April 08, 2013
Law change to unlock land
A far north iwi leader says proposed changes to Māori land law should allow owners to unlock the potential of their land.
An expert panel is consulting on its review of the 20-year-old Te Ture Whenua Māori, including new governance structures and allowing decisions on land use to be made by owners who turn up to meetings, rather than needing to sign off from a majority of all the owners.
Haami Piripi from Te Rarawa says there needs to be a lot of other work done to make people aware of what land interests they may hold.
But he says Māori land represents one of the country's last untapped natural resources.
The Ministry for Primary Industry estimates that bringing the productivity of Māori land up to the national average will boost the nation's wealth by $8 billion.
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