Iwi wants hundreds of Māori taonga returned from British Museum

Morning Report · Oct 21, 2026 · 4m

East coast iwi Ngati Kahungunu is calling on the British Museum to return hundreds of Maori taonga, currently held in its collection. The Iwi's chairman says many of the items may have been taken from their whenua and burial grounds, and he wants the New Zealand Government to help bring them home. But a UK law makes it difficult for the museum to permanently return items from its collection.Ngati Kahungunu chair Bayden Barber spoke to Ingrid Hipkiss.