Ngati Ranginui Terms of Negotiation signed

Te Roopu Whakamana o Ngā Hapū o Ngāti Ranginui and the Crown have signed Terms of Negotiation, which set out the scope and the nature of their upcoming negotiations to settle Ngāti Ranginui's historic Treaty of Waitangi claims

The claims of Ngāti Ranginui primarily relate to raupatu (confiscation) of Maori land in the Tauranga district, following the war of 1864, and later land purchasing by the Crown. The Waitangi Tribunal's Te Raupatu o Tauranga Moana: Report on the Tauranga Confiscation Claims, which covers Ngāti Ranginui's claims, was released in August 2004. 

The Tribunal found that the Crown's confiscation of approximately 42,000 acres breached the Treaty and its principles.

Ngāti Ranginui's area of interest extends from Ngā Kuri a Wharei north of Tauranga, inland to the summit of Mount Te Aroha, extending south-east along the Kaimai Range to Pūwhenua and extending south to the Mangorewa River.  From the Mangorewa River the boundary extends north-east to Otanewainuku and to coastal Wairakei.  The area of interest includes Mōtitī and Tūhua Island, Mauao and the Athenree Crown Licensed Forest.   

On 7 April 2008, the Minister in Charge of Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations and the Minister of Mäori Affairs recognised Te Roopu Whakamana's Deed of Mandate to represent Ngāti Ranginui hapū in Treaty settlement negotiations with the Crown.