right-wing
Right-wing politics describes the range of Ideology#Political ideologies, political ideologies that view certain social orders and Social stratification, hierarchies as inevitable, natural, normal, or desirable, typically supporting this pos ...
,
classical-liberal
Classical liberalism is a political tradition and a branch of liberalism that advocates free market and laissez-faire economics; civil liberties under the rule of law with especial emphasis on individual autonomy, limited government, economic ...
political party
A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or p ...
in
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island coun ...
. According to former party leader
Rodney Hide
Rodney Philip Hide (born 16 December 1956) is a former New Zealand politician of the ACT New Zealand party. Hide was a Member of Parliament for ACT from 1996 until 2011, was ACT's leader between 2004 and 2011, and represented the constituency f ...
, ACT's values are "individual freedom, personal responsibility, doing the best for our natural environment and for smaller, smarter government in its goals of a prosperous economy, a strong society, and a quality of life that is the envy of the world".Rodney Hide , "Speech to ACT Auckland Regional Conference, 30 July 2006"
Young ACT
Young ACT, formerly known as Prebble's Rebels, ACTivists and ACT on Campus, is a youth group affiliated with ACT New Zealand, a classical-liberal political party in New Zealand. It has supported the party for over two decades though has disagr ...
is an associated (albeit unofficial) student wing.
The name is an acronym of Association of Consumers and Taxpayers, which was founded in 1993 by
Roger Douglas
Sir Roger Owen Douglas (born 5 December 1937) is a retired New Zealand politician who served as a minister in two Labour governments. He became arguably best known for his prominent role in New Zealand's radical economic restructuring in the 19 ...
and Derek Quigley and became a political party for the 1996 election. An associate of Douglas, Richard Prebble served as party leader from 1996 to 2004. Under Prebble's leadership the party held nine seats in Parliament. Rodney Hide served as leader from 2004 to 2011. ACT was briefly led by former National Party leader
Don Brash
Donald Thomas Brash (born 24 September 1940) is a former New Zealand politician who was Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the New Zealand National Party from October 2003 to November 2006, and the Leader of ACT New Zealand from April to No ...
caucus
A caucus is a meeting of supporters or members of a specific political party or movement. The exact definition varies between different countries and political cultures.
The term originated in the United States, where it can refer to a meeting ...
was reduced to one seat.
ACT gave support to the
Fifth National Government
Neville Chamberlain formed the Chamberlain war ministry in 1939 after declaring war on Germany. Chamberlain led the country for the first eight months of the Second World War, until the Norway Debate in Parliament led Chamberlain to resign a ...
from to 2017. It is currently led by David Seymour, who became the party's leader in October 2014 and has been an elected MP of the party since September 2014. During the 2017 election, ACT retained its sole seat in
Epsom
Epsom is the principal town of the Borough of Epsom and Ewell in Surrey, England, about south of central London. The town is first recorded as ''Ebesham'' in the 10th century and its name probably derives from that of a Saxon landowner. The ...
and received 0.5% of the party vote. Benefiting from the collapse of the National Party vote, ACT won 7.6% of the party vote and 10 seats in the 2020 election, its best result since its founding.
Principles
ACT states that it adheres to
classical-liberal
Classical liberalism is a political tradition and a branch of liberalism that advocates free market and laissez-faire economics; civil liberties under the rule of law with especial emphasis on individual autonomy, limited government, economic ...
and small government principles coupled with what the party considers as a high regard for individual freedom and personal responsibility. ACT sets out its values:
* That individuals are the rightful owners of their own lives and therefore have inherent
freedom
Freedom is understood as either having the ability to act or change without constraint or to possess the power and resources to fulfill one's purposes unhindered. Freedom is often associated with liberty and autonomy in the sense of "giving one ...
s and responsibilities.
* That the proper purpose of government is to protect such freedoms and not to assume such responsibilities.
* All people should be equal before the law regardless of race, gender, sexuality, religion or political belief.
*
Freedom of expression
Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The right to freedom of expression has been recog ...
is essential to a free society and must be promoted, protected and preserved without restriction other than for incitement, criminal nuisance or defamation.
* Citizenship and permanent residency should be subject to applicants affirming New Zealand's values.
libertarian
Libertarianism (from french: libertaire, "libertarian"; from la, libertas, "freedom") is a political philosophy that upholds liberty as a core value. Libertarians seek to maximize autonomy and political freedom, and minimize the state's en ...
party, although its stances have changed under successive leadership and the party's support base has drawn a
big tent
A big tent party, or catch-all party, is a term used in reference to a political party's policy of permitting or encouraging a broad spectrum of views among its members. This is in contrast to other kinds of parties, which defend a determined i ...
and a broad church of voters. ACT's platform featured conservative
populist
Populism refers to a range of political stances that emphasize the idea of "the people" and often juxtapose this group against " the elite". It is frequently associated with anti-establishment and anti-political sentiment. The term develop ...
policies under former leaders Richard Prebble (1996–2004) and
Rodney Hide
Rodney Philip Hide (born 16 December 1956) is a former New Zealand politician of the ACT New Zealand party. Hide was a Member of Parliament for ACT from 1996 until 2011, was ACT's leader between 2004 and 2011, and represented the constituency f ...
