The 49th New Zealand Parliament was elected at the
2008 election. It comprised 122 members, including an
overhang of two seats (an increase of one from the
48th Parliament) caused by the Māori Party having won two more electorate seats than its share of the party vote would otherwise have given it. The Parliament served from 2008 until the November .
New Zealand uses the
mixed-member proportional (MMP) system to elect its parliaments. Seventy of the members of the 49th Parliament represented geographical electorates: sixteen in the
South Island, 47 in the
North Island (one more than for the
48th Parliament) and seven
Māori electorates
In New Zealand politics, Māori electorates, colloquially known as the Māori seats, are a special category of electorate that give reserved positions to representatives of Māori in the New Zealand Parliament. Every area in New Zealand is ...
. The remaining 52 (increased from fifty by the overhang) were elected from nationwide party vote candidate lists to realise proportionality.
There were 10 resignations leading to
Electoral Commission
An election commission is a body charged with overseeing the implementation of electioneering process of any country. The formal names of election commissions vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, and may be styled an electoral commission, a c ...
replacement selections for new list candidates from four parliamentary parties.
Lockwood Smith
Sir Alexander Lockwood Smith (born 13 November 1948) is a New Zealand politician and diplomat who was High Commissioner of New Zealand to the United Kingdom from 2013 to 2017, and Speaker of the House of Representatives from 2008 to 2013.
S ...
was the
Speaker
Speaker may refer to:
Society and politics
* Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly
* Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture
* A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially:
** I ...
in the 49th Parliament.
Electorate boundaries for 49th Parliament
The Representation Commission altered many of the boundaries of New Zealand's parliamentary
electorates following the
2006 census; the large growth in population between censuses lead to significant boundary changes, particularly in Auckland, the area around Christchurch and the central North Island. In May 2007, the Representation Commission announced the boundary changes
to take effect for the next general election, with the boundaries finalised in September 2007.
The Commission announced the formation of a new electorate in Greater Auckland, bringing the number of geographical constituencies to 70. The new electorate, originally dubbed "
Howick" (after the Auckland suburb), would have included parts of the existing Pakuranga, Manukau East and Clevedon electorates.
After
Pakuranga
Pakuranga is an eastern suburb of Auckland, in northern New Zealand. Pakuranga covers a series of low ridges and previously swampy flats, now drained, that lie between the Pakuranga Creek and Tamaki River, two estuarial arms of the Hauraki Gu ...
electors strongly objected to the proposed changes (which would have seen the inclusion of the population centres
Panmure,
Point England and
Glen Innes into the electorate) the Commission largely reverted proposed changes to the boundaries of the
Pakuranga electorate. The Commission opted to alleviate population pressures by moving the Auckland City suburb of
Otahuhu into
Manukau East. The revised new electorate received the name
Botany
Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek w ...
to reflect its focus on the growing population-centres of
Botany Downs–
Dannemora. On paper, Botany counts as a safe National seat.
Even though the number of South Island electorates remains fixed, the decline in the population of electorates south of
Christchurch
Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon Rive ...
resulted in the boundaries of electorates from
Invercargill
Invercargill ( , mi, Waihōpai is the southernmost and westernmost city in New Zealand, and one of the southernmost cities in the world. It is the commercial centre of the Southland region. The city lies in the heart of the wide expanse of t ...
north to
Rakaia
Rakaia is a town seated close to the southern banks of the Rakaia River on the Canterbury Plains in New Zealand's South Island, approximately 57 km south of Christchurch on State Highway 1 and the Main South Line. Immediately north of the ...
shifting northwards. The electorates of
Aoraki
Aoraki / Mount Cook is the highest mountain in New Zealand. Its height, as of 2014, is listed as . It sits in the Southern Alps, the mountain range that runs the length of the South Island. A popular tourist destination, it is also a favourite ...
