Compensate Maori for seabed: Roundtable

By HELEN TUNNAH

Maori and private landowners who have their property rights to the seabed and foreshore extinguished by the Government should be paid fair and just compensation, according to the Business Roundtable.

But it says any compensation paid to Maori for the loss of customary title should not include preferential commercial rights to marine projects.

The group said the economic stakes of the foreshore and seabed were "potentially high" and included rights to fish, and engage in marine farming, oil and mineral exploration and development."

It opposed the Government's proposals including vesting ownership of the seabed and foreshore in the "public domain", barring Maori claims to customary title. It wants the Government to let the courts determine title claims.

More than 1000 submissions have been made on the Government's discussion document, but it has not yet commented on what policy it expects to adopt.

Maori at consultation hui throughout New Zealand have overwhelmingly rejected the proposals.

Business Roundtable executive director Roger Kerr said uncertainty about customary title to the seabed and foreshore could not be resolved unless the court process was allowed to run its course.

He said although the Roundtable believed there should be open access to and use of the foreshore and seabed, existing private rights should be upheld.

"These rights include legitimate Maori customary rights to title."

Mr Kerr said that if those rights, and private property rights, were extinguished by a new law, then fair and just compensation should be paid.

The Roundtable report said determining the status of Maori customary land was difficult, particularly without court rulings on which claims were valid.

It said that it would be "inappropriate" to base any compensation on a share of commercial projects.

"If compensation is to be paid, it should be in cash or limited to a fraction of the net proceeds from the sale of rights and not confer Maori preferential participationin commercial projects or preferential rights to determine the nature of any such projects.

"The Government's proposals entail a substantial erosion of private property rights, including Maori customary rights to ownership, which is detrimental to prosperity.

"The future development of sea-based industries is directly affected."

The Business Roundtable said the discussion document had advanced no compelling argument for curtailing the rights of Maori to pursue their claims through the court.