November 18, 2019
Te Tiriti key to transformation for departing Green
Outgoing Green MP Gareth Hughes says better acknowledgement of the Treaty of Waitangi is the way to transform New Zealand for the better.
Mr Hughes has announced he won’t stand again after almost a decade in parliament, having taken his list seat on the retirement of Jeanette Fitzsimons in 2010.
He says historians won’t find the current Government transformational, with not enough being done to address the climate emergency, the loss of species, the loss of topsoils, inequality and homelessness.
The Treaty of Waitangi and empowering iwi an hapu is a crucial part of the transformation New Zealand needs.
“I think if we really respected the treaty and gave more decision making powers to Maori, we would think more long term, we would protect the environment, we wouldn’t let people go cold or hungry on the streets, and actually we as a country have a lot to learn from te ao Maori,” Mr Hughes says.
He's pleased about one change he has made to the fabric of parliament through his successful campaign to have a plaque installed in the chamber commemorating the New Zealand Wars.
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