Waatea News: Māori Radio Station

Independent Te Tai Tokerau MP Mariameno Kapa-Kingi is taking her newly registered Te Tai Tokerau Party into the 2026 election, positioning the movement around tino rangatiratanga, stronger local decision-making and the wellbeing of tamariki and mokopuna.

Kapa-Kingi launched the party following her departure from Te Pāti Māori earlier this year. Parliament currently records her as the Independent MP for Te Tai Tokerau, while the new party is campaigning separately in the November election.

The party says its kaupapa places whānau and future generations at the centre of decision-making, with policies spanning Māori health, housing on whenua Māori, climate resilience, local economic development and strengthening iwi and hapū authority over environmental decisions.

Tino rangatiratanga is also central to the platform, with the party campaigning for stronger protection of He Whakaputanga and Te Tiriti, alongside greater decision-making power for whānau, hapū, iwi and local communities.

The new movement adds another dimension to the contest for Te Tai Tokerau, where Kapa-Kingi won the electorate by 517 votes in 2023. Labour, the Greens, Te Pāti Māori and Te Tai Tokerau Party all have candidates contesting the seat this election.

Kapa-Kingi joins Ata Tū on Radio Waatea to discuss why she established the party, how it intends to campaign and what its kaupapa could mean for whānau in Te Tai Tokerau and across Aotearoa.

#MariamenoKapaKingi #TeTaiTokerauParty #TeTaiTokerau #TinoRangatiratanga #TeTiriti #MāoriPolitics #MāoriElection #ManaMokopuna #Whānau #Election2026 #AtaTū #Aotearoa #WaateaNews #RadioWaatea

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Green Party MP Teanau Tuiono is putting affordability, public services and environmental protection at the centre of the Greens’ pitch to voters as the party rolls out its 2026 election platform.

The Greens have built their campaign around three broad priorities — affordable living, healthy nature and democracy — arguing additional revenue from wealthy individuals and large corporations could be used to strengthen essential public services and reduce financial pressure on households.

Its tax policy includes a 2.5 percent tax on net assets above $10 million, excluding family homes, alongside changes to corporate taxation and a new $10,000 income tax-free threshold. The party says the package would deliver an income tax reduction to 96 percent of New Zealanders.

Energy is another major plank. The Greens propose establishing a publicly owned Kiwipower, investing $200 million in community renewable energy, expanding solar across public housing and allocating $80 million for renewable energy in Māori housing.

The party is also campaigning for stronger freshwater protections, including tighter environmental limits and wastewater rules, alongside changes intended to protect rivers, drinking water and coastal environments.

Tuiono, a Green List MP with Māori and Cook Islands heritage, joins Ata Tū on Radio Waatea to discuss what the party’s policies could mean for Māori whānau, how its proposals would be funded and how the Greens intend to balance environmental protection with jobs and regional economic development. G

#TeanauTuiono #GreenParty #Election2026 #MāoriPolitics #CostOfLiving #PowerBills #Kiwipower #TaxPolicy #MāoriEconomy #Whānau #TeTaiao #Freshwater #PublicServices #AtaTū #Aotearoa #WaateaNews #RadioWaatea

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Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi is seeking to turn criticism from Hobson’s Pledge into political momentum, arguing opposition to his party is evidence its kaupapa is gaining greater attention heading towards Election 2026.

In a recent social media post, Waititi characterised campaigning against Te Pāti Māori by Hobson’s Pledge as free advertising and linked it to his party’s claim that Māori could have significant influence over the shape of the next Parliament.

Hobson’s Pledge is campaigning on constitutional and Treaty-related issues, including changes to the Waitangi Tribunal. The organisation says it supports equal citizenship and opposes policy distinctions based on ancestry, while Te Pāti Māori is campaigning to strengthen Te Tiriti mechanisms, including making Waitangi Tribunal recommendations binding.

Waititi has also been promoting a wider Te Pāti Māori policy platform spanning taxation, household costs, energy ownership, Te Tiriti and Māori political representation. Its Energy Sovereignty policy, for example, proposes a $1 billion fund to support Māori and community-owned energy assets.

There is some evidence of strong support for the party among Māori-roll voters, although that does not establish broader electoral momentum. A September Whakaata Māori–Curia poll recorded Te Pāti Māori on 29 percent among Māori-roll respondents, compared with Labour on 27 percent and the Greens on 16 percent.

Waititi joins Ata Tū on Radio Waatea to discuss the party’s election strategy, its policy priorities and why he believes attacks from political opponents and advocacy groups are strengthening rather than weakening its campaign.

