Te Whanau-A-Taupara Trust Empowering Bill
1. The Waerenga-a-hika Trust Board gives notice that it intends to promote a private Bill, the Te Whanau-a-Taupara Trust Empowering Bill ("the Bill"), by petitioning the House of Representatives ("the House") that the Bill be introduced to the House.
Background
2. The Taupara whanau gifted a block of land known as "Waerenga-a-Hika" to the Crown by deed dated 9 April 1857, for the purpose of establishing an educational trust.
3. The Crown then gifted this piece of land to the Bishop of Waiapu and a deed of trust was executed for a school for Maori in connection with the Anglican Church.
4. This school was destroyed in a fire in 1937 and the
trust funds were not sufficient to rebuild the school. As a result, the Waerenga-a-hika Trust Act 1947 was enacted to expand the charitable and educational objects of the Waerenga-a-hika Trust.
5. The main object of the trust is to provide for the
post-primary educational needs of the children of
Te Whanau-a-Taupara. The objects of the trust provide
that half of the trust's income must be put towards scholarships at schools conducted by the Church of England, and that in all other cases preference must be given to schools of the Church of England.
6. However, it is difficult for the trust board to fulfil its objectives as children must travel further afield to boarding schools to take up their scholarships.
7. The powers of the trustees are restrictive. In addition, it is required that all leases be in accordance with the Public Bodies Leases Act 1969. This has led to a situation in which most of the leases are 21-year perpetually renewable leases, known as "Glasgow leases".
8. The 1947 Act is outdated and the trustees desire to:
(i) widen the charitable and educational objects of the trust and widen the powers of the trustees under a new trust; and
(ii) ameliorate the restrictive conditions imposed on the trust by virtue of the Public Bodies Leases Act 1969.
9. The members of the Waerenga-a-hika Trust Board have executed a Deed of Trust, of the Te Whanau-a-Taupara Trust.
Purpose of the Bill
10. The purpose of this Bill is to facilitate the modernisation of the administration of the Waerenga-a-hika Trusts. To this end, the Bill provides:
? that the assets of the Waerenga-a-hika Trust Board are vested in the trustees of Te Whanau-a-Taupara Trust, which is set out in the trust deed dated 30 October 2001, a copy of which is set out in Schedule 2 of the Bill; and
? that the board, constituted by the Waerenga-a-hika Trust Act 1947, shall be dissolved; and
? that all previous trusts shall be extinguished; and
? that the Waerenga-a-hika Act 1947 is repealed; and
? that all trusts specified in the trust deed are charitable trusts for all purposes at law; and
? that the application of the Public Bodies Leases Act 1969 is limited.
Communications about the Bill may be sent to Marianne Mackintosh (Associate), Chen Palmer & Partners, P.O. Box 2160 or D.X. S.P. 26-503, Wellington.
A copy of the Bill may be inspected at the Gisborne District Court Office, Reads Quay Building, Reads Quay, Gisborne.