The diminishing of Te Arawhiti is another disappointing attack on the place of Māori in Aotearoa, said the Public Service Association.

The Government announced today its intention to refocus Te Arawhiti purely on its legislative functions under Te Tiriti o Waitangi and the Marine and Coastal Area (Takutai Moana) Act.

Te Puni Kōkiri will take over the post Treaty settlement implementation function and other functions.

The PSA is the union for staff at Te Arawhiti which has a workforce of about 200.

"This is a confusing plan which risks undermining the good work of Te Arawhiti and the progress that has been made by the agency to achieve better results for Māori," said Janice Panoho, Te Kaihautū Māori for Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi Public Service Association.

Te Arawhiti, established in 2018, has been pivotal in fostering Māori-Crown relations and ensuring that the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi are upheld within the public service.

"Why take the risk of unwinding this good work just six years later?

"The whole point of Te Arawhiti was to be a one stop shop for accelerating treaty settlements, supporting Māori in the future so Treaty settlement commitments were implemented and strengthening the public service capability around the Treaty.

"The splitting off of functions means Te Arawhiti will lose the connection it had with the teams getting the settlements agreed and the context behind them. How is that efficient?

"By limiting Te Arawhiti to treaty settlements and Takutai Moana it sends a signal that the agency will be left doing the bare minimum as both are legislated requirements.

"This will have a damaging impact on the morale of staff who have already been dealing with a change process which has now been shelved. This says much about the Government’s poor planning around all its rushed spending cuts.

"The intention of the change has been poorly communicated to staff which is really disappointing given how committed they are to improving outcomes to Māori."

"This confusing change leaves staff in a state of uncertainty for the future and they will almost inevitably start the process of looking for other work rather than risk getting caught up in the fallout of this.

"We call on the Government to reconsider this poorly thought through restructure and recognise the critical importance of Te Arawhiti work and the value it brings to Aotearoa," said Janice Panoho.

Note: The Public Service Association Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi is Aotearoa New Zealand's largest trade union, representing and supporting more than 95,000 workers across central government, state-owned enterprises, local councils, health boards and community groups.

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