#RawiriWaititi #TePātiMāori #HobsonsPledge #Election2026 #MāoriPolitics #TeTiriti #TinoRangatiratanga #MāoriSeats #MāoriVote #Waiariki #Whānau #AtaTū #Aotearoa #WaateaNews #RadioWaatea

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02102026 Dan Te Whenua Walker

Māori technology leader Dan Te Whenua Walker says Māori and Indigenous communities need to help shape artificial intelligence rather than simply become consumers of technology designed elsewhere.

Walker, of Ngāti Ruanui, is founder and chief executive of Te Whare o Toitū AI, a kaupapa Māori organisation focused on tikanga-led and values-based approaches to artificial intelligence, including the protection of Indigenous knowledge and Māori data sovereignty.

He is among the speakers at Aotearoa’s inaugural Indigenous Tech Summit, being held at Tākina in Wellington on November 26 and 27. The summit will bring together Māori, Pacific and international Indigenous technology leaders to examine artificial intelligence, data sovereignty, innovation, enterprise and the future workforce.

For Māori, one of the major questions is who controls the information being used to develop and train AI systems. Walker has previously warned that rapidly developing technology creates both opportunities and risks for mātauranga Māori, particularly where Indigenous knowledge and data could be collected or used without appropriate governance or consent.

Walker argues Aotearoa has an opportunity to develop AI differently by embedding tikanga, whakapapa and Māori data sovereignty into technology from the beginning, rather than attempting to retrofit cultural safeguards after systems have already been developed.

He joins Ata Tū on Radio Waatea to discuss AI ethics, data sovereignty and what whānau, iwi and Māori organisations can do now to ensure Indigenous communities have a meaningful role in deciding how artificial intelligence develops.

#DanTeWhenuaWalker #ToitūAI #ArtificialIntelligence #AI #IndigenousTechSummit #MāoriTech #MāoriDataSovereignty #DataSovereignty #MātaurangaMāori #TikangaMāori #ManaMotuhake #IndigenousAI #DigitalFuture #Technology #AtaTū #Aotearoa #WaateaNews #RadioWaatea

The post Who Owns the Future? Māori Leadership Takes Centre Stage in the AI Revolution appeared first on Waatea News: Māori Radio Station.

I ngā kamepeina kōwhiringa ā-motu e haere ana, he nui ngā ia hou e kitea ana i ngā hapori o te motu.

E ai ki a Huhana Lyndon, kaitono tōrangapū ā-rohe mō Te Taitokerau, kua tino rerekē te wairua o ngā kōrero a ngā whānau e tae atu ana ki ngā hui kamepeina me ngā hui tautohe a ngā kaitono.

Hei tāna, kua nui ake ngā whānau e hiahia ana ki te whakaū i te āio me te mahi tahi i waenga i ngā rōpū tōrangapū, ahakoa te oke a ngā pāti i te kāwanatanga ki te whakawehewehe ki te whakaoreore i ngā kare ā-roto o te tangata.

The post Huhana Lyndon | Whakamutua atu ngā mahi whakawehewehe, ngā mahi whakaoreore i ngā kare ā-roto. appeared first on Waatea News: Māori Radio Station.

Long-time advocate for Māori social and political advancement Merepeka Raukawa-Tait says election campaigns provide an important opportunity to look beyond political slogans and examine what competing policies will actually mean for Māori.

Raukawa-Tait has spent decades contributing to public debate and challenging governments across the political spectrum on issues including Māori development, whānau wellbeing, social services and political accountability.

Her perspective comes as Election 2026 increasingly focuses on issues with significant implications for Māori, including the future of the Waitangi Tribunal, Te Tiriti o Waitangi, Māori representation, health, housing and the cost of living. Recent polling of Māori voters found the cost of living was the most commonly identified major issue, followed by Māori-Crown relations.

The campaign has also exposed markedly different positions on the future of the Waitangi Tribunal and the constitutional relationship between Māori and the Crown, giving voters competing proposals to consider ahead of polling day.

Raukawa-Tait joins Radio Waatea to discuss how Māori issues are being framed during the campaign, whether the political debate is addressing the priorities of whānau, and what Māori voters should be listening for as parties compete for their support.

#MerepekaRaukawaTait #Election2026 #MāoriPolitics #MāoriVote #TeAoMāori #TeTiritiOWaitangi #WaitangiTribunal #MāoriCrownRelations #Whānau #MāoriDevelopment #CostOfLiving #PoliticsNZ #Aotearoa #WaateaNews #RadioWaatea

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Climate advocate and Ngāpuhi leader Mike Smith remains at the centre of efforts to hold governments and major emitters accountable for their response to climate change.

Smith, an elder of Ngāpuhi and Ngāti Kahu, took a landmark case against seven major New Zealand companies, arguing their greenhouse gas emissions were contributing to climate harm affecting his whenua, moana and places of cultural significance. In 2024, the Supreme Court reinstated the proceeding, allowing the claims to move beyond the strike-out stage.