(2004–2011). Under the current leadership of David Seymour, commentators have identified a shift in policy to a more libertarian outlook. The party has also been variously defined as subscribing to
libertarian conservatism
Libertarian conservatism, also referred to as conservative libertarianism and conservatarianism, is a political and social philosophy that combines conservatism and libertarianism, representing the libertarian wing of conservatism and vice v ...
right-wing populism
Right-wing populism, also called national populism and right-wing nationalism, is a political ideology that combines right-wing politics and populist rhetoric and themes. Its rhetoric employs anti-elitist sentiments, opposition to the Estab ...
, and
social conservatism
Social conservatism is a political philosophy and variety of conservatism which places emphasis on traditional power structures over social pluralism. Social conservatives organize in favor of duty, traditional values and social institut ...
; the latter two of these tendencies have become marginalised at present in the party but still visible among ACT's supporters and grassroots activists. Seymour has stated that he does not view
populism
Populism refers to a range of political stances that emphasize the idea of "the people" and often juxtapose this group against " the elite". It is frequently associated with anti-establishment and anti-political sentiment. The term develop ...
as the way to govern a country or stimulate growth, and has accused the centre-left
New Zealand Labour Party
The New Zealand Labour Party ( mi, Rōpū Reipa o Aotearoa), or simply Labour (), is a centre-left political party in New Zealand. The party's platform programme describes its founding principle as democratic socialism, while observers desc ...
of engaging in populism in its business, spending and tax policies.
ACT wants to reduce or remove some government programmes which it sees as unnecessary and wasteful and to increase self-reliance by encouraging individuals to take responsibility to pay for services traditionally paid for by the government. Under leader Rodney Hide, ACT New Zealand had primarily focused on two main policy areas:
taxation
A tax is a compulsory financial charge or some other type of levy imposed on a taxpayer (an individual or legal entity) by a governmental organization in order to fund government spending and various public expenditures (regional, local, o ...
and
crime
In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definitions of", in C ...
flat tax
A flat tax (short for flat-rate tax) is a tax with a single rate on the taxable amount, after accounting for any deductions or exemptions from the tax base. It is not necessarily a fully proportional tax. Implementations are often progress ...
, in which tax rates would not be graduated based on wealth or income, so every taxpayer would pay the same proportion of their income in tax. The flat tax rate that ACT proposed was approximately 15% with no tax on the first $25,000 for those who opt out of state-provided accident, sickness and healthcare cover. , the party proposes reducing
GST GST may refer to:
Taxes
* General sales tax
* Goods and Services Tax, the name for the value-added tax in several jurisdictions:
** Goods and services tax (Australia)
** Goods and Services Tax (Canada)
** Goods and Services Tax (Hong Kong)
**Go ...
and decreasing the marginal tax rate paid by those on the median wage; however it currently does not advocate a flat tax rate.
At the 2020 general election, the party campaigned on a broad policy platform. It prioritised economic recovery (''see: ''), keeping national debt low, and signing up to a CANZUK agreement which would enable free movement of people and goods between the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Canada and Australia. The party wants to protect freedom of expression and limit funding for universities that do not uphold freedom of speech on campus. It supports immigration while it calls for compulsory measures for immigrants to assimilate and limiting citizenship or permanent residency to those who pledge to uphold the values of New Zealand.
Law and order
On its website, ACT states "that all New Zealanders should have the same fundamental rights, regardless of race, religion, sexuality or gender". The party says "the rights of victims should trump the rights of criminals" and has a number of tough on crime policies focused primarily on trying to control gangs. Party leader, David Seymour, wants to reintroduce the three strikes law repealed by the Labour Government, and even impose three year prison sentences, without parole, on anyone who commits three burglaries. ACT advocates repealing restrictive firearms legislation, and taking a "tougher" stance on criminals who repeatedly offend and those found guilty of violent crimes while supporting rehabilitation programs.
Social issues
Members of ACT's
caucus
A caucus is a meeting of supporters or members of a specific political party or movement. The exact definition varies between different countries and political cultures.
The term originated in the United States, where it can refer to a meeting ...
in parliament voted 5 to 4 in favour of the
Civil Union Act 2004
The Civil Union Act 2004 is an Act of Parliament in New Zealand. It was passed into law on Thursday 9 December 2004 by a final vote of 65–55 in the New Zealand Parliament.Prostitution Reform Act 2003. In 2005, both of ACT's MPs,
Rodney Hide
Rodney Philip Hide (born 16 December 1956) is a former New Zealand politician of the ACT New Zealand party. Hide was a Member of Parliament for ACT from 1996 until 2011, was ACT's leader between 2004 and 2011, and represented the constituency f ...
same-sex marriage
Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being Mexico, constituting ...
in New Zealand in the future perspective.
In 2013, leader
John Banks John Banks or Bankes may refer to:
Politics and law
*Sir John Banks, 1st Baronet (1627–1699), English merchant and Member of Parliament
* John Banks (American politician) (1793–1864), U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania
* John Gray Banks (18 ...
