Parliament Speaker and Te Pāti Māori disruptions

The story so far

Te Pāti Māori MP Oriini Kaipara, who won the Tāmaki Makaurau by-election, gave her maiden speech in Parliament on 9 October 2025.^{9 Oct 2025} Her 23-minute speech ran over time, and a haka and waiata broke out in the public galleries, so Speaker Gerry Brownlee suspended the House.^{9, 10, 14 Oct 2025} Brownlee is investigating possible contempt of the House over the disruption, which included ignoring bell chimes.^{10 Oct 2025} He then announced plans to tighten attendance records and dress standards in Parliament, which the Greens warned him not to overreach on, while National and Labour welcomed the move.^{14, 15 Oct 2025} Separately, Brownlee called it arrogant and irresponsible when Te Pāti Māori MPs Debbie Ngarewa-Packer and Tākuta Ferris burnt a copy of the Marine and Coastal Area Amendment Bill outside Parliament.^{22 Oct 2025}

Latest

Brownlee is seeking advice and considering whether to take formal action over the bill burning. The bill burning followed his earlier moves on standards and attendance.^{14, 22 Oct 2025}

What's next

Brownlee intends to meet Te Pāti Māori co-leaders next week to discuss the maiden speech incident.^{10 Oct 2025}

Key moments

1. 9 Oct 2025Kaipara gives maiden speech; House suspended after haka in galleries
2. 10 Oct 2025Speaker begins contempt of the House investigation into the disruption
3. 14 Oct 2025Brownlee announces tighter attendance and dress standards in Parliament
4. 15 Oct 2025Greens warn Brownlee against becoming Parliament's fashion police
5. 22 Oct 2025Te Pāti Māori MPs burn Marine and Coastal Area bill outside Parliament

Written from the stories below; each sentence links to its sources.