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Andrew James Little (born 7 May 1965) is a New Zealand politician and former trade union official, currently serving as Minister of Health and Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations. He is also the Minister for the
Government Communications Security Bureau The Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) ( mi, Te Tira Tiaki) is the public-service department of New Zealand charged with promoting New Zealand's national security by collecting and analysing information of an intelligence nature. ...
and the
New Zealand Security Intelligence Service The New Zealand Security Intelligence Service (NZSIS or SIS; mi, Te Pā Whakamarumaru) is New Zealand's primary national intelligence agency. It is responsible for providing information and advising on matters including national security (i ...
. Little was previously
Leader of the Opposition The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...
from 2014 to 2017. Little was the national secretary of New Zealand's largest trade union, the Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union (EPMU), and he was President of the Labour Party from 2009 to 2011. He entered Parliament in as a
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 ...
. Little served as the
Leader Leadership, both as a research area and as a practical skill, encompasses the ability of an individual, group or organization to "lead", influence or guide other individuals, teams, or entire organizations. The word "leadership" often gets v ...
of the
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 ...
from 18 November 2014 until 1 August 2017, when he resigned to make way for
Jacinda Ardern Jacinda Kate Laurell Ardern ( ; born 26 July 1980) is a New Zealand politician who has been serving as the 40th prime minister of New Zealand and leader of the Labour Party since 2017. A member of the Labour Party, she has been the member of ...
. With the formation of a Labour-led coalition government in October 2017, Little was appointed as
Minister of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...
, Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations, and Minister in charge of the
Government Communications Security Bureau The Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) ( mi, Te Tira Tiaki) is the public-service department of New Zealand charged with promoting New Zealand's national security by collecting and analysing information of an intelligence nature. ...
and
New Zealand Security Intelligence Service The New Zealand Security Intelligence Service (NZSIS or SIS; mi, Te Pā Whakamarumaru) is New Zealand's primary national intelligence agency. It is responsible for providing information and advising on matters including national security (i ...
. In July 2020, Little was appointed as the
Minister for Workplace Relations and Safety The Minister for Workplace Relations and Safety is a minister in the government of New Zealand. The minister has responsibility for WorkSafe New Zealand and acts as chair of the Industrial Relations Foundation. It was preceded by the Minister ...
. Following the 2020 election, Little left the Justice and Workplace Relations and Safety roles and was instead appointed Minister of Health.


Early life

Born in
New Plymouth New Plymouth ( mi, Ngāmotu) is the major city of the Taranaki region on the west coast of the North Island of New Zealand. It is named after the English city of Plymouth, Devon from where the first English settlers to New Plymouth migrated. Th ...
on 7 May 1965, Little was educated at
New Plymouth Boys' High School New Plymouth Boys' High School is a single-sex boys' state secondary school in New Plymouth, Taranaki, New Zealand. The school currently caters for approximately 1300 students, including 210 boarders, on its site. The school often collaborate ...
. His father was a devout National Party supporter and Little recalls delivering National pamphlets under his father's direction when he was younger. When he was 17, Little got his first job as a labourer digging the main cable trench for a new methanol plant in Waitara Valley as part of the " Think Big" project. During his time there he noticed that the contractor he was working for was deliberately using a less than adequate amount of concrete than the work required. He finished work there at the beginning of 1984 and left upon being accepted to enter university. In the 1980s Little studied law, philosophy and
public policy Public policy is an institutionalized proposal or a decided set of elements like laws, regulations, guidelines, and actions to solve or address relevant and real-world problems, guided by a conception and often implemented by programs. Public ...
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 kn ...
, where he became active in the campaign against New Zealand's
student loan A student loan is a type of loan designed to help students pay for post-secondary education and the associated fees, such as tuition, books and supplies, and living expenses. It may differ from other types of loans in the fact that the interest r ...
scheme. He was elected president of the
Victoria University of Wellington Students' Association The Victoria University of Wellington Students' Association (VUWSA) is the official student association at Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand. VUWSA was established in 1899 as the Victoria University College Students' Society. Follo ...
and later served as New Zealand Union of Students' Associations (NZUSA) president in 1988 and 1989.