(the party's sole MP from 2011 to 2014) voted in favour of the
Marriage (Definition of Marriage) Amendment Bill
The Marriage (Definition of Marriage) Amendment Act 2013 is an Act of Parliament in New Zealand, which since 19 August 2013, allows same-sex couples to legally marry.
The Act was proposed as a member's bill by MP Louisa Wall in May 2012, and w ...
at its third reading, a law which legalised same-sex marriage in New Zealand.
ACT leader David Seymour supported the legalisation of assisted dying. In 2018, he introduced a member's bill, the
End of Life Choice Bill
The End of Life Choice Act 2019 is an Act of Parliament in New Zealand that seeks to give people with a terminal illness the option of receiving assisted dying. The Ministry of Justice and Ministry of Health confirmed that, "The Bill uses “a ...
which aimed to legalise
euthanasia in New Zealand
Euthanasia became legal in New Zealand when the End of Life Choice Act 2019 took full effect on 7 November 2021. It is illegal to "aid and abet suicide" under Section 179 of the New Zealand Crimes Act 1961. The clauses of this act make it an ...
. The law passed in 2019, was approved by the public in a 2020 referendum, and will take full effect in 2021. The euthanasia law has been cited as an example of Seymour's cultural liberal personal outlook. In 2020, Seymour voted for
Abortion Legislation Act 2020
The New Zealand Abortion Legislation Act 2020 is an Act of Parliament in New Zealand that amends the law to decriminalise abortion. Under the act, abortion is available without restrictions to any woman who is not more than 20 weeks pregnant. W ...
which introduced abortion on request. However, he criticised a particular aspect of this law which created "free protest zones" which would ban protests near abortion clinics, saying this limits freedom of expression.
In 2021, ACT expressed support for liberalization of surrogacy law so as to facilitate availability of surrogate services to heterosexual and same-sex couples as well. Currently New Zealand's law permits for getting altruistic surrogacy only.
ACT also proposes abolition of the
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 ...
seats in parliament, arguing the seats are "an anachronism and offensive to the principle of equal citizenship" and that Māori MPs have been elected in general elections on other lists without special assistance. The party also wants to reduce the number of MPs in parliament to 100 from 120.
Climate change
ACT went into the 2008 general election with a policy that in part stated "New Zealand is not warming" and that their policy goal was to ensure "That no New Zealand government will ever impose needless and unjustified taxation or regulation on its citizens in a misguided attempt to reduce global warming or become a world leader in
carbon neutrality
Carbon neutrality is a state of net-zero carbon dioxide emissions. This can be achieved by balancing emissions of carbon dioxide with its removal (often through carbon offsetting) or by eliminating emissions from society (the transition to the "p ...
". In September 2008, ACT Party Leader
Rodney Hide
Rodney Philip Hide (born 16 December 1956) is a former New Zealand politician of the ACT New Zealand party. Hide was a Member of Parliament for ACT from 1996 until 2011, was ACT's leader between 2004 and 2011, and represented the constituency f ...
stated "that the entire climate change - global warming hypothesis is a hoax, that the data and the hypothesis do not hold together, that
Al Gore
Albert Arnold Gore Jr. (born March 31, 1948) is an American politician, businessman, and environmentalist who served as the 45th vice president of the United States from 1993 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton. Gore was the Democratic ...
is a phoney and a fraud on this issue, and that the emissions trading scheme is a worldwide scam and swindle." The former party leader has been branded as an "outspoken Kiwi
climate change sceptic
Climate change denial, or global warming denial, is Denial (Freud), denial, dismissal, or doubt that contradicts the scientific consensus on climate change, including the extent to which it is Attribution of recent climate change, caused by hum ...
". In February 2016, ACT deleted this climate change policy from their website, and party leader David Seymour attacked the
Green Party
A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as social justice, environmentalism and nonviolence.
Greens believe that these issues are inherently related to one another as a foundation f ...
for doing "bugger all for the environment".
ACT placed Chris Baillie fourth on its party list of candidates in the 2020 election; he has received criticism over his views on climate change, and been labelled a climate change sceptic. In a 2020 report by OraTaiao, the independent New Zealand climate and health council, ACT was listed as a party that would "either make climate change worse or do nothing". It finished in 9th place in the council's pre-election scorecard, scoring 1.1 (one point one) out of 24. However, in the runup to the 2020 election, Environmental Defence Society chief executive Gary Taylor said that even ACT had moved its position from where it had been. While he was largely critical of the party, saying "ACT have been very outspoken about wanting to go hard to repeal a lot of climate change legislation, and I haven't seen much from New Zealand First, mainly just silence." He also stated, "I think the only upside from ACT really on climate change is they do seem to have moved from outright deniers - which is where the party was five years ago.
ith
The Ith () is a ridge in Germany's Central Uplands which is up to 439 m high. It lies about 40 km southwest of Hanover and, at 22 kilometres, is the longest line of crags in North Germany.
