Green Party list MP Hūhana Lyndon says Māori men in Te Tai Tokerau are facing deep and urgent challenges around mental distress, suicide risk and access to the right support.
Lyndon, a long-time advocate for whānau wellbeing in the north, says communities are seeing the impacts of poverty, housing stress, unemployment, disconnection and underfunded health services weighing heavily on tāne Māori and their whānau.
She says Te Tai Tokerau has strong iwi, hapū and community-led providers already doing vital work, but many are stretched thin and forced to respond to crisis without the long-term investment needed to prevent harm earlier.
Lyndon says the region does not currently have the resources required to properly address both the causes and treatment of mental distress, particularly for Māori men who may not feel seen or supported by mainstream services.
She says solutions must be grounded in whakapapa, whānau, whenua and kaupapa Māori approaches, rather than short-term programmes that fail to reflect the realities of Māori communities.
The call comes as wider debate continues over the Government’s conservation reforms, with opposition parties warning proposed changes could make it easier to dispose of conservation land and weaken protections. The Department of Conservation says the Conservation Amendment Bill is intended to modernise land management, streamline concessions and provide more flexibility around land exchange and disposal.
For Lyndon, the issues are connected by the need for decision-making that protects whenua, strengthens whānau and upholds Te Tiriti.
She says improving outcomes for Māori men will require sustained investment in Māori-led services, stronger support for providers already trusted by communities, and structural change that gives iwi and hapū real power to design and deliver solutions.
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