Career with trade unions

After graduating Little took a job as a lawyer with the Engineers' Union (a forerunner of the EPMU), with his work including Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC) and
employment law Labour laws (also known as labor laws or employment laws) are those that mediate the relationship between workers, employing entities, trade unions, and the government. Collective labour law relates to the tripartite relationship between employee, ...
issues. In 1997 he was appointed the union's general counsel (chief lawyer). Two years later, he was appointed assistant national secretary, and was elected national secretary when Rex Jones stood down from the position in 2000. In 2007 Little was ranked at number 40 on the
New Zealand Listener Power List The ''New Zealand Listener'' Power List is a list of the most powerful people in New Zealand, compiled annually by the ''New Zealand Listener The ''New Zealand Listener'' is a weekly New Zealand magazine that covers the political, cultural ...
. Little became an important extra-parliamentary figure within the Labour Party and was one of the main advisors from the trade unions. Little was a representative on Labour's national council as Affiliates Vice-President, responsible for liaison between the Labour Party and affiliated trade unions. On 2 March 2009 it was announced that Little was elected unopposed as President of the
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 ...
. He held that post until 2 April 2011.


Member of Parliament (2011–present)

Little stood for Parliament in the 2011 general election; despite a loss in the
New Plymouth New Plymouth ( mi, Ngāmotu) is the major city of the Taranaki region on the west coast of the North Island of New Zealand. It is named after the English city of Plymouth, Devon from where the first English settlers to New Plymouth migrated. Th ...
electorate to the National Party incumbent Jonathan Young, he was elected as a list MP owing to his ranking of 15 on the Labour Party list. This was the highest rank given to a Labour candidate who was not an incumbent MP. He took on the ACC portfolio and gained profile during the National Party's restructuring of the organisation. Together with Trevor Mallard, he launched attacks against ACC Minister Judith Collins, who eventually responded with issuing a defamation claim. The affair resulted in the resignations of the Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC) chairman John Judge, and the ACC chief executive Ralph Stewart. At the 2014 election he again stood and lost in the New Plymouth electorate. Young was returned with a much increased margin, but this was partially explained by boundary changes. Little was elected as list MP because of his ranking of 11 on the Labour Party list. Little introduced a
member's bill A private member's bill is a bill (proposed law) introduced into a legislature by a legislator who is not acting on behalf of the executive branch. The designation "private member's bill" is used in most Westminster system jurisdictions, in whi ...
in the ballot that, if passed, would create a new criminal offence of
corporate manslaughter Corporate manslaughter is a crime in several jurisdictions, including England and Wales and Hong Kong. It enables a corporation to be punished and censured for culpable conduct that leads to a person's death. This extends beyond any compensat ...
. The Crimes (Corporate Manslaughter) Amendment Bill was drafted in the wake of the 2010
Pike River Mine disaster The Pike River Mine disaster was a coal mining accident that began on 19 November 2010 in the Pike River Mine, northeast of Greymouth, in the West Coast region of New Zealand's South Island following a methane explosion at approximately 3:44 ...
and the
CTV Building The CTV Building was the headquarters of Canterbury Television (locally known as CTV) and other companies. Located on the corner of Cashel and Madras Streets in Christchurch Central City, New Zealand. It became one of the symbols of the Februa ...
collapse during the
2011 Christchurch earthquake A major earthquake occurred in Christchurch on Tuesday 22 February 2011 at 12:51 p.m. local time (23:51 UTC, 21 February). The () earthquake struck the entire of the Canterbury region in the South Island, centred south-east ...
. The bill is modelled on the United Kingdom's
Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 The Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 (c. 19) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that seeks to broaden the law on corporate manslaughter in the United Kingdom. The Act created a new offence respectively named ...
. At the time, Little stated the bill was needed because "the track record of prosecutions under the Health and Safety Act is that they tend to focus on lower level failures because getting the evidence and securing the conviction are easier, but personal responsibility for fatalities goes unchecked." A 2012 3News poll found that seventy-four percent of respondents would like to see a charge of corporate manslaughter introduced. The Bill was eventually transferred to the name of
David Cunliffe David Richard Cunliffe (born 30 April 1963) is a New Zealand management consultant and former politician who was Leader of the New Zealand Labour Party and Leader of the Opposition from September 2013 to September 2014. He was Member of Parl ...
but was not drawn before Cunliffe's retirement from Parliament in early 2017.