Geography
Location
The Ith is immediatel ...
a strong ACT presence you could expect some of their radical and unhelpful policies to potentially be implemented, and that is frankly a scary proposition."
In early December 2020, the New Zealand Parliament officially declared a climate emergency, of which ACT was critical, stating, "Today's climate emergency was a triumph for post-rational politics with feelings rather than facts driving the Government's response to climate change". The party supports repealing the 2019 " Zero Carbon Act".
History
Formation
The name comes from the initials of the Association of Consumers and Taxpayers, founded in 1993 by Sir Roger Douglas and Derek Quigley. Douglas and Quigley intended the Association to serve as a pressure-group promoting
Rogernomics
In February 1985, journalists at the '' New Zealand Listener'' coined the term Rogernomics, a portmanteau of "Roger" and "economics" (by analogy with "Reaganomics"), to describe the neoliberal economic policies followed by Roger Douglas. Dougl ...
—the name given to the radical free-market policies implemented by Douglas as
Minister of Finance
A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation.
A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", " ...
between 1984 and 1988. The Association grew out of the ' Backbone club', a ginger group in the Labour Party that supported Douglas and his policies. In 1996, New Zealand switched to using the MMP electoral system. The new electoral system gave smaller groups a much better chance of entering Parliament, and encouraged the Association to transform into a political party and contest elections. The nascent party's manifesto was based upon a book written by Douglas entitled ''Unfinished Business''. Douglas served as ACT's first leader, but soon stood aside for Richard Prebble (his old ally from their days in the Labour Party).
1996–2004: Prebble's leadership
Under Douglas, ACT had languished at 1% in opinion polls, but with Prebble's
populist
Populism refers to a range of political stances that emphasize the idea of "the people" and often juxtapose this group against " the elite". It is frequently associated with anti-establishment and anti-political sentiment. The term develop ...
rhetoric the party increased in support. In the , ACT fielded 56 list candidates. Prebble won the electorate, and with 6.10% of the total party vote, ACT also sent seven
list MP
A list MP is a member of parliament (MP) elected from a party list rather than from by a geographical constituency. The place in Parliament is due to the number of votes that the party won, not to votes received by the MP personally. This occurs ...
s to the
45th New Zealand Parliament
The 45th New Zealand Parliament was a term of the Parliament of New Zealand. Its composition was determined by the 1996 election, and it sat until the 1999 election.
The 45th Parliament was notable in that it was the first to be elected under ...
.
In the , ACT obtained 7.04% of the party vote, making it eligible for nine list MPs.
In the , ACT obtained 7.14% of the party vote, making it eligible for nine list MPs.
On 2 December 2004, both Douglas and Quigley announced that they would step down as patrons of ACT. They stated as the reason that they wished to have more freedom to disagree with the party publicly.
2005 election
Prebble's sudden departure from the leadership of ACT in 2004 signalled a decline in the party's electoral fortunes.
Rodney Hide
Rodney Philip Hide (born 16 December 1956) is a former New Zealand politician of the ACT New Zealand party. Hide was a Member of Parliament for ACT from 1996 until 2011, was ACT's leader between 2004 and 2011, and represented the constituency f ...
led ACT into the . It obtained 1.51% of the party vote, but due to winning one electorate did not need to obtain the necessary 5% threshold of the party vote and hence had 1 list MP and 1 electorate MP.
2008–2011: First term in government
In the
2008 New Zealand general election
8 (eight) is the natural number following 7 and preceding 9.
In mathematics
8 is:
* a composite number, its proper divisors being , , and . It is twice 4 or four times 2.
* a power of two, being 2 (two cubed), and is the first number of t ...
Rodney Hide
Rodney Philip Hide (born 16 December 1956) is a former New Zealand politician of the ACT New Zealand party. Hide was a Member of Parliament for ACT from 1996 until 2011, was ACT's leader between 2004 and 2011, and represented the constituency f ...
Roger Douglas
Sir Roger Owen Douglas (born 5 December 1937) is a retired New Zealand politician who served as a minister in two Labour governments. He became arguably best known for his prominent role in New Zealand's radical economic restructuring in the 19 ...
,
John Boscawen
John Spencer Boscawen (born c.1957) is a former New Zealand politician. He is a member of the ACT New Zealand Party and served as a member of the New Zealand House of Representatives from 2008 to 2011.
Boscawen briefly served as deputy leader ...
,
David Garrett
David Christian Bongartz (born 4 September 1980), known by his stage name David Garrett, is a German classical and crossover violinist and recording artist.
Early life
When Garrett was four years old his father purchased a violin for his ol ...
and Hilary Calvert. The election marked an improvement in ACT's fortunes. Hide retained his Epsom seat and ACT's share of the party vote increased to 3.65% (up from the 1.5% gained in the 2005 election). The combination allowed the party five MPs in total.
In addition, the National Party won the most seats overall, forming a minority government, the
Fifth National Government of New Zealand
The Fifth National Government of New Zealand was the government of New Zealand for three parliamentary terms from 19 November 2008 to 26 October 2017. John Key served as National Leader and Prime Minister until December 2016, after which Bill ...
