Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters. Photo: RNZ / REECE BAKER
The deputy prime minister has muddied the waters on the Treaty Principles Bill debate just days after the prime minister sought to extinguish any confusion on the issue.
Winston Peters has cast some doubt on Christopher Luxon's position that the Treaty Principles Bill will not progress beyond first reading while answering a question on the prime minister's behalf.
Peters was acting prime minister in the House on Wednesday while Luxon met with his Qatar counterpart, Excellency Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani.
On Monday at Koroneihana - the Māori King's coronation in Ngāruawāhia - the prime minister was clear that the bill had no future beyond first reading.
Koroneihana Day 1 Photo: RNZ/Nick Monro
"I want to be clear here today that the National Party will not support the Treaty Principles Bill beyond first reading," he told Kiingitanga.
On Tuesday morning Luxon went further, telling media National would vote the bill down at second reading - rather than letting it languish on the government's order paper for months or years to come.
New Zealand First senior MP and minister Shane Jones made the same commitment as Luxon in front of Kiingitanga on Monday.
"The Treaty Principles Bill will not be voted for by New Zealand First beyond its introduction into Parliament," Jones declared.
In the House on Wednesday, Labour leader Chris Hipkins questioned Peters about a previous comment made by ACT leader David Seymour - the architect of the bill.
Hipkins asked whether Peters agreed with comments from Seymour, "who said he won't believe the prime minister won't change his mind" if the public really wants the Treaty Principles Bill passed into law.
Peters, speaking on behalf of Luxon replied: "It's clearly in the coalition agreement, but I think one is entitled to believe that despite all of the previous statements, if there was prevailing compelling evidence to change one's mind, as a famous economist once said, when the facts change, I change my mind. What do you do?".
Labour leader Chris Hipkins. Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone
That prompted Hipkins to get to his feet and ask a further supplementary question: "So is the prime minister indicating - as he seems to have in his last answer - that he's open to changing his mind on the second reading of the Treaty Principles Bill?"
Peters, on behalf of the prime minister, responded: "What I was enunciating is what the prime minister said in the coalition agreement, as did we. But I did offer the opinion that sometimes - and I don't think it will happen in this case, of course, obviously you do have a faint hope that others might have it right.
"But in the examples that I've given, that will not happen at this point in time. You know why? Because the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi, according to Peter Buck and Pōmare, and, dare I say it, Carroll, and, dare I say it, the genius Ngata who got a law degree in two years flat-a record for any student in this country in law-there are no principles to the Treaty of Waitangi. In 1987, five judges wrestling over the Lands case..."
At that point Green Party co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick laughed out loud and Peters derailed from his answer and addressed her by saying, "I know why that member's laughing; because she knows nothing about the law".
The Treaty Principles Bill is a commitment made to Seymour during the coalition agreement talks with National.
It was a compromise on National supporting a referendum on the issue, which neither National nor New Zealand First would support.
Seymour told RNZ on Monday both Luxon and Jones had "jumped the gun" with their comments at Koroneihana.
"They're not lying but they've closed their minds when there's more information to come," Seymour said.
"The legislation hasn't even finished drafting so they haven't seen it, neither have they seen the public reaction."
Seymour believes the bill, when it is produced, will be "a lot more positive and popular than has been made out by some actors".
