Simon Bridges National MP simonbridges.co.nz

Happy New Year 2011! Can I start 2011 by wishing you and yours a great year. So far the weather has been wonderful and I am sure that you, like me, have been greatly enjoying the outdoors.

Natalie and I have enjoyed going to a number of beaches in the Western Bay and also felt a real sense of achievement walking the iconic Tongariro Crossing.

While on the subject of beaches, I, like you, consider it my birthright to enjoy them year-round for water sports, fishing, and a host of other activities. A number of you have written and spoken to me about the government's Marine and Coastal Area Bill and so in this column I want to address the Bill and some of its key features.

Getting the balance right
New Zealanders are proud of our justice system and our belief in giving everyone a fair go.

The Marine and Coastal Area Bill guarantees free public access to the common marine and coastal area. It protects all existing uses, including fishing and navigation. Your recreational activities are not affected by the Bill. The Bill also restores access to justice through the courts, and respect for property rights. These are core values for National, and for many New Zealanders.

The Marine and Coastal Area Bill:

• Guarantees free public access. This continues to be our bottom line.
• Makes a common space of the public marine and coastal area, ensuring it can never be sold.
• Protects all existing uses, including recreational fishing and navigation rights.
• Restores two fundamental rights extinguished by the Foreshore and Seabed Act – the right to access justice through the courts, and respect for property rights. These are core National Party values.
• Protects, and in some cases extends, rights of vital infrastructure such as ports and aquaculture.

The common marine and coastal area is the part of the coast covered by the ocean at high tide, out to the edge of our territorial waters. No dry land is affected by the Bill.

The Bill does not grant ownership of the marine and coastal area to Maori. It allows applicants to seek recognition of customary title to parts of the marine and coastal area.

Customary title is part of New Zealand's common law and always has been. It recognises that indigenous people had property rights before the Crown acquired sovereignty, and that these property rights continue unless extinguished. Other common law countries such as Canada and Australia also recognise customary title.

The Marine and Coastal Area Bill is an important step for the rule of law and property rights. The 2004 Act meant iwi and hapu could not seek, or protect, common law property rights through the courts. There was no longer one law for all New Zealanders. Whether we like it or not, this damaged New Zealand's reputation as a country that respects property rights and the rule of law.

The 2004 Act also had unintended consequences. Vital infrastructure, such as port companies, could no longer obtain title to reclamations necessary for future growth and investment. At best they could seek temporary leases from the new owner, the Crown – an issue for businesses looking for certainty and investment.

The government is determined to fix this weeping sore in New Zealand's history. The Marine and Coastal Area Bill restores the principles of access to justice, and respect for property rights to all New Zealanders.

For more information, visit www.national.org.nz/marine-and-coastal-area-bill.aspx