, with the support of ACT as well as the
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 ...
and
United Future
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 ...
. John Key offered both Hide and Roy posts as Ministers outside Cabinet: Hide became Minister of Local Government, Minister for Regulatory Reform and Associate Minister of Commerce, while Roy became Minister of Consumer Affairs, Associate
Minister of Defence
A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in som ...
and Associate Minister of Education.
After 2008, some caucus MPs and organisational members became dissatisfied with ACT's coalition partner status and argued at ACT's national conference (27 February 2010) that there were insufficient fiscal responsibility policy gains for their party and that the National Party had slid from its earlier commitment to the politics of fiscal responsibility over the course of the previous decade. Throughout 2009, there had been at least one reported ACT caucus coup attempt against Hide's leadership, believed to have been led by Deputy Leader Heather Roy and Roger Douglas. However, it faltered when Prime Minister Key supported Hide's retention and threatened a snap election. In addition, the party's polling of a lowly one to two percent in most opinion polls meant only Heather Roy might accompany Hide after any forthcoming general election, if Hide retained ACT's Epsom pivotal electorate seat.
On 28 April 2011, Hide announced that he was resigning the ACT leadership in favour of former National Party leader and
Reserve Bank
A central bank, reserve bank, or monetary authority is an institution that manages the currency and monetary policy of a country or monetary union,
and oversees their commercial banking system. In contrast to a commercial bank, a central ba ...
Governor
Don Brash
Donald Thomas Brash (born 24 September 1940) is a former New Zealand politician who was Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the New Zealand National Party from October 2003 to November 2006, and the Leader of ACT New Zealand from April to No ...
who joined the party that morning. Brash's leadership was unanimously approved by the party board and parliamentary caucus on 30 April. Brash promised to focus the party on controlling
government debt
A country's gross government debt (also called public debt, or sovereign debt) is the financial liabilities of the government sector. Changes in government debt over time reflect primarily borrowing due to past government deficits. A deficit oc ...
, equality between Māori and non-Māori, and rethinking the
Emissions Trading Scheme
Emissions trading is a market-based approach to controlling pollution by providing economic incentives for reducing the emissions of pollutants. The concept is also known as cap and trade (CAT) or emissions trading scheme (ETS). Carbon emission t ...
, with a target of getting 15 percent of the party vote in the next election.
In November 2011, a recording of a conversation held between
John Key
Sir John Phillip Key (born 9 August 1961) is a New Zealand retired politician who served as the 38th Prime Minister of New Zealand from 2008 to 2016 and as Leader of the New Zealand National Party from 2006 to 2016. After resigning from bo ...
and the former National Party member and former
Mayor of Auckland City
The Mayor of Auckland City was the directly elected head of the Auckland City Council, the municipal government of Auckland City, New Zealand. The office existed from 1871 to 2010, when the Auckland City Council and mayoralty was abolished and ...
John Banks John Banks or Bankes may refer to:
Politics and law
*Sir John Banks, 1st Baronet (1627–1699), English merchant and Member of Parliament
* John Banks (American politician) (1793–1864), U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania
* John Gray Banks (18 ...
, who had been selected as the new ACT candidate in Epsom, was leaked to ''Herald on Sunday''.
3 News
''Newshub'' (stylised as ''Newshub.'') is a New Zealand news service that airs on the television channels Three and Eden, as well as on digital platforms. It formerly operated across radio stations run by MediaWorks Radio until December 202 ...
also obtained copies of the recording suggesting the two politicians were discussing issues related to ACT New Zealand's leadership. Media dubbed the affair teapot tape.
2011 election: Decline
In the
2011 New Zealand general election
The 2011 New Zealand general election took place on Saturday 26 November 2011 to determine the membership of the 50th New Zealand Parliament.
One hundred and twenty-one MPs were elected to the New Zealand House of Representatives, 70 from sing ...
Don Brash
Donald Thomas Brash (born 24 September 1940) is a former New Zealand politician who was Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the New Zealand National Party from October 2003 to November 2006, and the Leader of ACT New Zealand from April to No ...
John Banks John Banks or Bankes may refer to:
Politics and law
*Sir John Banks, 1st Baronet (1627–1699), English merchant and Member of Parliament
* John Banks (American politician) (1793–1864), U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania
* John Gray Banks (18 ...
, David Seymour and Chris Simmons. The election was a disappointment for ACT, with the party's worst election result since it began in 1996. John Banks retained the Epsom seat for ACT, however the 34.2% majority held by Rodney Hide was severely cut back to 6.3% as large numbers of Labour and Green voters in Epsom tactically split their vote and gave their electorate vote to the National candidate Paul Goldsmith. Nationwide, ACT received only 1.07% of the party vote, placing eighth out of 13 on party vote percentage. As a result, ACT were only entitled to one seat in the new Parliament, filled by John Banks. Subsequently, Don Brash announced that he had stepped down as leader during his speech on election night. Following the 2011 general election John Banks stated that he believed that the ACT brand "...just about had its use-by date..." and needed to be renamed and relaunched.