Leader of the Opposition (2014–2017)

Following Labour's defeat at the general election in September 2014,
David Cunliffe David Richard Cunliffe (born 30 April 1963) is a New Zealand management consultant and former politician who was Leader of the New Zealand Labour Party and Leader of the Opposition from September 2013 to September 2014. He was Member of Parl ...
resigned as leader of the Labour Party. Little announced his bid for the 2014 Labour Party leadership election on 9 October 2014 and was nominated by
Poto Williams Munokoa Poto Williams (born 7 January 1962) is a New Zealand Labour Party politician and a member of Parliament. She was elected in a 2013 by-election and is currently Minister of Conservation and Minister for Disability Issues in the Six ...
and
Iain Lees-Galloway Iain Francis Lees-Galloway (born 18 September 1978), initially Iain Galloway, is a New Zealand former politician. He represented the Palmerston North electorate in Parliament for the Labour Party. He was the Minister for Workplace Relations, Im ...
. He won the election, which was held on 18 November 2014, and defeated Grant Robertson, David Parker, and
Nanaia Mahuta Nanaia Cybele Mahuta (born 21 August 1970) is a New Zealand politician who is the Member of Parliament (MP) for Hauraki-Waikato and serving as the Minister of Foreign Affairs in the Sixth Labour Government since 2020. She is also the Minister ...
. In reporting on the election, some media focused on his trade union background. As Leader of the Labour Party and
Leader of the Opposition The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...
, Little sought to challenge the Government with a strong alternative narrative. In a 2015 conference speech he introduced a new "Kiwi dream" theme (the
New Zealand dream The New Zealand dream (or the Kiwi dream) centres on the acquisition of a family house on a quarter-acre section, with at least one motor vehicle. The New Zealand dream resembles the Australian Dream. For many New Zealanders this dream could ...
). In 2015 Labour introduced a new slogan, "Backing the Kiwi Dream". Little largely focused on issues and concerns such as rising house prices in urban areas, a ' brain drain', unemployment and job security and the growing wage gap between
baby boomers Baby boomers, often shortened to boomers, are the Western demographic cohort following the Silent Generation and preceding Generation X. The generation is often defined as people born from 1946 to 1964, during the mid-20th century baby boom. ...
and
millennials Millennials, also known as Generation Y or Gen Y, are the Western demographic cohort following Generation X and preceding Generation Z. Researchers and popular media use the early 1980s as starting birth years and the mid-1990s to early 20 ...
—the "Kiwi dream" narrative was particularly designed to engage young voters. Little appointed long-serving Labour MP
Annette King Dame Annette Faye King (née Robinson, born 13 September 1947) is a former New Zealand politician. She served as Deputy Leader of the New Zealand Labour Party and Deputy Leader of the Opposition from 2008 to 2011, and from 2014 until 1 March 20 ...
as Labour's 'interim' deputy leader shortly after his election as leader. This appointment was made permanent in October 2015 after
Jacinda Ardern Jacinda Kate Laurell Ardern ( ; born 26 July 1980) is a New Zealand politician who has been serving as the 40th prime minister of New Zealand and leader of the Labour Party since 2017. A member of the Labour Party, she has been the member of ...
(who had previously sought to be Robertson's deputy leader) was reportedly offered the role but turned it down. Robertson was appointed finance spokesperson and ranked third in the caucus in a bid to unify different groups within the party. For much of Little's leadership, key portfolios in the Little shadow Cabinet were held by King (health), Phil Twyford (housing),
Chris Hipkins Christopher John Hipkins (born 5 September 1978) is a New Zealand Labour Party politician and a member of the Sixth Labour Government's Cabinet as Minister of Education, Minister of Police, Minister for the Public Service and Leader of the ...
