Te Pāti Māori co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer and Labour MP Willie Jackson react to the Prime Minister not attending Waitangi next year.
Waitangi leaders are warning of a “furore” building within te ao Māori that could disrupt this year’s Waitangi Day celebrations as the Government prepares to defend its policies at the birthplace of Te Tiriti o Waitangi without Prime Minister Christopher Luxon.
Tens of thousands are expected to converge on the small Northland settlement over the coming week for the annual festivities featuring a dawn ceremony on Waitangi Day (Thursday) and an at-times fiery pōwhiri (welcome) for members of Parliament the day before.
While this year’s celebrations largely resemble those from previous years, 2025 brings unique aspects that will set it apart from the rest.
Chief among them is the absence of Luxon, who confirmed last year he would be marking New Zealand’s national day in another part of the country.
Former prime ministers from both National and Labour have done the same but Luxon is the first to do so since the festivities were moved from Te Tii Marae up to the meeting house, Te Whare Rūnanga.
Expected to be somewhere in the South Island, Luxon on Friday promised more details would come next week but stood by his decision not to be at Waitangi.
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon is expected to be celebrating Waitangi Day in the South Island this year. Photo / Michael Cunningham
Waitangi National Trust board chairman Pita Tipene said much of the angst associated with Luxon’s absence had “died a natural death”, even if it remained a disappointment.
“It would have been bloody great for the head of the Kāwanatanga, the coalition Government, to have been there but they won’t be, so we just keep focusing on the kaupapa, which is to remember the promise of Waitangi,” he said.
“What’s that Meat Loaf song? Two Out Of Three Ain’t Bad.”
The two Tipene is referring to are Luxon’s coalition partners; Act leader David Seymour and New Zealand First leader Winston Peters.
Tipene told the Herald he suspected Luxon’s absence would give his coalition parties more time in the spotlight.
“It allows both the Act Party and NZ First to focus on their manifestos as [they] apply to Waitangi Day, so the whole focus will be on those two parties, less so the National Party.”
Neither Seymour nor Peters felt Luxon’s absence would detract from proceedings, Peters arguing the PM had long expressed an interest in celebrating Waitangi Day elsewhere.
Luxon’s decision means he will miss what is expected to be a tense debate on the Government’s Treaty Principles Bill, on which oral submissions are currently being made to Parliament’s Justice select committee.
An Act Party creation, the bill is among the most contentious items within the coalition agreement and has been at the centre of protests concerning the Government’s approach to Māori-related policy.
Since last year’s Waitangi Day, Luxon has ramped up his assurances the bill will not progress past the select committee as agreed by all three parties. At Rātana last week, Peters stressed the bill was “dead in the water” and questioned why Act’s effort to rewrite the Treaty’s principles was causing so much concern.
Waitangi National Trust board chairman Pita Tipene speaks to the press at Waitangi 2024. Photo / Michael Cunningham
Tipene said it was likely the bill would be a common topic for the home speakers, as well as other recent developments like changes to the Waitangi Tribunal’s members, which had caused an “extra furore amongst our Māori people”.
“It’s only adding tensions in the lead-up to Waitangi.
“I really do think [the bill has] got the potential to disrupt proceedings and as I’ve said in previous years, we want a hell of a lot more light cast on it with civil debates and less heat ... we want everyone to be welcome, we want everyone to be safe and secure.”
Last year’s pōwhiri was regularly interrupted by those seeking to disrupt Government speeches, particularly those from Seymour and Peters, who faced yelling and heckling while others sang in the hope of drowning the speakers out.
Tipene acknowledged the behaviour was unacceptable, a position reiterated by Peters.
“Frankly, that is so absurd that it had to be of concern to the Waitangi Trust,” he told the Herald.
“The reality is we’re not going to have people come up and intimidate us ... we’re not going to take a step back from people who are not from [Waitangi] insulting us on our own marae so to speak.”
NZ First leader Winston Peters (centre) was strongly heckled at last year's Waitangi. Photo / Michael Cunningham
Peters echoed his comments at Rātana when asked about the Treaty Principles Bill and how it would feature in discussions at Waitangi.
“What’s regrettable is that a whole lot of people remain steamed up around an issue which is dead in the water.
“They know it but they must be prospecting a greater publicisation of their anger, regardless of the futility of what they’re saying.”
Despite the likely protest, Peters said it wasn’t appropriate to discuss with Seymour what tone the Government sought to take on the bill.
“We appear as a government, but we also are there as political party leaders and everyone has got different views and in that circumstance, it’s acceptable to be having an expression of difference or not total agreement so no, I’m not going to be doing that.”
Seymour expected there would be those who were “misinformed” about his bill to strongly oppose his presence, but he warned of the impact protest action could have.
“A lot of people watching the TV that night will see it as representing Māoridom generally, rather than perhaps one relatively small group who choose to sing over a speaker.
“I just say, think carefully about the perceptions you create and how they affect others around you.”
With Luxon away, National’s contingent would be led by Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka.
He predicted Seymour’s bill would be “very topical” at Waitangi but indicated his focus would be on exhibiting the Government’s efforts to improve the quality of life for all New Zealanders, including Māori.
The bill was among the primary drivers of an immense nationwide hīkoi that led to tens of thousands protesting outside Parliament late last year.
A fierce challenge greeted Act leader David Seymour (right) last year. Photo / Michael Cunningham
Tipene said the trust was communicating with protest organisers, who had been using social media to call on supporters to participate in a protest “activation” at the same time as MPs are expected to be welcomed onto Waitangi.
While Te Pāti Māori featured heavily in last year’s hīkoi, co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer said Waitangi was a chance for her party to listen to whānau instead of using the festivities for political purposes.
“We’ll be really more keen on using that time together to get up there and listen to the kōrero.”
She was among those critical of Luxon’s absence, even if she wasn’t surprised.
“The reality is that this is a Prime Minister who represents the nation with a million of tangata whenua, so it is a nation that is built off Te Tiriti and he should have made an effort to be a Tiriti-centric Prime Minister, he’s not.”
Te Pāti Māori would be welcomed onto Waitangi a day earlier than the bulk of politicians, participating in a pōwhiri alongside the Kīngitanga and new Māori Queen Ngā Wai Hono i te Pō.
On Wednesday, representatives of the five remaining political parties would be welcomed on together, including Green co-leader Marama Davidson who yesterday announced her return to politics in more than six months following a breast cancer diagnosis.
Waitangi Day on Thursday would feature the traditional dawn service, as well as waka ceremonies and a church service.
One change was a partial revival of the popular Waitangi Day breakfast, initiated under the Jacinda Ardern-led governments.
This year, a “light breakfast” would be supplied to those in attendance, organised by Local Government New Zealand and Woolworths Waitangi.
Adam Pearse is a political reporter in the NZ Herald Press Gallery team, based at Parliament. He has worked for NZME since 2018, covering sport and health for the Northern Advocate in Whangārei before moving to the NZ Herald in Auckland, covering Covid-19 and crime.
