August 27, 2013
Cunliffe keen to work with iwi
Labour leadership contender David Cunliffe believes he will be able to reach out to Māori voters.
The New Lynn MP is lining up against list MP Shane Jones and Wellington Central MP Grant Robertson to take the job vacated by David Shearer.
Mr Cunliffe says as a west Auckland MP he is used to working with constituents who come from other countries and cultures, but there is a special place for Māori in New Zealand’s constitutional make-up.
“I work closely with colleagues in the Māori caucus and I am deeply committed to the treaty partnership. I believe we need to be working closely with iwi around the country and I’m floating the idea that we commit to a regular series of iwi forums where we meet systematically with iwi rūnanga. I want to demonstrate that Labour takes Māoridom very seriously and that the partnership is part of how we work,” he says.
David Cunliffe says whoever wins the leadership vote on September 15, the three contenders have pledged to work closely together for the good of the party.
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