,
Otago,
Rakaia
Rakaia is a town seated close to the southern banks of the Rakaia River on the Canterbury Plains in New Zealand's South Island, approximately 57 km south of Christchurch on State Highway 1 and the Main South Line. Immediately north of the ...
and
Banks Peninsula all gravitated towards Christchurch. In the process:
*
Aoraki
Aoraki / Mount Cook is the highest mountain in New Zealand. Its height, as of 2014, is listed as . It sits in the Southern Alps, the mountain range that runs the length of the South Island. A popular tourist destination, it is also a favourite ...
received the new name of
*
Otago received the new name of
Waitaki
*
Rakaia
Rakaia is a town seated close to the southern banks of the Rakaia River on the Canterbury Plains in New Zealand's South Island, approximately 57 km south of Christchurch on State Highway 1 and the Main South Line. Immediately north of the ...
received the new name of
Selwyn
*
Banks Peninsula received the new name of
Port Hills
The Port Hills are a range of hills in Canterbury Region, so named because they lie between the city of Christchurch and its port at Lyttelton. They are an eroded remnant of the Lyttelton volcano, which erupted millions of years ago.
The hi ...
Other electorates in the lower South Island increased substantially in size.
2008 election results
The figures below are based on official results A decrease of 7 MPs is shown for "Other Parties" because the
New Zealand First party of
Winston Peters
Winston Raymond Peters (born 11 April 1945) is a New Zealand politician serving as the leader of New Zealand First since its foundation in 1993. Peters served as the 13th deputy prime minister of New Zealand from 1996 to 1998 and 2017 to 2020, ...
did not win an electorate seat or 5% of the party vote, and hence was not allocated any seats in the new Parliament.
Members of the 49th New Zealand Parliament
New Zealand National Party (58)
New Zealand Labour Party (42)
Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand
The Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand ( mi, Rōpū Kākāriki o Aotearoa, Niu Tireni), commonly known as the Greens, is a green and left-wing political party in New Zealand. Like many green parties around the world, it has four organisational ...
(9)
ACT New Zealand
ACT New Zealand, known simply as ACT (), is a right-wing, classical-liberal political party in New Zealand. According to former party leader Rodney Hide, ACT's values are "individual freedom, personal responsibility, doing the best for our natur ...
(5)
Māori Party
Māori or Maori can refer to:
Relating to the Māori people
* Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group
* Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand
* Māori culture
* Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...
(4)
United Future New Zealand
United Future New Zealand, usually known as United Future, was a centrist political party in New Zealand. The party was in government between 2005 and 2017, first alongside Labour (2005–2008) and then supporting National (2008–2017).
U ...
(1)
Jim Anderton's Progressive Party
Jim Anderton's Progressive Party (formed in 2002 as the Progressive Party and renamed after its founder in 2005) was a New Zealand political party generally somewhat to the left of its ally, the Labour Party.
The party was established when Ji ...
(1)
Mana Party (1)
Independent
Independent or Independents may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups
* Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s
* Independ ...
(1)
By-elections during 49th Parliament
There were a number of changes during the term of the 49th Parliament.
Summary of changes during term
*
Helen Clark
Helen Elizabeth Clark (born 26 February 1950) is a New Zealand politician who served as the 37th prime minister of New Zealand from 1999 to 2008, and was the administrator of the United Nations Development Programme from 2009 to 2017. She was ...
resigned in April 2009 to take up a position as Administrator of the
United Nations Development Programme
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)french: Programme des Nations unies pour le développement, PNUD is a United Nations agency tasked with helping countries eliminate poverty and achieve sustainable economic growth and human dev ...
. The resulting
Mount Albert by-election was won by
David Shearer on 13 June 2009.
*
Michael Cullen resigned in April 2009 to become the deputy chairman of
New Zealand Post
NZ Post ( mi, Tukurau Aotearoa), shortened from New Zealand Post, is a state-owned enterprise responsible for providing postal service in New Zealand.
The New Zealand Post Office, a government agency, provided postal, banking, and telecommuni ...
. He was replaced by the next person on the Labour Party's list,
Damien O'Connor.
*
Richard Worth resigned in June 2009. He was replaced by the next person on the National Party's list,
Cam Calder
Campbell Gordon Calder (born 1952), known as Cam Calder, is a New Zealand doctor and politician who represented the National Party as a member of the House of Representatives from 2009 to 2014.
Background
Originally a dentist by trade, Calder ...
.
*
Sue Bradford
Sue Bradford (born 1 July 1952 in Auckland) is a New Zealand activist, academic, and former New Zealand politician who served as a list Member of Parliament representing the Green Party from 1999 to 2009.
Bradford is an eco-socialist. In 2019, s ...
resigned in October 2009. She was replaced by the next person on the Green Party's list,
David Clendon.
