Govt kicks Māori party seabed mining bill into touch

Govt kicks Māori party seabed mining bill into touch
Seabed mining for diamonds off the coast of Namibia. (Image: Getty)
Pattrick Smellie
The government will not support a Te Pāti Māori private members’ bill to ban seabed mining, saying it would end existing rights for offshore oil and gas exploration without compensation.Environment minister David Parker is proposing a select committee inquiry instead.The Prohibition on Seabed Mining Legislation Amendment Bill was introduced by Te Pāti Māori MP Debbie Ngarewa-Packer and has its first reading next week. The rejection comes in the same week as a Labour cabinet minister, Meka Whaitiri, announced she was defecting to Te P...

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