The climate battle has now moved onto the international stage, with Dutch environmental justice organisation Both ENDS lodging a complaint with the European Commission over New Zealand’s climate and environmental commitments under its free trade agreement with the European Union. Smith is among those providing supporting statements, although Both ENDS is the formal complainant.

The complaint asks the European Commission to examine whether recent government decisions are consistent with commitments made under the NZ-EU agreement. No breach has been established, and the Commission is now assessing the complaint.

For Smith, the debate is also about kaitiakitanga, whakapapa and protecting the whenua and moana for generations to come, as climate policy increasingly intersects with the courts, international agreements and the rights and interests of Māori.

Mike Smith joins Radio Waatea to discuss where his climate campaign goes next and what international scrutiny could mean for Aotearoa.

#MikeSmith #Ngāpuhi #NgātiKahu #ClimateChange #ClimateAction #ClimateJustice #Kaitiakitanga #SmithVFonterra #EuropeanCommission #NZEUFTA #ParisAgreement #TeAoMāori #Whenua #Moana #Aotearoa #WaateaNews #RadioWaatea

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A new report is raising concerns about the use of seclusion and compulsory treatment in Aotearoa’s mental health system, with Māori continuing to experience disproportionate impacts.

Sonya Russell, Director of Mental Health and Addiction Sector Leadership at Te Hiringa Mahara – Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission, says the findings reinforce the need for a stronger human rights approach across mental health and addiction services.

The report identifies troubling increases in restrictive practices, including seclusion and compulsory treatment, with the Commission particularly concerned about what the figures reveal for Māori.

Te Hiringa Mahara says reducing coercive practices requires services that protect people’s dignity, autonomy and rights while providing culturally appropriate care that responds to the needs of tāngata whaiora and whānau.

Russell joins Radio Waatea to discuss what is driving the trends, why Māori continue to experience inequitable outcomes and what needs to change across the mental health system.

#SonyaRussell #TeHiringaMahara #MentalHealth #HauoraHinengaro #HauoraMāori #MāoriHealth #MentalHealthNZ #TāngataWhaiora #Whānau #HumanRights #HealthEquity #CompulsoryTreatment #Seclusion #Aotearoa #WaateaNews #RadioWaatea

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The passing of former Speaker of the House Adrian Paki Rurawhe has prompted an outpouring of aroha and reflection across Aotearoa, with tributes recognising a life deeply grounded in whānau, iwi, Rātana and public service.

Rurawhe represented Te Tai Hauāuru in Parliament from 2014 before later serving as a Labour list MP. In 2022 he became only the second Māori to serve as Speaker of the House.

His contribution stretched well beyond Parliament. Rurawhe was a rangatira of Ngāti Apa, had longstanding connections with the Rātana movement and brought decades of experience in Māori development and community leadership to public life.

Political leaders from across Parliament have acknowledged the respect Rurawhe commanded, remembering the calm and dignity he brought to the Speaker’s chair and his commitment to the people and communities he represented. Flags at Parliament are being flown at half-mast in his honour.

For many across te ao Māori, his passing is also a moment to remember a leader whose public life reflected the enduring importance of whānau, whakapapa, service and manaakitanga.

Moe mai rā e te rangatira, Adrian Paki Rurawhe.

#AdrianRurawhe #AdrianPakiRurawhe #MoeMaiRā #Rātana #NgātiApa #TeTaiHauāuru #TeAoMāori #MāoriLeadership #Whānau #PublicService #ParliamentNZ #Aotearoa #WaateaNews #RadioWaatea

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New Zealand First leader and Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters is taking his party into the final stretch of Election 2026 with constitutional change, the cost of living and economic policy forming key parts of its campaign.

The party has put a strong emphasis on constitutional and citizenship issues, including proposals around voting rights, citizenship rules and the Māori electorates. It has also campaigned on changing the future role of the Waitangi Tribunal.

Alongside those debates, Peters is pushing an economic message focused on what New Zealand First describes as the everyday pressures facing households and businesses.

The party has proposed changes targeting electricity and supermarket market power, a lower 20 percent tax rate for qualifying small and medium businesses, and a long-term Future Fund aimed at infrastructure and economic development.

Peters says the economy remains weaker than it should be and argues New Zealand needs stronger growth alongside action on household costs, health, infrastructure and regional development.

As the November 7 election approaches, Peters joins Radio Waatea to discuss New Zealand First’s campaign priorities, its constitutional agenda and what the party says it would seek to deliver in the next Parliament.

#WinstonPeters #NewZealandFirst #NZFirst #Election2026 #CostOfLiving #NZEconomy #WaitangiTribunal #MāoriElectorates #TeTiritiOWaitangi #PoliticsNZ #MāoriPolitics #Aotearoa #WaateaNews #RadioWaatea

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