be
asked who does the NRC represent? Maori or everyone?
