Speaker of Parliament Gerry Brownlee condemned the interruption as "grossly disorderly," clearing onlookers from the public gallery and temporarily suspending proceedings.

As parliamentarians gathered for a preliminary vote on the bill on Thursday, Te Pāti Māori MPs physically tore a copy of the bill, stood and began a haka.

The Treaty Principles Bill seeks to revise New Zealand’s foundational agreement with Maori people and is hugely unpopular, with even the prime minister deriding it.