Critics are asking where the targeted Māori funding is in Budget 2026.
The Māori development minister is hailing Budget 2026 as a "meaningful" boost to te reo Māori and Māori culture, while critics ask where the targeted Māori funding is.
Māori broadcasting gets $48 million over the next four years, emerging as one of the few Māori specific initatives to get funding since the coalition took power. Budget 2026 also saw deeper cuts to Te Puni Kōkiri, the Māori Development Ministry, and Te Tari Whakatau.
Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka told RNZ that funding for Māori broadcasting showed the coalition was serious about te reo Māori.
"We recognise that the Crown has an obligation to actively protect Te Reo Māori and we put the money of taxpayers and our money where our mouth is. We don't just talk about it, we do it.
