I am not happy as a ratepayer to pay $60,000 yearly, in addition to my taxpayer contributions for everything Maori - and this in addition to the Constitution Amendments the Maori Council has in store for governance of this country. Iwi and hapu have entrenched Resource Management Act control - much of which is final and can't be appealed. This is just another road in for Maori to control Council as it controls Government. Co-governance is not an issue. We are not two nations and should not subscribe to the notion that 14% of New Zealanders
can tell us that we are not one people. It would appear the Regional Council has been funding iwi $50-$70,000 each year since the 1990s to consult. .Now TCC has been conned into consultation fees of $60,000. When is enough enough. Soon Tauranga City Council will be paying Maori a salary to sit in an advisory capacity as a separate issue. Some Councils have refused to do this saying Maori representation can be voted in democratically.
The Council has been told by the Office of the Treaty of Waitangi that there will be co- governance and co- management agreements put in place coming out of Treaty settlement. At the very least we should not be paying fees to do this but mostly it should not be happening at all.
Government sets aside $62.million consultation expenses annually to pay Maori for the Treaty claim process and tell us how much our next payment and apology will cost. When will it stop?

RE Stephens, Tauranga.