in 2010 provided more certainty about what redress will be available to provide for greater iwi involvement in decision making on natural resources. The Waitangi Tribunal has released a number of reports on district, kaupapa and urgent inquiries and dealt with an influx of mainly historical claims submitted just before the 1 September 2008 deadline for lodging new historical claims. The relationship between Māori and local government has sometimes been controversial. In 2009, the new Auckland "super-city" Council was formed, without following a recommendation by the Royal Commission on Auckland Governance that three Māori seats be established. An independent Māori Statutory Board was established that saw Māori appointed as members of a substantial number of Council Committees. However, Māori are yet to achieve guaranteed proportional representation at the Council table itself. The discussion about whether to establish Māori seats was picked up by many other councils in 2011. The Iwi Chairs Forum was established in 2005 as a platform for sharing knowledge and information between tangata whenua. It meets regularly to discuss Māori aspirations in cultural, social, economic, environmental and political development. The forum has established a rangatira ki te rangatira (leader to leader) relationship with the Prime Minister and senior cabinet ministers. Iwi leaders recognise they are not mandated to speak on behalf of Māori but that their knowledge can contribute to policy discussions. The past few years have seen the foundation laid for a review of New Zealand’s current constitutional arrangements. A Constitutional Advisory Panel was established which will seek views on, among other things, how the Treaty should be reflected in New Zealand’s constitutional arrangements. The conversation is to be with New Zealanders and was agreed as part of the National- Māori Party Confidence and Supply Agreement in 2008. Terms of Reference for the Consideration of Constitutional Issues were agreed in 2010 and a process for appointing an independent panel and engaging with New Zealanders was announced in 2011. Māori centred initiatives have progressed, including projects within the Drivers of Crime programme led by the Ministry of Justice; projects commissioned by the Māori Economic Taskforce; and Whānau Ora in the health sector. In spite of this, significant inequalities remain. These are outlined in the Inequalities chapter of this report. Priorities for 2012 • Informed public discussion of New Zealand’s constitutional arrangements including the Treaty of Waitangi. 15