February 01, 2024
National intentions good says new Māori MP
New Plymouth MP David McLeod has used his maiden speech to reassure Māori that te reo and Te Tiriti o Waitangi is safe in the hands of the National Party.
The former Taranaki Regional Council chair and Paraninihi ki Waitotara Incorporation board member has connections to Te Atiawa, Ngāi Tahu and Ngāti Porou, and his grandfather Edward Pohau Ellison was one of the first Maori doctors.
“I’m hoping that hui of recent weeks and the upcoming Waitangi celebrations go some way to reassuring Māori that the National Party are not here to remove te reo off the landscape of New Zealand, that we do value te tiriti as our founding document, that we will uphold and respect and all Treaty settlements and that we want better health and education outcomes for Māori along with every other Kiwi,” Mr McLeod says.