*
Jeanette Fitzsimons resigned in February 2010. She was replaced by the next person on the Green Party's list,
Gareth Hughes
Gareth Hughes (23 August 1894 – 1 October 1965) was a Welsh stage and silent screen actor. Usually cast as a callow, sensitive hero in Hollywood silent films, Hughes got his start on stage during childhood and continued to play youthful lead ...
.
*
Chris Carter expelled from Labour Party caucus amidst expenses scandal in 2010 and, as of October 2010, was expelled from the Labour Party meaning his seat is one as solely an Independent MP.
*
David Garrett resigned from the ACT caucus in September 2010 and resigned from Parliament shortly after being replaced by
Hilary Calvert.
*Luamanuvao
Winnie Laban resigned in October 2010 to become Assistant Vice-Chancellor (Pasifika) at
Victoria University of Wellington
Victoria University of Wellington ( mi, Te Herenga Waka) is a university in Wellington, New Zealand. It was established in 1897 by Act of Parliament, and was a constituent college of the University of New Zealand.
The university is well kno ...
. The resulting
Mana by-election was won by
Kris Faafoi
Kristopher John Faafoi (born 23 June 1976) is a former New Zealand Labour Party politician. He became the Member of Parliament for the Mana electorate in 2010. He did not contest the seat as an electorate MP in 2020 but continued as a list MP ...
.
*
Pansy Wong
Pansy Yu Fong Wong (; born 1955) is a former New Zealand politician. She was New Zealand's first Asian MP, serving as a member of parliament for the National Party from 1996 to 2011. She was also New Zealand's first Asian Cabinet Minister, se ...
resigned in January 2011 following questions and a Speaker's investigation into her use of Ministerial travel privileges. Her portfolios were transferred to
Hekia Parata
Patricia Hekia Parata (born 1 November 1958) is a former New Zealand politician and former member of the New Zealand House of Representatives, having been elected to parliament in the 2008 general election as a member of the New Zealand Nationa ...
who was raised to Cabinet to replace her. The resulting
Botany by-election was won by
Jami-Lee Ross.
*
Hone Harawira
Hone Pani Tamati Waka Nene Harawira is a New Zealand Māori activist and former parliamentarian. He was elected to parliament as the member for the Māori electorate of Te Tai Tokerau in 2005 as the Māori Party candidate.
In 2011, following ...
resigned from the Māori Party in February 2011 following a recommendation by the party's Disciplinary and Disputes Committee that the party's National Council expel him. He resigned from Parliament as an Independent MP effective 21 May causing a by-election in
Te Tai Tokerau
Te Tai Tokerau () is a New Zealand parliamentary Māori electorate that was created out of the Northern Maori electorate ahead of the first Mixed Member Proportional (MMP) election in 1996. It was held first by Tau Henare representing New Ze ...
. Harawira announced his intention to run as a candidate for the Mana Party. On 6 July 2011 the results of the official count of votes found Harawira won by a majority of 1117.
*
Darren Hughes
Darren Colyn Hughes (born 3 April 1978) is a New Zealand former Member of Parliament between 2002 and 2011, first elected at the age of 24. He represented the Labour Party and was a Minister outside Cabinet in the Fifth Labour Government of Ne ...
announced his intention to resign in March 2011 following an alleged incident involving him.
Louisa Wall
Louisa Hareruia Wall (born 17 February 1972) is a former New Zealand Labour Party politician who served as a Member of Parliament (MP) from 2011 to 2022. She has represented New Zealand in both netball as a Silver Fern and rugby union as a m ...
became the replacement for Hughes from the List for the remainder of the 49th Parliament.
*
John Carter announced his resignation from politics in June 2011 in favour of a High Commissioner's post in the Cook Islands; he was replaced as a Minister by
Craig Foss
Craig Raymond Robert Foss (born 4 July 1963) is a New Zealand investment banker and politician. He was elected to the Hawke's Bay Regional Council in October 2019 and was previously the Member of Parliament for from 2005 until 2017.
Early ye ...
. As he resigned within six months of a general election, a by-election does not need to be held in his Northland seat.
Seating plan
As on 5 May 2009
The chamber is in a horseshoe-shape.
End of term
The chamber is in a horseshoe-shape.
References
{{Fifth National Government of New Zealand
2008 New Zealand general election
New Zealand parliaments