Speaking to Parliament’s justice committee yesterday, Mr Radich said the Bill would remove indigenous rights established by the Treaty of Waitangi and cemented in case law, historical redress and active partnerships across New Zealand.
An attempt to remove those rights would affect the council’s ability to engage with Māori in Dunedin and "supplant the very foundation on which New Zealand stands strong", Mr Radich said.
"This Bill should be abandoned at the earliest opportunity."
The relationship between the city council and mana whenua had existed for more than 20 years and had produced "tangible benefits" for the Dunedin community, he said.
"One example is the recently completed development of our main street, George St.
"We worked closely to ensure Kāi Tahu narratives were represented prominently throughout the final design — George St now reflects the shared history of Dunedin for everyone to learn and enjoy."
The multi-stage climate-resilience programme South Dunedin Future had also been co-developed with tangata whenua.
"Redress for past wrongs is far from finished but we are progressing steadily. Breaches still happen and we have systems to deal with them," Mr Radich said.
"Regression should not be an option."
Act New Zealand MP Simon Court asked how infrastructure projects, such as South Dunedin Future, would be affected if the Bill passed.
"What’s to stop Dunedin City Council or any other council just continuing to make infrastructure investments in the best interests of everyone," he asked.
Mr Radich said there was nothing to stop infrastructure projects going ahead.
"We can go and produce whatever pipes and pumps we want to, whether or not we have a Treaty.
"But connecting and consulting with mana whenua as we produce these things that are of significance to the water and the land where we live does make a difference to our connections," he said.
Spearheaded by Act New Zealand leader David Seymour, the Bill seeks to define the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi and put them to a nationwide referendum for conformation.
Act’s coalition partners, National and New Zealand First, agreed to support the Bill only to its first reading, which it passed in November.
The committee is due to make its recommendation on the Bill to Parliament in May.