Their previous partners, the National Party, again won the most seats overall, and formed a minority government. The
Fifth National Government of New Zealand
The Fifth National Government of New Zealand was the government of New Zealand for three parliamentary terms from 19 November 2008 to 26 October 2017. John Key served as National Leader and Prime Minister until December 2016, after which Bill ...
had ACT support as well as that of
United Future
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 ...
and the
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 ...
, providing the coalition with
confidence and supply
In a parliamentary democracy based on the Westminster system, confidence and supply are required for a ruling cabinet to retain power in the lower house.
A confidence-and-supply agreement is one whereby a party or independent members of par ...
.
2014 election
At the ACT Board meeting of 2 February 2014,
Jamie Whyte
Jamie Whyte is a New Zealand classical-liberal academic and politician who was the Leader of ACT New Zealand in 2014. He unsuccessfully contested the Pakuranga electorate in the 2014 general election. At the election, Whyte held the first po ...
became the party's leader-elect, and David Seymour was made the ACT candidate for
Epsom
Epsom is the principal town of the Borough of Epsom and Ewell in Surrey, England, about south of central London. The town is first recorded as ''Ebesham'' in the 10th century and its name probably derives from that of a Saxon landowner. The ...
.
Kenneth Wang
Kenneth Xiaoxuan Wang (; born 1955) is a former Deputy Leader of the ACT New Zealand party. He previously served as a member of Parliament to replace Donna Awatere Huata, who was expelled from Parliament in November 2004.
Biography
Wang was ...
was appointed deputy leader on 15 April 2014. In the September 2014 general election, Seymour won his seat, and ACT moved from
seventh
Seventh is the ordinal form of the number seven.
Seventh may refer to:
* Seventh Amendment to the United States Constitution
* A fraction (mathematics), , equal to one of seven equal parts
Film and television
*"The Seventh", a second-season e ...
to sixth place, despite a decline in their share of the popular vote. Seymour took over as party leader on 3 October 2014.
2017 election
Wang resigned as deputy leader on 9 July 2017, the same day ACT released its party list; Beth Houlbrooke was announced as his replacement.
The party list had 39 candidates, none of whom were elected. Party leader David Seymour was re-elected in the Epsom electorate, giving the party its only seat.
2020 election: Revival
In the run-up to the 2020 general election, ACT rose in opinion polls, from under 1% to close to 8%. This rise was attributed to Seymour's personal popularity. Following the election, held on 17 October (postponed from September), ACT increased their share of the popular vote to 7.6%, winning 10 seats including Seymour's Epsom seat and nine from the party list. This is the party's best-ever result. Some political analysists attributed ACT's strong result as partly benefiting from the collapse in support for the National Party and New Zealand First.
2021–present
In late April 2021, the ACT party sponsored motion asking the New Zealand Parliament to debate and vote on the issue of human rights abuses against the Uyghur ethnic minority community in China's
Xinjiang
Xinjiang, SASM/GNC: ''Xinjang''; zh, c=, p=Xīnjiāng; formerly romanized as Sinkiang (, ), officially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR), is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China (PRC), located in the northwest ...
province. In early May, the incumbent Labour Party revised the motion to raise concerns about human rights abuses in Xinjiang but omitting the term genocide, which was subsequently adopted by the New Zealand Parliament on 5 May. In response, the Chinese Embassy claimed that the motion made "groundless accusations" of human rights abuses against China and constituted an interference in China's internal affairs.
On 19 May 2021, the ACT Party opposed
Green Party
A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as social justice, environmentalism and nonviolence.
Greens believe that these issues are inherently related to one another as a foundation f ...
MP
Golriz Ghahraman
Golriz Ghahraman ( fa, گلریز قهرمان; born 1981) is an Iranian-born New Zealand politician, member of Parliament, and author. The former United Nations lawyer was a child asylum seeker, and became the first refugee elected to New Zea ...
's motion calling for Members of Parliament to recognise the rights of Palestinians to self-determination and statehood while reaffirming its support for a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict. Deputy Leader Van Velden justified ACT's opposition to the Green motion on the basis of Green MP
Ricardo Menéndez March
Ricardo Menéndez March (born ) is a New Zealand activist and politician who, since 2020, is a Member of Parliament for the Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand in the House of Representatives.
Early life and career
The son of a Mexican father ...
's tweet that said "From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free!."
Electoral results
Leadership
The ACT party board appoints a leader and deputy leader recommended by the party
caucus
A caucus is a meeting of supporters or members of a specific political party or movement. The exact definition varies between different countries and political cultures.
The term originated in the United States, where it can refer to a meeting ...
; when the party leader is not a member of parliament, a separate parliamentary leader is chosen by the caucus. The organisation outside parliament is led by a party president and party vice-president.
Leaders
*
Roger Douglas
Sir Roger Owen Douglas (born 5 December 1937) is a retired New Zealand politician who served as a minister in two Labour governments. He became arguably best known for his prominent role in New Zealand's radical economic restructuring in the 19 ...
Rodney Hide
Rodney Philip Hide (born 16 December 1956) is a former New Zealand politician of the ACT New Zealand party. Hide was a Member of Parliament for ACT from 1996 until 2011, was ACT's leader between 2004 and 2011, and represented the constituency f ...
