16 July 2002 Media Release 1

Highlights 2001/2002

Trust Achieves Increased Outputs with Cost Savings

Tomorrow the Crown Forestry Rental Trust releases an Annual Report to Appointors that reveals a significant increase in Trust output during the past year.

The report shows a 50 percent increase in outputs, including research, projects, and claimant funding, over the previous year, Trust chief executive Karen Waterreus said.

The Trust had, for example, completed 140 separate projects, compared with 80 the previous year.

“This has been achieved at 14 percent below budget - a result that reflects the enormous commitment, in a difficult environment, of Trustees and Trust staff to real outcomes for Māori claimant communities,” she said.

“It is also evidence that, in spite of well-publicised delays in the Treaty settlement process, there is real progress in advancing claimants throughout New Zealand towards readiness for Waitangi Tribunal hearings or negotiation with the Crown.”

Ms Waterreus said the Trust had responded to recent public confusion about the Treaty settlement process by discussing as many of its approaches, programmes and problems as possible in the report.

“This report could not be more comprehensive in the descriptions of its expenditure and activities,” Ms Waterreus said.

“We have intentionally provided minute detail of every facet of our operations, to ensure our Appointors, politicians, Māori communities and the public understand both our role in the Treaty settlement process, and our endeavours to operate effectively in a system plagued by delay.”

In particular, the Trust wanted to explain the limitations of its role, as set by its Deed.

“We exist to assist claimants prepare, present and negotiate claims which could involve Crown forestry land. We do not decide on asset ownership, and we do not distribute Treaty settlements. Those are the roles of the Waitangi Tribunal and the Crown, respectively,” said Ms Waterreus.

The Trust has two Māori Appointors - the Federation of Māori Authorities and the New Zealand Māori Council - and a Crown Appointor, the Minister of Finance, the Hon. Dr Michael Cullen. 

The Appointors are responsible for appointing three Crown and three Māori Trustees. The Trust currently has five trustees - Sir Graham Latimer (chair), Professor Whatarangi Winiata, Lou Tangaere, Maryan Street and Paul Carpinter. A sixth trustee is to be appointed by the Crown.

The Trust was set up under the Crown Forest Assets Act 1989, after the New Zealand Māori Council and the Federation of Māori Authorities took court action to protect Māori interests in the Crown’s commercial forests.

The Act allowed the Crown to sell licences for forestry, but prevented it from selling the land itself until the Waitangi Tribunal ruled on ownership of the land.

In the meantime, the Trust holds and invests the annual licence fees collected off the forest lands. When the tribunal rules on land ownership, the relevant fees will be transferred to that owner.

The Trust uses the interest earned from investing those fees to help Māori claimants prepare, present and negotiate claims that involve, or could involve, Crown Forest Licensed Land.