Whereas—

• (a) the Crown intended, following the establishment of certain State enterprises under the State-Owned Enterprises Act 1986, to transfer certain land to those enterprises; and

• (b) the New Zealand Maori Council and Graham Stanley Latimer and the Iwi represented by them believed that the transfer of some or all of that land would constitute a breach by the Crown of section 9 of the State-Owned Enterprises Act 1986, which provides that nothing in that Act permits the Crown to act in a manner that is inconsistent with the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi; and

• (c) the New Zealand Maori Council and Graham Stanley Latimer, in furtherance of that belief, filed in the High Court at Wellington on 30 March 1987 an application for judicial review; and

• (d) by order of the High Court the application for judicial review was, on 1 April 1987, removed into the Court of Appeal; and

• (e) the Court of Appeal, on 29 June 1987,—

  • (i) made a declaration that the transfer of assets to State enterprises without establishing any system to consider in relation to particular assets or particular categories of assets whether such transfer would be inconsistent with the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi would be unlawful; and

  • (ii) gave certain directions concerning the preparation by the Crown of a scheme of safeguards, which was to be lodged in the Court of Appeal after it had been submitted to the New Zealand Maori Council for agreement or comment; and

  • (iii) made a further declaration (which might be varied or discharged at any time on the motion of the Crown) that in the meantime the Crown ought not to take any further action affecting any of the assets referred to in the statement of claim, by way of transfer of assets or long-term agreement or arrangement, that is or would be consequential on the exercise of statutory powers conferred by the State-Owned Enterprises Act 1986; and

• (f) after extensive negotiations between the New Zealand Maori Council and Graham Stanley Latimer and the Crown, there has not been agreement on a system, of the type described in paragraph (e)(i), to apply, as was contended for by the New Zealand Maori Council and Graham Stanley Latimer, before the transfer of assets to State enterprises but there has been agreement on an alternative system of safeguards, to apply after the transfer of assets to State enterprises, so that, in the public interest, the transfers authorised by the State-Owned Enterprises Act 1986 may take place as soon as practicable; and

• (g) it is essential, in order to protect the position of Maori claimants and to ensure compliance with section 9 of the State-Owned Enterprises Act 1986, that there be safeguards—

  • (i) including power for the Waitangi Tribunal to make a binding recommendation for the return to Maori ownership of any land or interests in land transferred to State enterprises under that Act; and

  • (ii) requiring the Waitangi Tribunal to hear any claim relating to any such land or interests in land as if it or they had not been so transferred; and

  • (iii) precluding State enterprises and their successors in title from being heard by the Waitangi Tribunal on claims relating to land or interests in land so transferred; and

• (h) the New Zealand Maori Council and Graham Stanley Latimer and the Crown have agreed that amendments to the Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975, the State-Owned Enterprises Act 1986, and the Legal Aid Act 1969 are required in order to allow the transfers and to protect existing or likely future claims before the Waitangi Tribunal; and

• (i) the Crown has agreed to submit for the consideration of Parliament a Bill containing the amendments agreed on; and

• (j) the New Zealand Maori Council and Graham Stanley Latimer and the Crown have informed the Court of Appeal of the nature of those amendments; and

• (k) the Court of Appeal has, by consent of the parties to the application for judicial review, discharged both the directions given by it to the Crown and the consequential interim declaration made by it in relation to those directions; and

• (l) it is desirable that the agreement between the New Zealand Maori Council and Graham Stanley Latimer and the Crown be given effect to and that the amendments proposed in that agreement to the Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975, the State-Owned Enterprises Act 1986, and the Legal Aid Act 1969 be made.