He was responding to Monday's open letter from over 400 religious leaders who, sight unseen, wanted the Bill voted down at the first reading, preventing it from going to a Select Committee for public comment.

Luxon added that the National Party needs to honour its agreement with ACT as part of a democratically elected MMP government with coalition partners.

"I have a coalition agreement [and a] commitment, I honour those commitments" Luxon said.

"We have a coalition agreement, very clear, [we] went to the election, we have an MMP system, people voted, those are the cards they gave us."

Luxon reiterated his position, explaining that while ACT would prefer a full public referendum after the Select Committee process, that is not going to happen.

No one has read the Treaty Principles Bill

ACT leader David Seymour confirmed that only a "broad outline" of the Bill was discussed at the Cabinet meeting before a draft version would be created and publicly released in November.

Seymour said that no one has read the Bill yet.

He told Newstalk ZB's Heather du Plessis-Allan on Monday that "the Government and the parties had agreed to the Bill's broad outline. It now goes off to Parliament's drafters who will take some time to write the exact wording".

He said the religious leaders who sent the open letter have tried to halt public comment at the Select Committee stage.

Seymour argued that the Churches' pushback undermined the democratic process and attempted to stifle debate.

He also accused the religious leaders of playing politics.

On Tuesday, CathNews reported that a range of Catholic individuals had signed the open letter.

Among New Zealand's six Catholic bishops, Michael Dooley, Steve Lowe and Archbishop Paul Martin signed the letter, as well as several sisters, priests and emeritus bishops.

CathNews also learned from some signatories that they had not seen a draft of the Treaty Principles Bill and were not fully aware of the content of the open letter before signing it.

In attacking the signatories and discrediting them, one said it seemed ironic that Seymour appeared to be trying to prevent them from engaging in the democratic process, then doing precisely what he accused them of doing.

Labour and Greens congratulate religious leaders

Labour and the Greens have congratulated the Christian leaders for condemning the Treaty Principles Bill.

Willie Jackson, Labour's Maori development spokesperson, praised them saying "I'm really pleased and congratulate them on their actions and their bravery... this takes some courage and bravery, and they deserve to be complimented and supported as far as I'm concerned".

Marama Davidson, co-leader of the Green Party, expressed gratitude for the church leaders' strong stance.

She viewed their action as demonstrating a deep commitment to upholding the centrality of Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

Sources

• NZ Herald
• CathNews
• NZ Herald
• 1 News
• RNZ

The 440 senior leaders from Catholic, Anglican, Salvation Army, Baptist and Methodist denominations, under the "Common Grace" umbrella, expressed their views in an open letter.

On Monday, September 9, the Cabinet saw a draft version of David Seymour's controversial bill for the first time.

The ACT leader's bill will have its first reading in November and, if supported, will be sent to a select committee for discussion.

As part of their coalition agreement with ACT, National and NZ First said they would not support the bill beyond the first reading.

However, as a matter of process, the Church leaders who signed the letter want National or NZ First to break their coalition agreement and vote down the bill at the first reading.

Failing to garner support at the first reading would prevent the bill's progress and potentially destabilise the Government.

Allowing the bill to progress to the Select Committee stage opens the process to what Richard Harman in Politico labels as a "procession of extremists from either side of the Treaty debate".

The religious leaders say they have fears for the country if it progresses beyond its first reading.

One of the Christian leaders, the Very Reverend Jay Ruka, Dean of Taranaki Cathedral, labels the bill "dangerous".

"He is tricking New Zealanders into thinking that to honour our founding contract is to demerit democratic representation. This is a lie. As a Christian leader, I steadfastly oppose this falsity. The Treaty Principles Bill is holding our nation in contempt," says Ruka.

Catholic signatories

A range of Catholic individuals featured in the letter's 400-plus list of signatories.

Bishops Michael Dooley, Steve Lowe, and Archbishop Paul Martin from the New Zealand Catholic Bishops Conference signed the letter.

While other Catholic leaders including sisters, priests and emeritus bishops supported the initiative, CathNews learned from some signatories that they had neither seen a draft of the Treaty Principles Bill nor were conversant with the content of the open letter.

A covenant

In the Open Letter, the Christian leaders express their commitment to Te Tiriti - the Treaty of Waitangi.

"As Christian leaders from across Aotearoa New Zealand, we express our commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi."

"Te Tiriti o Waitangi provides a basis for finding common ground, recognising and reconciling past wrongs, and acts as a moral and equitable compass for our democracy" write the leaders.

The signatories say the Treaty is a covenant between people.

"We believe God takes covenants seriously and that we are likewise called to honour our promises.

"As Christian leaders from across Aotearoa New Zealand, we express our commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

"As inheritors of the legacy of the missionaries involved in the drafting, promoting and signing of Te Tiriti o Waitangi, we acknowledge a duty of care for upholding the mana of Te Tiriti o Waitangi."

The leaders say they commit their churches to deepening Treaty education and pursuing reconciliation.

"We will work to ensure the flourishing of life in Aotearoa New Zealand for all peoples living here, both Tangata Tiriti and Tangata Whenua, as Te Tiriti of Waitangi enables."

Seymour unhappy

David Seymour is not pleased with church involvement in his political plans, saying the churches do not own New Zealanders' moral compass.

In a post on social media Seymour said the "core Christian principle of imago dei" automatically meant everyone has equal dignity, and the belief was at odds with the recent interpretation of the Treaty of Waitangi.

"It would be unusual, to say the least, for two thousand years of Christian faith to be overturned by a one page Treaty signed by a few hundred people in one country" he said.

"If you wonder why church attendance and reported Christianity is in decline in New Zealand, today's display of church leaders abandoning a core, if not the core, Christian belief to play politics might be a clue."

He told the Herald that the churches' "pushback" was undemocratic.

He said it wasn't the first time churches had tried to interfere in democracy, citing the End of Life Choice Act as an example.

His coalition partners, National and NZ First, say they won't support the bill past a first reading.

They reiterated their stance last month at the late Kingi Tuheitia's 18th coronation celebrations at Turangawaewae.

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon stressed this remained the case when the Common Grace letter was published yesterday.

Source

• RNZ
• NZ Herald
• Politik
• RNZ
• David Seymour