David Seymour: ACT Leader on the Treaty of Waitangi debate with Helmut Modlik

David Seymour is looking forward to discussing his Treaty Principles Bill with a Ngati Toa leader tonight. 

Helmut Modlik will debate Seymour two months after Modlik called him out. 

A draft of Seymour's Bill will be ready for public release and discussion next month, but National says it will support the bill only to its first reading. 

The ACT leader told Mike Hosking the debate is needed, because people think others can't have an opinion on something they're not an expert on. 

He says New Zealand needs to mature and let ordinary people have an opinion on the country's constitutional future. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Three D principles Bill gets another routing. Today David Tumill
was accepted a request from Nati Tower to debate that
The invitation came from the EE leader Helmet Modlika a
couple of months ago. The event's going to be screaming tonight.
The act leader, David Seymour is with us. David, very
good morning to.

Speaker 2 (00:13):
You, Good morning mate.

Speaker 1 (00:15):
Is it a proper debate with rules of engagement in
the time framers? It are free for all.

Speaker 2 (00:20):
Well, if you've ever watched the Working Group podcast, they
have four people too, are kind of hosts, Martin Bradbury,
the former Radio it's those people. God, but look they've
also got Damian Grant, who I'm sure, yeah, yeah. So look,
it's a bit free flowing to be there. But I

(00:41):
think it's actually a really good format because it allows
people to make their points. It's a bit of fun
and it sounds like it's going to be similar casts
by insied Me. The Herald's website are in z on
Sky eighty three and just about everyone who's got anything
kind of vaguely digital tonight.

Speaker 1 (00:58):
You should have got David Higgins and how to pay
for you?

Speaker 2 (01:02):
Well, actually, if i'd thought about that if this one
goes well and see if we can capitalize.

Speaker 1 (01:07):
Does the Twain ever meet here? I mean, it's such
rightly or wrongly, whatever side you're on, it's such an
angsty debate now, isn't it.

Speaker 2 (01:15):
I don't. I think that's true. But the people that
have been making the most noise are not the people
that you want. And that's why I accepted a debate
with Helmut that I've met in quite a few times
at dinner a few times. There are actually reasonable thinking
people who are just saying, look, you know, we need
to figure out how to make this country work. And
of course, you know, Helmet has some different views to

(01:38):
me in some sense, but I just believe it has
to come back to equal rights for all New Zealanders,
and the treaty provides for that. So I think it's
going to be a good discussion, and I think it
will be a model for what can happen with us
Treaty Principles Bill, because ultimately there are people that want
it to be all bad, and we can't have an opinion,
and we shouldn't be able to say anything because we're

(01:59):
not experts. But I actually think that New Zealand needs
to mature a little bit to the point where ordinary
people can have an opinion about their country's constitutional future.

Speaker 1 (02:07):
That'd be nice. Well go well Ton, I appreciate it.
David Seemore, the act Leader, with us this morning. For
more from the Mic Asking Breakfast, listen live to news
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