For the Coalition parties, it’s the sort of gift by an Opposition party leader most governments in a liberal democracy can only dream about. A power of veto would mean that voters could be denied effective representation under a Labour-led coalition because no matter what policies they endorsed at an election they would be always open to rejection by a Māori commissioner if bills did not comply, in his or her view, with Te Tiriti o Waitangi. The proposed commissioner, according to Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi, would be able to strike down proposed legislation like David Seymour’s Treaty Principles Bill.