(education), Ardern (justice and children) and
Carmel Sepuloni Carmel Jean Sepuloni (born 1977) is a New Zealand politician and a member of parliament for the Labour Party. She was first elected to Parliament following the 2008 general election as a list member, becoming New Zealand's first MP of Tongan ...
(social development). Little reshuffled his shadow cabinet in November 2015 (demoting David Cunliffe), December 2016 (after the retirements of Phil Goff and David Shearer) and March 2017 (in which Ardern was promoted to deputy leader). Little was criticised by some for perceived poor performance in television interviews, his low profile and poor name recognition with the general public. A '' Dominion Post'' assessment said "he has little charisma and a lack of new ideas" and criticised Labour's "bare platform". He was praised by political commentators early in his leadership for uniting the party caucus and averting the infighting that characterised David Cunliffe's tenure as leader, though at the expense of dropping many of the party's former policy proposals. In October 2016 Labour floated the idea of a levy on employers who imported offshore
skilled labour Skill is a measure of the amount of worker's expertise, specialization, wages, and supervisory capacity. Skilled workers are generally more trained, higher paid, and have more responsibilities than unskilled workers. Skilled workers have long had ...
rather than upskilled their domestic workers. Little responded to criticisms that it amounted to a "tax on immigrants", saying "If we want to make sure we've got the skills for the future ... for those employers who don't take on apprentices, don't invest in training, you can contribute a levy and that'll help to defray the cost of those who are doing the training". Little also criticised the number of
travel visa A visa (from the Latin ''charta visa'', meaning "paper that has been seen") is a conditional authorization granted by a polity to a foreigner that allows them to enter, remain within, or leave its territory. Visas typically include limits on ...
s granted to semi-skilled workers, citing statistics. Kirk Hope, Chief executive of
Business New Zealand Business New Zealand Inc. (operating as BusinessNZ) is New Zealand's largest business- advocacy body. It is headquartered in Wellington. Vaughan Renner became the president of the BusinessNZ council in 2017 and Kirk Hope has served as the chief e ...
, criticised the proposal policy and warned that it would affect smaller businesses who are unable to recruit enough local workers. Little was sued for defamation by Lani and
Earl Hagaman Earl Raymond Hagaman (12 September 1925 – 25 May 2017) was an American-born New Zealand hotel operator. Biography Hagaman was born in Los Angeles on 12 September 1925. From 1961 to March 1981, he was married to Barbara Jean Fairbank. He mov ...
after he made statements linking a contract awarded to their company with donations they had made to the National Party. In April 2017, a jury cleared him of some of the charges, and were unable to reach a verdict on others. On 1 August 2017, Little resigned as Leader of the Labour Party due to the party's history of low results in polls, and was succeeded by deputy leader
Jacinda Ardern Jacinda Kate Laurell Ardern ( ; born 26 July 1980) is a New Zealand politician who has been serving as the 40th prime minister of New Zealand and leader of the Labour Party since 2017. A member of the Labour Party, she has been the member of ...
. Little was later lauded by party supporters for "selflessly" putting aside his personal ambition to allow Ardern to lead the party, which saw a swift reversal of fortune for Labour and the opportunity to form a new government after the 2017 general election with
New Zealand First New Zealand First ( mi, Aotearoa Tuatahi), commonly abbreviated to NZ First, is a nationalist and populist political party in New Zealand. The party formed in July 1993 following the resignation on 19 March 1993 of its leader and founder, Win ...
and 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 ...
. Little served as Labour's justice spokesperson over the election period.


