Tug of war for Tāmaki Makaurau begins with fiery debate

  • 04/06/2017

Its name means Tāmaki - desired by many, and it's fair to say that no one desires the electorate of Tāmaki Makaurau more than the three candidates who are vying to become its next MP.

Green MP Marama Davidson, Māori Party candidate Shane Taurima and incumbent Tāmaki Makaurau MP, Labour's Peeni Henare, joined Three's The Hui for a fiery debate Sunday morning about the big issues affecting the electorate.

Housing dominated the conversation, with Mr Taurima stating: "We support the aspirations of iwi, hapu and community groups to get into the space of social housing."

Ms Davidson countered that the Government needs to stop selling off state housing, and believes leaving it to iwi "just doesn't hold up, because the houses are in terrible condition and are a liability to iwi".

Mr Henare was also critical of the Government's response to the housing crisis, saying that there are currently no Māori community groups building social housing in Tāmaki.

However all three were united in their support of an inquiry into the historical abuse of children in state care during the 1950s and 1980s.

The Hui