Sim Commission

The Sim Commission inquired into the more than three million acres of Māori land confiscated throughout Taranaki, Waikato and the Bay of Plenty under the 1863 New Zealand Settlements Act. Its subsequent report contained no discussion of justifications for either the New Zealand Wars or the subsequent confiscations, and no appraisal of any consistencies with or breaches of the Treaty. It simply found the confiscations had indeed been excessive, and recommended compensation in the form of annuities to be administered through Māori Trust Boards.^[i]