Cabinet Minister (2017–present)


First term (2017–2020)

The Labour Party increased its share of the vote in the . Little was elected as a Cabinet Minister by the Labour Party caucus following Labour's formation of a government with
New Zealand First New Zealand First ( mi, Aotearoa Tuatahi), commonly abbreviated to NZ First, is a nationalist and populist political party in New Zealand. The party formed in July 1993 following the resignation on 19 March 1993 of its leader and founder, Win ...
and the Greens. In late October 2017, Little assumed several portfolios including
Minister of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...
,
Minister for Courts The Minister for Courts or Minister of Courts is a minister in the government of New Zealand. The minister has responsibility for the support and administration of the courts system. It was split from the Justice portfolio in 1995. List of Mi ...
, Minister Responsible for the
Government Communications Security Bureau The Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) ( mi, Te Tira Tiaki) is the public-service department of New Zealand charged with promoting New Zealand's national security by collecting and analysing information of an intelligence nature. ...
(GCSB) and the
New Zealand Security Intelligence Service The New Zealand Security Intelligence Service (NZSIS or SIS; mi, Te Pā Whakamarumaru) is New Zealand's primary national intelligence agency. It is responsible for providing information and advising on matters including national security (i ...
(NZSIS), Minister for
Treaty of Waitangi The Treaty of Waitangi ( mi, Te Tiriti o Waitangi) is a document of central importance to the History of New Zealand, history, to the political constitution of the state, and to the national mythos of New Zealand. It has played a major role in ...
Negotiations, and Minister Responsible for Pike River Re-entry. On 20 November 2018, Little announced the creation of the
Pike River Recovery Agency The Pike River Recovery Agency, (Māori: Te Kāhui Whakamana Rua Tekau mā Iwa) was a stand-alone New Zealand Government department. Its stated aim was to work with families who lost loved ones during the 2010 Pike River Mine disaster to plan fo ...
to plan a manned re-entry of the
Pike River Mine The Pike River Mine is a coal mine formerly operated by Pike River Coal north-northeast of Greymouth in the West Coast Region of New Zealand's South Island. It is the site of the Pike River Mine disaster that occurred on 19 November 2010, le ...
in order to recover the bodies of the 29 miners who perished during the
Pike River Mine disaster The Pike River Mine disaster was a coal mining accident that began on 19 November 2010 in the Pike River Mine, northeast of Greymouth, in the West Coast region of New Zealand's South Island following a methane explosion at approximately 3:44 ...
in September 2010. On 19 April 2018, Little entered the Pike River mine portal with victims' family representatives Anna Osborne and Sonya Rockhouse to demonstrate that a safe re-entry was possible. He also promised that the Government would re-enter the drift to recover evidence and the remains of deceased miners. Drift entry was achieved in 2019 but plans to recover the victims' bodies were abandoned in 2021. As Justice Minister, Little announced plans in December 2017 to reduce the prison population by 30 per cent over the next 15 years. The prison population at the time was 10,394. Towards this goal, in May 2018, he announced the Government would repeal the contentious 'three strikes' law – the
Sentencing and Parole Reform Act 2010 The Sentencing and Parole Reform Act 2010, now repealed, was an Act of Parliament in New Zealand that denied parole to repeat violent offenders, and imposed maximum terms of imprisonment on repeat offenders who commit three serious violent offenc ...
– which had been introduced by the previous National Government. NZ First refused to back this proposal forcing Little to announce on 11 June 2018 that the coalition Government had abandoned the plan. Little later voiced criticism of Australia's deportation of New Zealanders in Australia during a controversial
Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-owne ...
documentary entitled "Don't Call Australia Home", that was released on 17 July 2018. Under changes to the Australian Migration Act, any foreigners with a criminal record or who do not meet a "character test" are subject to deportation. Little remarked that Australia's deportation policy would damage the sibling relationship between the two countries. Little's remarks drew criticism from the Australian Assistant Minister for Home Affairs
Alex Hawke Alexander George Hawke (born 9 July 1977) is an Australian politician who served as Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs from 2020 to 2022 in the Morrison Government. Hawke has served as Member of ...
, who defended the deportations on law and order grounds and criticized Little for not urging New Zealand citizens to obey Australian law. In response, Little criticized Australia's deportation laws for lacking "humanitarian ideals" and described the removal of New Zealand citizens who identified as Australian residents as a human rights violation. In response, the Australian
Minister for Home Affairs An interior minister (sometimes called a minister of internal affairs or minister of home affairs) is a cabinet official position that is responsible for internal affairs, such as public security, civil registration and identification, emergenc ...
Peter Dutton Peter Craig Dutton (born 18 November 1970) is an Australian politician who has been leader of the opposition and leader of the Liberal Party since May 2022. He has represented the Queensland seat of Dickson in the House of Representatives sinc ...
