New Zealand First has put the future of the Waitangi Tribunal firmly into the Election 2026 campaign, unveiling a policy aimed at winding back what leader Winston Peters describes as the Waitangi make-work industry.
In a policy announcement and campaign speech released on Saturday, Peters set out NZ First’s case for significant changes to the Treaty settlement and Waitangi Tribunal system. The announcement comes after ACT separately proposed completing historical Treaty settlements and then winding up the Tribunal.
NZ First’s policy argues that the historical Treaty settlement process needs to be brought to a conclusion and that institutions established to deal with historical grievances should not continue expanding into broader areas of government policy once that work is completed.
Peters is also taking aim at the growing use of Treaty principles across legislation, government agencies and public-sector decision-making, arguing the system has moved well beyond the original purpose of resolving historical grievances.
The policy is likely to sharpen an already significant election divide over Te Tiriti o Waitangi, the future of the Tribunal and the constitutional relationship between Māori and the Crown.
Te Pāti Māori has taken a sharply different position. Earlier in the campaign it announced a policy to make Waitangi Tribunal recommendations binding, arguing the institution remains an important mechanism for holding the Crown accountable for breaches of Te Tiriti.
The Tribunal itself remains active across major contemporary kaupapa. Just this week it found the Crown had no clear alternative plan for Māori health following the abolition of Te Aka Whai Ora, while Māori education and Treaty provisions have also featured prominently in recent Tribunal proceedings.
That leaves voters facing markedly different proposals about what role, if any, the Waitangi Tribunal should play once outstanding historical settlements are completed.
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