ABSTRACT
Among the Royal Commission’s many terms of reference was a specific requirement for it to investigate “the nature and basis of Maori representation in Parliament”. From the time of the Turangawaewae hui convened to discuss Maori parliamentary representation in mid-1985, until parliament passed the Electoral Act 1993, the one thing that stands out above all else is the constancy of the Maori position. Both Labour and National entered the 1990s with their long-standing policies on Maori parliamentary representation unchanged but, National’s determination to leave no stone unturned in its quest to win the 1990 election led to it promising a binding referendum on the electoral system. Thus, reforming the electoral system, and with it the future of separate Maori representation, once again became a significant item on the political agenda. In the analysis, parliament’s decision to retain separate Maori representation recognised that the Maori people have a unique constitutional position in New Zealand society.
