According to tradition, Ngāti Kuri ancestors have occupied Te Hiku o Te Ika from before the first waka arrivals. Traditionally Ngāti Kuri lived in several permanent settlements, and moved from those bases around their rohe in small groups, following seasonal cycles for gardening, fishing and food gathering. Ngāti Kuri did not sign Te Tiriti o Waitangi / the Treaty of Waitangi, and for many years after Pākehā settlement tikanga Māori (customary law) largely prevailed in their rohe. Ngāti Kuri were not included in the first land transactions in the area. Crown officials had limited understanding of the complex whakapapa relationships in Te Hiku and at times failed to distinguish Ngāti Kuri from other iwi in the rohe.

Under the nineteenth century native land laws, much of Ngāti Kuri’s remaining land was vested in small numbers of individual owners. No provisions existed to ensure those individuals acted as trustees for their iwi, and much of the land was soon sold. By 1890 over 70% of Ngāti Kuri’s traditional land had been alienated. The only large blocks of land remaining in their ownership were around the Pārengarenga harbour. The main economic activity available for Māori in the region was gum digging, which due to the isolation and lack of roading in the area, tended to trap workers in a debt cycle with the local storekeepers, who bought the gum from local Māori and sold them goods, controlling the prices of both. 

In 1896 the Native Land Court began hearings on the Pārengarenga and Pākohu blocks around the harbour. The hearings and surveys were expensive, and the lands were almost lost to pay survey debts. In order to prevent that the Crown took over the debt and vested these blocks in the Tokerau Māori Land Board. This kept the lands in Māori ownership but the owners lost all control of their management. Māori were left with only three small reserves around the Pārengarenga Harbour on which to live. Ngāti Kuri’s main papakāinga, Te Hāpua, flooded every year and the community suffered from high rates of typhoid and tuberculosis, which the Crown was aware of but did little to remedy. 

By 1910 the survey debts had been repaid, but despite this control of the lands did not go back to the owners. Ngāti Kuri repeatedly asked for the return of the lands so they could begin farming initiatives but their requests were denied until the 1950s.

In 1953 the Crown empowered the Māori Trustee to compulsorily acquire small interests in the Pārengarenga and Pākohu blocks. Many Ngāti Kuri lost their last shares in their land through this process.

Due to the Crown’s actions and omissions Ngāti Kuri as an iwi were left with little land and few economic opportunities. Many had to leave the rohe altogether, resulting in a loss of social cohesion and difficulty in passing on Ngāti Kuri’s tikanga, traditional knowledge and language to younger generations.

Cultural redress provides recognition of the traditional, historical, cultural and spiritual association of Ngāti Kuri with places and sites owned by the Crown within their primary area of interest. This allows Ngāti Kuri and the Crown to protect and enhance the conservation values associated with these sites, and includes:

Sites to be vested in Ngāti Kuri

A total of 10 properties will be vested in Ngāti Kuri, and seven jointly vested in Ngāti Kuri and one or more other Te Hiku iwi, totalling approximately 4015 hectares. These are:

• The Pines Block, approximately 319.34 hectares
• Tiriranga Urupā, approimately 3.59 hectares
• Te Hāpua School (site B), approximately 1.16 hectares for leaseback to the Crown
• Te Hāpua School House site, approximately 0.22 hectares for leaseback to the Crown
• Wairoa Pā (part of Mokaikai Scenic Reserve), approximately 2.0 hectares
• Wharekawa Pā (part of Mokaikai Scenic Reserve), approximately 2.0 hectares
• Mokaikai Pā (part of Mokaikai Scenic Reserve), approximately 6.0 hectares
• Mokaikai (part of Mokaikai Scenic Reserve), approximately 2990 hectares
• Kapowairua (part of Te Paki Recreation Reserve), approximately 290 hectares
• Te Rerenga Wairua (part of Te Paki Recreation Reserve), approximately 77.0 hectares
• Part of Te Ramanuka Conservation Area, approximately 70.7 hectares

Joint vesting to Ngāti Kuri and Te Aupouri

• Murimotu Island, approximately 8.85 hectares
• Waihopo Lake property, appproximately 20.46 hectares
• Bed of Lake Ngākeketo (part of Te Paki Recreation Reserve), approximately 9 hectares

Joint vesting to Ngāti Kuri, Te Aupouri, NgāiTakoto and Te Rarawa

• Te Oneroa-a-Tō hē sites, totalling approximately 214 hectares

Cultural endowment fund

Ngāti Kuri will receive a cultural endowment fund of $2.230 million for Ngāti Kuri cultural development initiatives.

