Pita Tipene New Chairman of the Trust That Governs the Waitangi Treaty Grounds

Waitangi, 14 February 2018 – Waitangi National Trust (WNT), the organisation which is responsible for governance of the Waitangi Treaty Grounds, has appointed two new members to its Board and elected a new Chairman.

WNT brings together a diverse Board that all share the vision that Waitangi will be Aotearoa’s most significant place and will work to ensure that all New Zealander’s understand the country’s past as a means to build a future for everyone.

New Chairman Pita Tipene represents the descendants of Kawiti on the Board and is Ngati Hine. He has an educational background but is now closely involved in Taitokerau economic initiatives and holds a number of governance roles in this regard.

Tania Te Rangingangana Simpson was elected Co-Deputy Chair alongside the current Deputy Chair, Dennis McBrearty. Tania is of Ngāti Manu whakapapa and the Pomare representative on the Board. Among her many appointments, Tania is a Director of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand, Ngai Tahu Tourism, Tainui Group Holdings, Ag Research, Deep South National Science Challenge, a Board member of Global Women and a member of the Waitangi Tribunal.

Dennis McBrearty has been Deputy-Chairman of the WNT Board since 2013 and Acting-Chairman since the departure of former Chairman, Pita Paraone, in September 2017. Dennis is a Director of Law North, a leading law firm in the Far North and is a specialist in property (residential and commercial), business legal matters, wills, estates and trusts. Dennis has been part of the Bay of Islands community for over 30 years and is the Bay of Islands representative Trustee on the Waitangi National Trust Board.

Two more Trust members representing the New Zealand Government and Government Opposition have also been appointed - Rino Tirikatene and Dr Shane Reti respectively.

Rino Tirikatene represents Te Tai Tonga, the largest electorate in the country and is part of the family that has given significant parliamentary service to Māori in Te Waipounamu and Labour in the Southern Māori electorate (1932-1996). He is Ngāi Tahu on his paternal side, and Ngāti Hine on his maternal side. Prior to entering parliament, Rino had over 14 years’ experience working in Māori economic development roles. He also has over four years’ experience in legal practice in a national law firm specialising in corporate business law.

Dr Shane Reti QSM is the Member of Parliament for Whangārei. Dr Reti is currently a member of the Health Select Committee and Deputy Chair of the Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Select Committee. He is Co-Chair of the NZ/US Parliamentary Group, is on the executive of Parliamentarians for Nuclear Disarmament and is the parliamentary facilitator for Arthritis New Zealand. Previously, Dr Reti practised medicine for over 16 years as well as occupying roles with Northland District Health Board, as an Assistant Professor at Harvard University and as Beachhead advisor to New Zealand Trade and Enterprise.

ENDS

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