KEY POINTS:
The Maori Party has gone into the negotiations room with the National Party leadership sounding optimistic about working with the party and praising John Key for not being afraid to acknowledge Maori.
Party co-leaders Tariana Turia and Pita Sharples, and the party president Whatarangi Winiata met with National's leader John Key, his deputy Bill English and Maori MP Georgina te Heuheu at 9am today.
Ms Turia said the party could not afford to have any bottom lines and did not know if any ministerial posts or policy concessions would be offered. She expected the question of what level of governing relationship the two could have would be worked out during negotiations.
However, she sounded hopeful the two could work together, indicating the work National had done prior to the election to foster a relationship with the Maori Party had paid off.
"I think the important thing is that John Key has acknowledged the place of tangata whenua in this land. He hasn't been afraid to do that. He has acknowledged there are significant Maori developments that have taken place both for Maori and by Maori and we are hopeful."
She said the party had given National its policy document, but because National could govern with Act and United Future, it was not in a position to have bottom lines.
"We are being invited to their table and we respect that."
Pita Sharples said Mr Key had promised before the election that National was interested in talking to the Maori Party even if it had enough to govern without it.
Asked how confident she was that her party could work with National, she said "we've never worried about red or blue. We have a set of kaupapa, or aspirations our people want to achieve."
Mr Sharples said the election result meant it was no longer an issue of which party the Maori Party dealt with, because Labour was out of the equation.
"The question is shall we seek gains, what are they and should we go for them."