(2004–2011)
*
Don Brash
Donald Thomas Brash (born 24 September 1940) is a former New Zealand politician who was Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the New Zealand National Party from October 2003 to November 2006, and the Leader of ACT New Zealand from April to No ...
(2011)
*
John Banks John Banks or Bankes may refer to:
Politics and law
*Sir John Banks, 1st Baronet (1627–1699), English merchant and Member of Parliament
* John Banks (American politician) (1793–1864), U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania
* John Gray Banks (18 ...
(2012–2014)
*
Jamie Whyte
Jamie Whyte is a New Zealand classical-liberal academic and politician who was the Leader of ACT New Zealand in 2014. He unsuccessfully contested the Pakuranga electorate in the 2014 general election. At the election, Whyte held the first po ...
John Boscawen
John Spencer Boscawen (born c.1957) is a former New Zealand politician. He is a member of the ACT New Zealand Party and served as a member of the New Zealand House of Representatives from 2008 to 2011.
Boscawen briefly served as deputy leader ...
(2010–2011)
*
Kenneth Wang
Kenneth Xiaoxuan Wang (; born 1955) is a former Deputy Leader of the ACT New Zealand party. He previously served as a member of Parliament to replace Donna Awatere Huata, who was expelled from Parliament in November 2004.
Biography
Wang was ...
(2014–2017)
* Beth Houlbrooke (2017–2020)
* Brooke van Velden (2020–present)
Rodney Hide
Rodney Philip Hide (born 16 December 1956) is a former New Zealand politician of the ACT New Zealand party. Hide was a Member of Parliament for ACT from 1996 until 2011, was ACT's leader between 2004 and 2011, and represented the constituency f ...
(2004–2011)
*
John Boscawen
John Spencer Boscawen (born c.1957) is a former New Zealand politician. He is a member of the ACT New Zealand Party and served as a member of the New Zealand House of Representatives from 2008 to 2011.
Boscawen briefly served as deputy leader ...
(2011)
*
John Banks John Banks or Bankes may refer to:
Politics and law
*Sir John Banks, 1st Baronet (1627–1699), English merchant and Member of Parliament
* John Banks (American politician) (1793–1864), U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania
* John Gray Banks (18 ...
Rodney Hide
Rodney Philip Hide (born 16 December 1956) is a former New Zealand politician of the ACT New Zealand party. Hide was a Member of Parliament for ACT from 1996 until 2011, was ACT's leader between 2004 and 2011, and represented the constituency f ...
(1994–1996)
*
Roger Douglas
Sir Roger Owen Douglas (born 5 December 1937) is a retired New Zealand politician who served as a minister in two Labour governments. He became arguably best known for his prominent role in New Zealand's radical economic restructuring in the 19 ...
John Boscawen
John Spencer Boscawen (born c.1957) is a former New Zealand politician. He is a member of the ACT New Zealand Party and served as a member of the New Zealand House of Representatives from 2008 to 2011.
Boscawen briefly served as deputy leader ...
(2013–2014)
* John Thompson (2014–2017)
* Ruwan Premathilaka (2017–2019)
* Tim Jago (2019–present)
Vice presidents
* David Schnauer (1999–2000)
* Rodney Hide (2000–2001)
* Vince Ashworth (2001–2004)
* John Ormond (2004–2006)
* Trevor Loudon (2006–2008)
* Michael Crozier (2008–2009)
* Dave Moore (2009–2010)
* Bruce Haycock (2010–2014)
* Beth Houlbrooke (2014–2016)
* Heather Anderson (2016–2017)
* Michaela Draper (2017–2018)
* Beth Houlbrooke (2018–2020)
* Isaac Henderson (2020–present)
Nicole McKee
Nicole Raima McKee (born ) is a New Zealand politician who was placed third on the ACT party list, and elected to the New Zealand parliament at the 2020 general election as a representative of the ACT New Zealand.
Early life and career
McKee ...
Simon Court
Simon Thomas Court is a New Zealand politician. He became a Member of Parliament in the New Zealand parliament at the 2020 general election as a representative of the ACT New Zealand party.
Early life and career
Court went to Auckland Grammar ...
Toni Severin
Toni Gae Severin is a New Zealand politician who became a Member of Parliament in the New Zealand parliament at the 2020 general election as a representative of the ACT New Zealand party.
Early life and career
Toni Severin is resident in the C ...
Donna Awatere Huata
Donna Lynn Awatere Huata (sometimes written Awatere-Huata, previously known as Donna Awatere; born 1949) is a former member of the New Zealand Parliament for the ACT New Zealand Party and activist for Māori causes.
Early life
Donna Awatere w ...
(1996–2003)
*
John Banks John Banks or Bankes may refer to:
Politics and law
*Sir John Banks, 1st Baronet (1627–1699), English merchant and Member of Parliament
* John Banks (American politician) (1793–1864), U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania
* John Gray Banks (18 ...
