Tribunal agrees to urgent hearing over wananga

The Government must defend claims that it breached a Treaty of Waitangi settlement with Te Wananga o Aotearoa.

The Waitangi Tribunal agreed yesterday to hear an urgent claim lodged by the parent body of the wananga, the Aotearoa Institute, against the Crown for breach of a 1998 Treaty settlement.

At a preliminary hearing this month the institute said urgency was needed as the Crown had taken effective control of the wananga.

The group said the Government planned to slash the wananga's size and scope and restrict it to Maori students only.

Compensation sought includes payment of a $20 million suspensory loan - part of the Treaty settlement - and compensation for losses suffered due to negative publicity driven by the Government.

The Crown opposed the urgent hearing, saying many of the issues were being dealt with by the Auditor-General in a report due in December.

The tribunal agreed that those issues would not be addressed, but said others needed urgent attention.

The three-day hearing will begin on November 30.