Statutory acknowledgements

A Statutory Acknowledgement recognises the association between Ngāti Kuri and a particular site and enhances Ngāti Kuri’s ability to participate in specified resource management processes. The Crown offers Statutory Acknowledgements over:

• Paxton Point Conservation Area (including Rarawa Beach camp ground)
• Motuopao Island
• Manawatāwhi / Three Kings Islands
• Kermadec Islands (Rangitāhua)

Place name changes

Eighteen geographic names will be altered through the Ngāti Kuri settlement, including dual Māori-English names for Ninety Mile Beach (Te Oneroa-a-Tō hē / Ninety Mile Beach), Cape Reinga (Cape Reinga / Te Rerenga Wairua), Spirits Bay (Piwhane / Spirits Bay), Paxton Point (Wharekāpu / Paxton Point), Henderson Bay (Ōtaipango / Henderson Bay) and Mount Camel (Tohoraha / Mount Camel). The full list of place name changes is included in the Ngāti Kuri Deed of Settlement.

Protocols, letter of commitment & promotion of relationships

The deed provides for protocols to be issued by the Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage, the Minister of Energy and Resources and the Minister for Primary Industries. These protocols set out how the relevant government agencies will interact and consult with Ngāti Kuri when carrying out duties and functions.

The deed of settlement also provides for Ngāti Kuri, the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa Board and the Department of Internal Affairs to enter into a letter of commitment to facilitate the care, management, access to and use of, and development and revitalisation of iwi taonga. The Crown will also facilitate a letter of intent between Ngāti Kuri and New Zealand Historical Places Trust to enter into a working relationship on specific projects of mutual interest.

The Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations and the Deputy Secretary Treaty and Director of the Office of Treaty Settlements will write letters of introduction and relationship promotion to Crown Ministers, government agencies, local authorities and museums.

This redress recognises the economic loss suffered by Ngāti Kuri arising from breaches by the Crown of its Treaty obligations.

The financial and commercial redress is aimed at providing Ngāti Kuri with resources to assist them to develop their economic and social well-being.

Financial redress

Ngāti Kuri will receive a financial settlement of $21.040 million in recognition of all their historical claims. Interest that has been accumulating since the Te Hiku Agreement in Principle was signed in January 2010 will also be paid.

Commercial redress

Ngāti Kuri will purchase from the Crown:

• the Ngāti Kuri undivided 30% share of Peninsula Block (part of Aupouri Crown Forest Land), approximately 21,158.3311 hectares (total block);
• McManus Road / Kimberley Road property, approximately 3.97 hectares;
• Te Paki Station, approximately 3157 hectares; and
• two school properties to be bought and leased back to the Crown:
  • Te Hāpua School (site A), approximately 0.78 hectares (the remainder will be gifted – refer cultural redress vesting); and
  • Ngātaki School, approximately 2.08 hectares.

The collective redress elements of the deed have been negotiated between the Crown, Ngāti Kuri, Te Aupouri, NgāiTakoto and Te Rarawa. Collective redress will be available to all Te Hiku iwi as they complete settlements.

Aupouri Crown Forest Land

Ngāti Kuri will join Aupouri, Te Rarawa and Ngāi Takoto as owners and tenants in common of approximately 21,158 hectares of Crown forest land on the Aupouri Peninsula and consequently will receive a 20% share of the accumulated rentals. Ngāti Kuri will own an undivided 30% share.

Te Oneroa-a-Tōhē/Ninety Mile Beach

The settlement will create the Te Oneroa-a-Tōhē Board to manage the beach – a new permanent joint committee between iwi, Northland Regional Council and Far North District Council. The Te Oneroa-a-Tōhē Board will have 50 percent iwi members and 50 percent local authority members. It will be chaired by iwi and make decisions by a 70 percent majority.

The Board will provide governance and direction in order to promote the use, development and protection of the Te Oneroa-a-Tōhē / Ninety Mile Beach management area and its resources in a manner which ensures its environmental, economic, social, spiritual and cultural wellbeing for present and future generations. The Board is responsible for developing a Beach Management Plan. It will publicly advertise the plan and seek submissions on it. The Plan will be recognised and provided for in the next revisions of the relevant Regional Policy Statement, Regional Plan and District Plan.

