Maori Land Court changes rattle nerves

A restructure of the New Zealand Ministry of Justice has revealed that dozens of roles could be lost at the Maori Land Court prompting Ikaroa-Rawhiti MP Meka Whaitiri seeking answers.

The Ministry of Justice has confirmed that they are looking at changes that could impact on frontline services roles and management. Chief Operating Officer, Carl Crafer, has said “Under the proposals there might be 51 fewer positions out of about 2500.” and “We have been looking at the way we are structured and have begun consulting with our people about making some changes. These proposed changes are not focused on our front-line but looking at the proportion of managerial roles to front-line positions, and some national office positions.“We are proposing these changes to improve front-line service.”

Ms Whaitiri has said: “We need to make sure they were properly consulted and will be supported through this process. Maori landowners, whanau and hapu who put a lot of faith in the court are now facing the loss of hundreds of years of collective institutional knowledge and will be concerned at how this will affect them and their dealings with the court.“It’s also unclear whether Treaty partners have been consulted on these proposed changes.”