The chairperson of the committee considered it only fitting that the room be designated as a whare rūnanga in recognition of the committee's mana and the committee's place in Parliament. In his address to the kawanga whare, the Minister of Native Affairs at the time described the committee as one that was "governed by the highest traditions of justice and fair play to both races and the administration of its affairs." He expressed the hope that the high traditions of the past would always remain with the room where they were about to enter. 