KEY POINTS:
The Government intends to "get a grip" on the disposal of land held by its agencies, Prime Minister Helen Clark said today.
Ministers last week announced a review of policies around the sale of sensitive Crown-owned land after the occupation of Whenuakite Station in the Coromandel by Maori who said it would form part of an upcoming Treaty claim.
Landcorp had been planning to sell the station, and the sale has been put on hold.
"I don't think the whole process around Landcorp deciding to sell has been adequate," Helen Clark said at her post-cabinet press conference.
"Landcorp isn't, in my view, just any other commercial farmer. Landcorp has land entrusted to it by the Crown and some of that land has a long history."
Landcorp's plans appeared to catch ministers on the hop last week, and Helen Clark appeared to confirm that today.
"It came as something of a surprise to many of us that Landcorp was disposing of land at the rate it was, particularly land in sensitive areas," she said.
"People have become used to seeing this land as public land, and suddenly Landcorp isn't treating it like that but just as commercial land to be farmed."
Helen Clark said the review would look at the future of land held by government agencies.
"The time has come to say 'hang on, what is the history of the land'," she said.
"In other words it's an opportunity to say 'what is the vision for this land' and it is a good opportunity to take stock of the extent such land would be useful in the Treaty settlement process."
- NZPA
