In today's headlines with Susie Nordqvist, Kamala Harris has selected her running mate, and pathologist says it's likely Lachie Jones drowned. Video / NZ Herald / Getty
The Prime Minister says “it pays to be incredibly simple and clear and use English” when talking to Australians, an explanation of why te reo Māori phrases were removed from an official Government invitation.
Christopher Luxon made the statement in Parliament today in response to a question from Labour leader Chris Hipkins on whether he supported one of his minister’s decisions to remove the phrases.
The Minister of Arts, Culture and Heritage Paul Goldsmith, told his staff to “simplify” an invitation sent to his Australian counterpart for Matariki celebrations. Goldsmith asked staff to remove “Aotearoa” and “tēnā koe”.
During Question Time in the House, Hipkins asked: “Does his Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage’s decision... reflect the standard of behaviour that he expects from his ministers?”
Luxon responded: “Well, I would just say to that member, we value te reo in this Government. What I’d also say to that member is, the correspondence was being directed to an Australian minister overseas.
“And what I’d say to you is, in my dealings with Australians, it always pays to be incredibly simple and clear and use English.”
Responding to another question from Labour’s Māori Development spokesman, Goldsmith said he thought English phrases “would be more easily understood by the Australian [minister]”.
Government’s position on te reo Māori use ‘confusing as hell’
Meanwhile, the roll-out of the Government’s controversial position on te reo Māori in the public service has been labelled “confusing as hell”, as departments take different approaches to implementing the coalition’s English first position.
New Zealand First campaigned on stripping government departments of te reo names, with Winston Peters saying at the time it was “not an attack on the Māori language – it’s an attack on the elite virtue-signallers who have hijacked language for their own socialist means”.
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon during Question Time, Parliament. Photo / Mark Mitchell
The position was adopted into the National / New Zealand First coalition agreement, which states the Government will “ensure all public service departments have their primary name in English” and “require the public service departments and Crown entities to communicate primarily in English”, except for those specifically related to Māori.
After the issue was taken to Cabinet in May, Public Service Minister Nicola Willis announced an all of government directive would not be sent out, with her instead delegating the issue to each minister to manage with their own department on a case-by-case basis.
The Public Service Association’s Te Rangai Kaitakawaenga Maori or Māori national lead Marcia Puru told the Herald it’s led to an inconsistent approach across departments, with ministers from different political parties “not aligned in their thinking”.
Raphael Franks is an Auckland-based reporter who covers breaking news. He joined the Herald as a Te Rito cadet in 2022.
