In 2003 the Court of Appeal ruled that the Māori Land Court had jurisdiction to determine whether or not the foreshore and seabed of New Zealand had the status of Māori customary land. This inspired heated public debate, revealing that both Māori and Pākehā had strong feelings about the cultural importance of the foreshore. The government's response was a new law, the Foreshore and Seabed Act 2004, which vested ownership in the Crown but allowed Māori to claim customary rights where these had been in continual use since 1840. Many Māori believed this did not recognise their mana over the foreshore. There was protest, and the National Party-led government elected in 2008, which was supported by the Māori Party (Te Pāti Māori), proposed a new law to strengthen Māori claims to mana. This television clip shows the passion with which many Māori leaders treated the issue as they debated the provisions of the draft law in March 2010.
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