(2011–2014)
*
John Boscawen
John Spencer Boscawen (born c.1957) is a former New Zealand politician. He is a member of the ACT New Zealand Party and served as a member of the New Zealand House of Representatives from 2008 to 2011.
Boscawen briefly served as deputy leader ...
Deborah Coddington
Deborah Coddington is a New Zealand journalist and former ACT New Zealand politician.
Pre-political career
Coddington, born in Waipukurau, worked from 1973 to 1984 as a magazine journalist, but in 1985 moved to Russell, a town in the Bay of I ...
(2002–2005)
*
Roger Douglas
Sir Roger Owen Douglas (born 5 December 1937) is a retired New Zealand politician who served as a minister in two Labour governments. He became arguably best known for his prominent role in New Zealand's radical economic restructuring in the 19 ...
David Garrett
David Christian Bongartz (born 4 September 1980), known by his stage name David Garrett, is a German classical and crossover violinist and recording artist.
Early life
When Garrett was four years old his father purchased a violin for his ol ...
(2008–2010)
*
Rodney Hide
Rodney Philip Hide (born 16 December 1956) is a former New Zealand politician of the ACT New Zealand party. Hide was a Member of Parliament for ACT from 1996 until 2011, was ACT's leader between 2004 and 2011, and represented the constituency f ...
Kenneth Wang
Kenneth Xiaoxuan Wang (; born 1955) is a former Deputy Leader of the ACT New Zealand party. He previously served as a member of Parliament to replace Donna Awatere Huata, who was expelled from Parliament in November 2004.
Biography
Wang was ...
(2004–2005)
*
Penny Webster
Penny Webster is a former mayor of Rodney District and a councillor on the Auckland Council. As mayor of Rodney she headed one of the six main local government entities generally considered as making up the Auckland metropolitan area (Auckland C ...
(1999–2002)
Notable candidates
* Stephen Berry (born 1983), politician, political commentator, internet personality, and comedian. Berry was an ACT candidate in 2014, 2017, 2018, and 2020.
* Allan Birchfield (born 1949/1950), coal and gold miner, chairman of the West Coast Regional Council. Birchfield was an ACT candidate in 2011.
*
Barry Brill
Barry Edward Brill (born 22 October 1940) is a New Zealand lawyer and ex-politician. Brill was parliamentary under-secretary for Energy, Science and Technology, Regional Development and National Development in the Third National Government from ...
(born 1940), lawyer, politician, parliamentary under-secretary. Brill was an ACT candidate in 2011.
*
Bob Clarkson
Robert Moncrieff Clarkson (born 1939 in Gisborne) is a former Member of the New Zealand Parliament. He was the National Party MP for Tauranga from 2005 to 2008.
Biography
In 1958 Clarkson qualified as a fitter and turner in Gisborne. He then ...
(born 1939), National Member of Parliament. Clarkson was an ACT candidate in 2011.
* Andrew Falloon (born 1983), National Member of Parliament. Falloon was an ACT list candidate in 2005 and 2008.
*
Jo Giles
Joanne May Giles (29 November 1950 – 22 February 2011) was a New Zealand television presenter and former representative sportswoman. She represented the country in pistol shooting at the 1997 Oceanian Championships in Adelaide, and the 2000 Wor ...
(born 1950), television presenter and representative sportswoman. Giles was an ACT candidate in 2005.
* Catherine Isaac, president of ACT New Zealand, managing director of Awaroa Partners, former director of JM Communications. Isaac was an ACT list candidate in 2011.
* John Lithgow (1933–2004), National Member of Parliament. Lithgow was an ACT candidate in
Whanganui
Whanganui (; ), also spelled Wanganui, is a city in the Manawatū-Whanganui region of New Zealand. The city is located on the west coast of the North Island at the mouth of the Whanganui River, New Zealand's longest navigable waterway. Whang ...
in 1996.
* Garry Mallett (born 1960/1961), politician, fourth President of ACT New Zealand, former owner-operator of a Hamilton branch of
Les Mills International
Phillip Mills (born 13 February 1955 in Auckland) is a former track and field athlete and businessman from New Zealand. He is the founder, executive director, and former chief executive of Les Mills International and a founder of Pure Advantag ...
Dick Quax
Theodorus Jacobus Leonardus "Dick" Quax (1 January 1948 – 28 May 2018) was a Dutch-born New Zealand runner, one-time world record holder in the 5000 metres, and local-body politician.
Quax stood for Parliament for the ACT Party in 1999 and ...
(1948–2018), Dutch-born New Zealand runner, one-time world record holder in the 5000 metres, and local-body politician. Quax was an ACT candidate in 1999 and 2002.
* Graham Scott (born 1942), official of the New Zealand government. Scott was an ACT candidate in 2005.
* Bhupinder Singh (born 1986), Indian-born cricketer. Singh was an ACT candidate in 2017.
Rogernomics
In February 1985, journalists at the '' New Zealand Listener'' coined the term Rogernomics, a portmanteau of "Roger" and "economics" (by analogy with "Reaganomics"), to describe the neoliberal economic policies followed by Roger Douglas. Dougl ...