NZ First would abolish Waitangi Tribunal in first 100 days
New Zealand First would abolish the Waitangi Tribunal after the election and introduce the law for its replacement in the first 100 days of a new government. RNZ
The party announced the policy on 26 September. It says the new body would be called the Treaty of Waitangi Completion Commission. It would finalise all claims from before 2008.
The proposal is abolition and replacement, not a smaller Tribunal. The 100-day promise puts the law in the post-election work programme, with other early bills.
The Tribunal describes itself as a standing commission of inquiry — a permanent inquiry set up under law. Waitangi Tribunal It makes recommendations on claims brought by Māori about laws, policies and government actions. Waitangi Tribunal
New Zealand First has talked about this area before. In a State of the Nation speech in March 2024, the party said it would stop all work on He Puapua. NZ First In the same speech it said it would change the Waitangi Tribunal law. NZ First It also said it would change the Marine and Coastal Area Act, which it said had more than 600 claims. NZ First
That earlier wording was about amendment. The September policy is about abolition. Amendment changes a law part by part. Abolition closes a body and moves its work elsewhere.
ACT has put forward a different order. On 10 September it promised to remove the Tribunal's power to look at current government policies if elected. 1News It also promised to close the Tribunal once historical claims are finished. 1News
ACT would therefore remove the current-policy role first, then close the Tribunal when the historical cases are cleared. New Zealand First would work to a fixed timetable, with a new commission limited to finalising claims from before 2008. Both would end the Tribunal as it is now. They differ on timing, the law used, and what replaces it.
The broader context here is how the two positions would be brought together in talks after the election. Officials and party whips — the MPs who organise votes and negotiations — would focus on three points. First, what the new body would cover and what the 2008 cut-off would mean in law. Second, whether the power to examine current policies is removed on its own or as part of the abolition law. Third, what happens to claims already filed, heard or part-heard.
Looking at what this means for Parliament, a 100-day bill shortens the time for select committee checks and for public submissions. Iwi, claimants, the Tribunal and the courts would watch the savings rules closely. These are the rules that say what carries over. The Opposition would ask whether the Completion Commission is a short-term body to finish settlements or a permanent body under another name. As with Treaty law, the detail will carry the weight.
