April 13 2016 Coming up on Te Karere... A new agreement sees Waikato Tainui based schools must teach history about land wars. And a pair from My Kitchen Rules write a new recipe book. Due to the live nature of Te Karere, some segments will not be subtitled. Tena koutou katoa, and welcome to Te Karere. Support is building for a parliamentary inquiry into how the deceased of Maori families are handled. The Maori Affairs Select Committee is investigating why so many Maori bereaved families encounter problems under the current law. And as Eruera Rerekura reports, the inquiry is being backed by those involved in the funeral industry. The parliamentary inquiry is being led by the Green Party. Marama Davidson says one of the issues is the drawn out process before the body is released to the family. Maori are well aware of the problems and confusion that arises over a deceased during the time of death, and even Maori MPs have expressed their own concerns. I hope that families will make some submissions on this. The parliamentary inquiry is being supported by this undertaker. I really support the Green Party's inquiry for a deceased to be returned quickly and early from the coroner. He also says one issue is sometimes there aren't enough coroners. For a long time we've had to endure waiting for a deceased to be released because a coroner has a full workload and can't always get to our loved ones. It's common to have to wait all weekend for a deceased to be released. How long must it take for a coroner to release a deceased and get it to the bereaved family, yes it's a big problem, and also what are the rules around how long that deceased gets left alone and is the bereaved family allowed to be by the side of their loved one from the time they pass away? Our challenge from my funeral home to coroners and other people who work in that area are be aware of our Maori practises and let us mourn our dead at the actual time when they pass away. Eruera Rerekura, Te Karere. The Government has flagged its intention to change tax on businesses. John Key made the announcement today in a pre-budget speech. Although the change could cost the Government $187 million, John Key says it'll be good for small to medium business and good for the economy. Irena Smith reports. Joyous news for this Maori business woman. Maxine and her sisters are clothes designers. This is their store on Karangahape Road, Auckland. Things are ok, but when it comes to tax it can be a bit of a drag to file. One of the tax annoucements was around provisional tax, now small businesses will have an option to pay as they go, rather than the current provisional tax system. The problem for small businesses that pay tax, is that it's difficult to forecast profits. Maxine says there are lots of ups and downs when it comes to running a business. So is something is made easier, there's a benefit. On top of changes to how businesses pay tax, there is also some good news for those who pay residential withholding tax, as well as changes surrounding penalties for those who don't pay their taxes on time. Irena Smith, Te Karere. He's an ex-serviceman that continues to serve. Toti Tuhaka was honoured at Government House today for Services to Veterans and the Community. Te Okiwa McClean tells the story of a navy diver, a teacher, and life saver. We're unable to provide subtitles. Te Okiwa McLean, Te Karere. 14 secondary schools have signed up to a covenant with Waikato-Tainui that sets in place an educational strategy called Te Whakatupuranga 2050. It's the first of its kind led by the first iwi in the country to also settle treaty claims, and it includes a resource that will teach students of the land wars history as part of their curricula. Peata Melbourne was at the ceremony in Hopuhopu. We're unable to provide subtitles. Peata Melbourne, Te Karere. After the break, To the central North Island now where a young Maori artist from Taneatua has been honoured for the quality of his work. Te Marunui Hotene was awarded the Iti Waewae award for his pieces, according to judge Tame Iti. Kereama Wright was there. The Iwi Waewae award has been awarded to a humble artist. I am really elated to receive this award. Te Marunui is 23-years-old and lives in Taneatua. He has spent five years pursuing a postgraduate degree in Art at Waikato Institute of Technology. I saw his art work, And that is the reason he was honoured with the award. It was launched in 1992 to celebrate young Maori artists that are overlooked by mainstream. Te Marunui was found by Tame Iti at an exhibition in Whakatane last year. He says that his skill is deep reflection. Exciting the heart, awakening the soul, that is what his work does. It's an issue that will be included in his future work. Next year he will focus on his diploma. Kereama Wright, Te Karere. While the responsibility of the survival of the Maori language ultimately rests with Maori, would the language have more of a fighting chance if non-Maori students studied te reo? Hania Douglas put this question to a student at Rutherford College. She speaks Maori- My name is Moana despite having no Maori ancestry, thanks to parents who have respect for Maoridom. They wanted me to learn Maori because that's the language of this country. Which begs the question - should Maori alone have the reasonability of learning the language. While the language belongs to Maori, perhaps everyone in mainstream schools should be learning it. Will Flavell is researching the place of students of the Maori language with no Maori backgrounds for his PhD. He's in awe of non-Maori who dedicate themselves to our language. I think it's great to see non-Maori learning our language in mainstream. Statistics say only 4% of non-Maori students in NZ schools are learning the language. Perhaps it's something for the Ministry of Education to look in to. That's right. That's why my research focuses on non-Maori learning our language. The big question is - Do you believe that people like you are the answer to keeping the Maori language alive? Yes, if they speak it often. Time will tell whether Moana is right. Hania Douglas, Te Karere. Let's take another look at today's top stories. Support is building for a parliamentary inquiry into how the deceased of Maori families are handled. The Maori Affairs Select Committee is investigating why so many Maori bereaved families encounter problems under the current law. 14 secondary schools have signed up to a covenant with Waikato-Tainui that sets in place an educational strategy called Te Whakatupuranga 2050. It's the first of its kind led by the first iwi in the country A young Maori artist It's the first of its kind led by the first iwi in the country A young Maori artist from Taneatua has been honoured for the quality of his work. After the break; The culinary MKR duet is at work writing a cookbook. And we have the weather. To the weather now. For weather, see tvnz.co.nz. Former My Kitchen Rules contestants and newly capped chefs Jay and Sarah are now looking at writing a new cook book. So what's in the book? Te Okiwa McLean talked to them both to find out. Familiar faces in the culinary world. This is just another day's spread in the Wanakore house. This couple made it to the finals of MKR. We think of ourselves as home cooks, not restaurant chefs. They've launched a website showcasing their cooking skills with the aim of getting their cookbook out there. They're no strangers to budgeting or being caught by surprise. You can't really plan for it because they reveal the challenges then and there so you don't have much time to prepare, to plan what you'll cook, ingredients, so you just have to give it your all. Their skills were honed on the marae. We've worked on the marae countless times. The book will feature 100 recipes. They hope to publish next year. Te Okiwa McLean, Te Karere. That's all we have for today. Turou Hawaiki. Captions were made possible with funding from Te Mangai Paho. Copyright TVNZ 2016.