Tribunal releases part 2 of its report on the disestablishment of Te Aka Whai Ora

On 25 September 2026, the Waitangi Tribunal has released Hautupua: Te Aka Whai Ora (Maaori Health Authority) Priority Report, Part 2 in pre-publication format.

The part 1 report on the disestablishment of Te Aka Whai Ora/the Maaori Health Authority was released in November 2024. This part 2 report addresses claims concerning the Crown’s alternative plans for Maaori health in lieu of a Maaori health authority.

The Healthy Futures (Pae Ora) Amendment Bill was introduced to the House on 2 July 2025, two days before the part 2 hearing process concluded. This prevented the Tribunal from reporting at that time, as its jurisdiction was removed. The Healthy Futures (Pae Ora) Amendment Act was enacted 12 months later, on 10 July 2026, and the Tribunal is now issuing its report because it is no longer prevented from doing so.

The part 2 report addresses two issues:

• whether the Crown’s process in developing plans to address Maaori health in lieu of a Maaori health authority is consistent with te Tiriti o Waitangi and its principles; and
• whether the Crown’s alternative plans to address Maaori health in lieu of a Maaori health authority are consistent with te Tiriti o Waitangi and its principles.

After assessing the evidence presented from parties, the Tribunal has found breaches of te Tiriti/the Treaty principles of tino rangatiratanga, kaawanatanga and good government, partnership – including the duty of consultation – active protection, equity, and options.

The Tribunal’s findings on process included that the Crown did not discharge its duty to adequately inform Maaori of its alternative plans. The Tribunal reported that it was led to believe an alternative plan for Maaori health would eventuate for nearly 18 months, only for that to change right before the hearing on 26 May 2025, when the Crown stated that the alternative plan was the legislative functions in place when Te Aka Whai Ora was disestablished. The Tribunal found that no meaningful consultation with Maaori took place when developing key elements considered part of the alternative plan. The Crown failed to recognise and respect tino rangatiratanga and the right of Maaori to self-determine what is best for them in respect of Maaori health. The Tribunal found that the Crown failed to properly engage with, and inform, Maaori of potential changes to two key elements that formed part of the Crown’s alternative plan, namely the Hauora Maaori Strategy and the Pae Ora (Disestablishment of Maaori Health Authority) Amendment Act 2024, falling well short of a Tiriti/Treaty consistent process.

The Tribunal found that the Crown’s alternative plans breached Tiriti/Treaty principles in a number of ways. For nearly 18 months, the Crown informed claimants, the Tribunal, and the public of its intention to develop alternative plans in lieu of Te Aka Whai Ora, but these words were not reflected in Crown action. The Tribunal found that the Crown failed to take any meaningful action towards Maaori health or to produce any clear alternative plan for Maaori health in a timely manner, representing a lost opportunity to progress Maaori health equity. The Tribunal reported that the Crown failed in its duty to follow its own laws, rules, and standards by reviewing Te Aka Whai Ora only 10 months after its establishment, whilst announcing it must wait longer than a year to review other system-wide changes within the health sector. This, the Tribunal stated, signaled a double standard.

Instead of including Iwi-Maaori Partnership Boards and the Hauora Maaori Advisory Board in the health system restructure and its alternative plan, the Government sent out a restructure document indicating that it had been planning for over a year to restructure the system. By this point, decisions had already been made about how the restructure would work. The Crown thus failed in its duty to consult with Maaori, consequently dismissing Tiriti/Treaty based governance duties and making changes to Maaori health with minimal cultural responsiveness and a lack of Maaori input across all levels.

Overall, the Tribunal found that Maaori have suffered and will continue to suffer a range of short- and long-term prejudicial effects as a result of these breaches. These effects are explored in the report.

To give effect to Treaty principles, the Tribunal recommends that the Crown:

• commit to revisiting the option of a stand-alone Maaori health authority;
• consult extensively with Maaori and make informed decisions on matters concerning Maaori health; and
• base all decision-making concerning Maaori health and, in particular, measures to address long-standing Maaori inequities, on robust evidence and scientific knowledge.

The report is now available to download:

Hautupua: Te Aka Whai Ora (Maaori Health Authority) Priority Report, Part 2 – Pre-publication Version

For all media inquiries, please contact Paul Easton at the Ministry of Justice Media Team.