Source: Professor Jane Kelsey. The Government has given the Waitangi Tribunal just three weeks to produce its report on a claim brought by prominent Maori that the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement violates the Crown’s obligations under the Treaty of Waitangi. Law professor at the University of Auckland, Jane Kelsey, says the Government suddenly announced it is fast-tracking the report date for the select committee that is compelled to consider the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA). The Government has brought that date forward from the end of May to May 4. Professor Kelsey says the move is designed to “stymie” the Waitangi Tribunal’s TPPA report. “Why the government suddenly announced it is fast-tracking the report date for the select committee considering the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA) from the end of May to 4 May is now clear. “It gives the Waitangi Tribunal three rather than seven weeks to produce its urgent report on the claim brought by prominent Maori that the Agreement violates the Crown’s obligations under the Treaty of Waitangi,” Professor Jane Kelsey says. The claim was:
- lodged in July last year
- urgency was granted in November
- the hearing was held in mid-March
- final submissions were presented last Wednesday.