Act’s David Seymour gives indication of Treaty Principles Bill timeline, says Select Committee will run for six months

The contentious Treaty Principles Bill will spend six months being debated in a Parliamentary select committee, Act leader David Seymour says.

Seymour says a draft version of the bill will be released publicly in November before going through the standard six-month select committee process, lasting until sometime in May 2025.

“It will be a standard length select committee, so that takes you through to sometime around next May.”

The policy is part of the coalition Government’s agreement. Seymour’s coalition partners, National and NZ First, have already said they will support the bill to select committee, but not beyond that.

Seymour was pressed by reporters on whether there had been any debate about a shorter select committee process. He said there had been “lots of discussions” about possible timelines.

“I think the important thing is the coalition agreement says ‘as soon as practicable’.

“We’re making sure that we do a fulsome process, treat the process, the Parliament, the legislation with respect and dignity that it deserves but also fulfil that requirement of doing it as soon as practicable.”

Public details around the proposed bill are sparse. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says he has not seen a draft yet and Seymour on Tuesday said he was limited in what further details around timing he could provide due to Cabinet confidentiality.

“I’m not going to go into each and every detail because I’m supposed to keep Cabinet proceedings confidential.

“Ultimately what you’re going to see is, for the first time, the idea that we all actually have a say. It’s never been a process like that. We’ve always done this on the basis of it’s a judicial or tribunal type process.”

The standard select committee process is six months, but the Government can allocate a shorter timeframe for the process if it wants to.

During this time, a committee of MPs hear submissions from the public before recommending any amendments to the draft bill to the House.

Among the critics of the bill is a group of more than 400 church leaders who earlier this week penned an open letter calling on MPs to do everything in their power to prevent the bill from going to select committee.

The group says the bill could be divisive, cause the spread of disinformation and hinder “efforts of healing and reconciliation.”

The letter states: “As Christian leaders from across Aotearoa New Zealand we express our commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi. We affirm that Te Tiriti o Waitangi protects the Tino Rangatiratanga of hapū and iwi. That rangatiratanga over land and taonga is to be upheld.

“We therefore express our opposition to the proposed Treaty Principles Bill.”

Seymour told the Herald the pushback by the churches was undemocratic, and not the first time church had tried to interfere in democracy.

Julia Gabel is a Wellington-based political reporter. She joined the Herald in 2020 and has most recently focused on data journalism.