Extra funding to reach Treaty settlement goal
Budget 2010 provides an extra $6.5 million over the next three years to achieve the Government's goal of settling all
historical Treaty of Waitangi claims by 2014.
“The last year has seen a significant acceleration in Treaty settlements,” Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations Minister
Christopher Finlayson says. "Since Budget 2009, the Government has signed 11 agreements in principle and six deeds of
settlement.
“The rate of progress in key negotiations means that extra resources are required to maintain and build on that
momentum.”
The extra funding will provide resources for the successful team of Crown chief negotiators, the employment of extra
staff to support negotiations and speed up the drafting of deeds of settlement.
“More groups are also keen to ramp up the speed of their negotiations, since they have seen the benefits that settling
claims in a timely fashion can bring for their people by creating new jobs and unlocking economic development
opportunities,” Mr Finlayson says.
“This extra funding shows the Government is committed to its goal of reaching just and durable settlements of historical
Treaty claims by 2014.
“That’s why it is important we get down to the business of settling claims with as little delay as possible, so all New
Zealanders can look to the future and move forward together.”
The extra funding comes on top of the additional $22.2 million in operational funding in the Budget last year.
ENDS