Minister for Māori Development

The Minister for Māori Development is the minister in the New Zealand Government with broad responsibility for government policy towards Māori, the first inhabitants of New Zealand. The Minister heads Te Puni Kōkiri (TPK, or the Ministry of Māori Development). Between 1947 and 2014 the position was called Minister of Māori Affairs; before that it was known as Minister of Native Affairs. The current Minister for Māori Development is Tama Potaka.

Role The role of the Minister for Māori Development differs from those of other ministers. While the Minister for Māori Development does have a government department to supervise (Te Puni Kōkiri, TPK for short, or the Ministry of Māori Development), he or she also has input into other portfolios to the extent that they affect Māori. For example, the Minister for Māori Development would expect to be involved in the development of Māori language policy in the education portfolio, even though education is normally the sole responsibility of the Minister of Education.

History The office was originally called Minister of Native Affairs, or simply Native Minister. Most early Ministers of Native Affairs were not Māori, although a convention existed that there should be Māori in Cabinet (albeit without portfolio). Prior to the implementation of responsible government, Māori affairs (specifically the purchase of land from Māori by the Crown) had been handled by the Governor.Butterworth and Young, "Appendix 1: Political Heads of the Departments of Maori Affairs," Maori Affairs, pp. 123–124.

Attitudes of early Ministers were varied. The first Minister, William Richmond, considered Māori to be savages, and believed that his task was to "reform" Māori by making them more like Europeans. He was particularly hostile to Māori tradition of shared land ownership, considering it "beastly communism". Other Ministers were more friendly to Māori interests — James FitzGerald, the sixth Minister, believed that peaceful co-existence with Māori was vital, and considered the confiscation of Māori land to be an "enormous crime". Other Ministers have varied between these positions.Butterworth and Young, Maori Affairs, pp. 5–7.

The first Minister of Native Affairs to be ethnically Māori was James Carroll, appointed by the Liberal Party in the late 19th century.Butterworth and Young, Maori Affairs, p. 58. Another prominent Minister of Native Affairs was Āpirana Ngata, also of the Liberals. For the most part, however, early Ministers were Pākehā, although were frequently advised by Māori colleagues.Butterworth and Young, Maori Affairs, pp. 74–78. Maui Pomare of the Reform Party and Eruera Tirikatene of the Labour Party were examples of politicians who played a major role in the portfolio without actually holding office. After Carroll and Ngata, it was not until Matiu Rata (1972–1975) that there was another ethnically Māori Minister of Māori Affairs.Butterworth and Young, Maori Affairs, pp. 107–110.

Under the Maori Purposes Act 1947, the Ministerial title and all other government usage was changed from 'Native' to 'Maori'.Butterworth and Young, Maori Affairs, pp. 123–124.

1972 to present Matiu Rata, appointed as the Minister of Māori Affairs in 1972, the first Maori since Ngata was Minister of Native Affairs in 1928.

After the 2014 general election cabinet reshuffle, the title was changed from Minister of Māori Affairs to Minister for Māori Development. While Prime Minister John Key said that there was not really any difference in what the portfolio would involve, "it gives you a sense of where the minister [Flavell] will want to shape the portfolio". During the 2014–2017 term of the Fifth National Government, Te Ururoa Flavell served as the Minister for Māori Development.

Following the formation of the Sixth Labour Government, Nanaia Mahuta was appointed as Minister for Māori Development.

List of ministers The table below lists ministers who have held responsibility for Māori issues. Initially, the title used was Minister of Native Affairs, but the title was changed to Minister of Maori Affairs on 17 December 1947 and then to Minister of Māori Affairs with the insertion of the macron in modern orthography under the Māori Language Commission. In 2014, the title was changed for a fourth time to Minister for Māori Development. Key

No.NamePortraitWas Māori?Term of officePrime Minister As Minister of Native Affairs 1 William Richmond No 27 August 1858 10 November 1860Stafford 2 Frederick Weld No 10 November 1860 12 July 1861 3 Walter Mantell No 12 July 1861 18 December 1861 Fox 4 Dillon Bell No 6 August 1862 30 October 1863 Domett 5 William Fox No 18 December 1861 30 October 1863 Whitaker (3) Walter Mantell No 30 October 1863 27 July 1865Weld 6 James FitzGerald No 27 July 1865 16 October 1865 7 Andrew Russell No 16 October 1865 24 August 1866Stafford 8 James Crowe Richmond No 24 August 1866 28 June 18699Donald McLeanNo28 June 18697 December 1876 Fox Waterhouse Fox Vogel Pollen Vogel Atkinson 10 Daniel Pollen No 18 December 1876 13 October 1877 11 John Sheehan No 15 October 1877 8 October 1879 Grey 12 John Bryce No 8 October 1879 21 January 1881Hall 13 William Rolleston No 4 February 1881 19 October 1881(12)John BryceNo19 October 188116 August 1884 Whitaker Atkinson 14 John Ballance No 16 August 18843 September 1884 28 August 18848 October 1887 Stout 15 Edwin Mitchelson No 8 October 1887 24 January 1891 Atkinson (14) John Ballance No 24 January 1891 4 February 1891Ballance16Alfred CadmanNo4 February 189129 June 1893Seddon 17 Richard Seddon No 29 June 1893 21 December 189918James CarrollYes21 December 189928 March 1912 Hall-Jones Ward 19 William MacDonald No 28 March 1912 10 July 1912 Mackenzie 20 William Herries No 10 July 1912 7 February 1921Massey21Gordon Coates No7 February 192110 December 1928 Bell Coates22Āpirana NgataYes10 December 19281 November 1934 WardForbes 23 George Forbes No 1 November 1934 6 December 1935 24 Michael Joseph Savage No 6 December 1935 27 March 1940 Savage 25 Frank Langstone No 1 April 1940 21 December 1942Fraser 26 Rex Mason No 7 July 1943 19 December 1946 27 Peter Fraser No 19 December 1946 17 December 1947 As Minister of Maori Affairs (27) Peter Fraser No 17 December 1947 13 December 1949 Fraser28Ernest CorbettNo13 December 194926 September 1957 HollandHolyoake 29 Keith Holyoake No 26 September 1957 12 December 1957 30 Walter Nash No 12 December 1957 12 December 1960 Nash 31 Ralph Hanan No 12 December 1960 24 July 1969Holyoake 32 Duncan MacIntyre No 22 December 1969 8 December 1972 Marshall33Matiu RataYes8 December 197212 December 1975 Kirk Rowling (32) Duncan MacIntyre No 12 December 1975 13 December 1978Muldoon 34 Ben Couch Yes 13 December 1978 26 July 198435Koro Wētere Yes26 July 19842 November 1990 Lange Palmer Moore 36 Winston Peters Yes 2 November 1990 2 October 1991Bolger 37 Doug Kidd No 2 October 1991 6 November 1993 38 John Luxton No 6 November 1993 12 October 199639Tau HenareYes12 October 199610 December 1999 Shipley 40 Dover Samuels Yes 10 December 1999 28 June 2000Clark 41 Parekura Horomia Yes 26 July 2000 19 November 2008 As Minister for Māori Affairs 42 Pita Sharples Yes 19 November 2008 8 October 2014 Key As Minister for Māori Development 43 Te Ururoa Flavell Yes 8 October 2014 21 October 2017 Key English 44 Nanaia Mahuta Yes 26 October 2017 6 November 2020Ardern 45 Willie Jackson Yes 6 November 2020 27 November 2023 Hipkins 46 Tama Potaka Yes 27 November 2023 present Luxon

References

Minister for Māori Development

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