The Board will consult with communities through the Beach Management Plan regarding any changes to beach access (e.g. by changing access points and reducing environmental damage on and to the beach). The feedback from this consultation will influence the Plan which the Board will then implement. 

The iwi members of the Board will appoint up to half of the hearing panel for consent applications within the beach management area. 

The Crown is providing a one-off contribution of $137,500 per iwi to install interpretative signs, raise pouwhenua at Waipapakauri and fund regeneration activities along the Beach. The Crown is also providing a one-off contribution of $400,000 to the Board.

Korowai for Enhanced Conservation

The settlement includes a co-governance arrangement for conservation land known as the Korowai for Enhanced Conservation. 

The word “korowai” means cloak. The Korowai for Enhanced Conservation recognises the historical, spiritual and cultural association Te Hiku iwi have with public conservation land in each of their rohe. It gives iwi greater input into decision-making including in the protection of public conservation lands and important cultural taonga within the combined areas of interest of Ngāti Kuri, Aupouri, Te Rarawa and NgāiTakoto.

A new Te Hiku Conservation Board will be established with equal Te Hiku iwi and public membership. 

The Te Hiku Conservation Board will have a number of statutory functions, similar to those of the Northland Conservation Board, including recommending the approval of a new Te Hiku part of the Northland Conservation Management Strategy, relating to public conservation land within the area covered by the Korowai. 

Te Hiku iwi and the Department of Conservation (DOC) will co-author the Te Hiku part of the Conservation Management Strategy, which will ensure that Te Hiku iwi interests will be integrated into this primary Department of Conservation planning document. 

The Korowai means DOC decision-making under the Conservation Act 1987 and Schedule 1 legislation will occur in a framework in which iwi cultural interests will play a key role. 

There will also be joint decision-making between DOC, Ngāti Kuri, Aupouri and Ngāi Takoto over approximately 70 hectares of public conservation land at Cape Reinga / Te Rerenga Wairua, a place of profound significance to Te Hiku iwi. 

Iwi will have decision-making power over applications from iwi members relating to customary materials, including gathering of flora and possession of dead protected fauna, in accordance with an agreed customary materials plan between iwi and DOC. It will contain criteria and guidance on who, what, when, how and where customary materials can be gathered, obtained or possessed. 

Each iwi will hold a register of wāhi tapu sites and identify general wāhi tapu areas. Iwi will have the opportunity to enter into management agreements in relation to wāhi tapu on public conservation land.

Social Development and Wellbeing Accord

Ngāti Kuri will enter into the Te Hiku–Crown Social Development and Wellbeing Accord with Aupouri, Te Rarawa and Ngāi Takoto. The Accord sets out how the iwi and the Crown will work together to improve the social development and wellbeing of the Te Hiku whānau, hapu, iwi and the wider community. 

In particular, the Accord is being implemented through multi-level engagement between Te Hiku iwi and the Crown including: 
an annual Te Hiku iwi–Crown Taumata Rangatira hui between the Ministers who have signed the Accord or whose departments have portfolio agreements and Te Hiku iwi representatives;
regular Crown-Te Hiku iwi operational level engagement through Te Kā hui Tiaki Whānau (a twice-yearly forum) and related Kaupapa Cluster meetings (ongoing engagement in relation to particular kaupapa/specific areas of work); and
an evaluation and planning process to assess progress and design and implement strategies to achieve the shared outcomes for the Accord. 

The Accord involves nine agencies: the Ministry of Social Development, Te Puni Kōkiri, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, the Ministry of Justice, the New Zealand Police, the Department of Internal Affairs, the Department of Corrections and Statistics New Zealand. The Crown is providing a one-off contribution of $812,500 per iwi towards the implementation of the Accord. 

The Accord will enable the government and the iwi to work together to address pressing socio-economic issues in what is one of the most impoverished areas of the country.

Joint Right of First Refusal

Ngāti Kuri will have a right of first refusal (RFR) for 172 years to purchase listed Crown properties in their area of interest should the Crown decide to sell them. This RFR is shared with other Te Hiku iwi whose areas of interest overlap with Ngāti Kuri. 

Ngāti Kuri will also have the opportunity to purchase Te Hiku RFR properties located outside the Ngāti Kuri area of interest if the iwi in whose area the property is located do not want to purchase them.