defended his government's deportation policy and called on Little to reflect "a little more" on the
Trans-Tasman Trans-Tasman is an adjective used primarily to signify the relationship between Australia and New Zealand. The term refers to the Tasman Sea, which lies between the two countries. For example, ''trans-Tasman commerce'' refers to commerce betwee ...
relationship. Little countered by expressing concern about what he perceived as a growing "venality" in Australia's treatment of foreigners. On 24 July 2018, Little rejected a call by the
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoni ...
committee on women's rights for a Royal Commission of Inquiry into New Zealand's
Family Court Family courts were originally created to be a Court of Equity convened to decide matters and make orders in relation to family law, including custody of children, and could disregard certain legal requirements as long as the petitioner/plainti ...
system, saying the New Zealand Government already has a fair idea of what the problems were. Little had already ordered a Ministerial Review of the Family Court. After the
Christchurch mosque shootings On 15 March 2019, two consecutive mass shootings occurred in a terrorist attack on two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand. The attacks, carried out by a lone gunman who entered both mosques during Friday prayer, began at the Al Noor Mosque ...
in March 2019, Little told
Radio New Zealand Radio New Zealand ( mi, Te Reo Irirangi o Aotearoa), commonly known as Radio NZ or simply RNZ, is a New Zealand public-service radio broadcaster and Crown entity that was established under the Radio New Zealand Act 1995. It operates news and cu ...
, “I have given authority to the agencies to do intrusive activities under warrant, the number of those (warrants) I’m not at liberty to disclose". He said that the intelligence services usually put 30 to 40 people under monitoring at a time. Although more people than usual were being monitored, he was not willing to reveal how many. He also stated that the operations could be anything from physical surveillance to watching telecommunications activity. On 5 August 2019, as Justice Minister, Little announced abortion law reform legislation that would permit
abortion Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pre ...
without restrictions for the first 20 weeks of a woman's pregnancy. While later-term abortions will still require testing by medical experts, Little announced that abortion would also be removed from the
Crimes Act 1961 The Crimes Act 1961 is an act of New Zealand Parliament that forms a leading part of the criminal law in New Zealand. It repeals the Crimes Act 1908, itself a successor of the Criminal Code Act 1893. Most crimes in New Zealand are created by ...
. Other changes include allowing women to self-refer to an abortion service, ensuring that health practitioners advise women about counselling services, establishing safe areas around abortion facilities, and ensuring that conscientious objecting doctors inform women about their stance and alternative services. Labour had negotiated with New Zealand First cabinet minister
Tracey Martin Tracey Anne Martin (born 1 July 1964) is a New Zealand politician and a former member of the New Zealand House of Representatives. Until 2021 she was a member of the New Zealand First Party, and served as its Deputy Leader from 2013 to 2015. S ...
for several months to ensure support for the legislation. Though Martin ruled out a referendum, she was overruled by NZ First party leader
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, ...
, who demanded a binding referendum. Little rejected Peters' call for a referendum, stating that the Government would seek the support of MPs from all parties to pass the legislation. On 18 March 2020, he voted for the bill at its third reading, and it became law as the
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 ...
. On 22 July 2020, Little was appointed
Minister for Workplace Relations and Safety The Minister for Workplace Relations and Safety is a minister in the government of New Zealand. The minister has responsibility for WorkSafe New Zealand and acts as chair of the Industrial Relations Foundation. It was preceded by the Minister ...
following the resignation of
Iain Lees-Galloway Iain Francis Lees-Galloway (born 18 September 1978), initially Iain Galloway, is a New Zealand former politician. He represented the Palmerston North electorate in Parliament for the Labour Party. He was the Minister for Workplace Relations, Im ...
due to an affair with one of his staff members.


Second term (2020–present)

During the
2020 New Zealand general election The 2020 New Zealand general election was held on Saturday 17 October 2020 to determine the composition of the 53rd parliament. Voters elected 120 members to the House of Representatives, 72 from single-member electorates and 48 from closed ...
held on 17 October 2020, Little was re-elected on the Labour Party list. In early November, Little was named as Minister of Health and also retained his ministerial portfolios for the Government Communications Security Bureau, the New Zealand Security Intelligence Service, Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations, and Pike River Re-entry. He was additionally appointed Lead Coordination Minister for the Government's Response to the Royal Commission's Report into the Terrorist Attack on the Christchurch Mosques after that report was published in December 2020. On 20 July 2021, Little, in his capacity as Minister in charge of the
Government Communications Security Bureau The Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) ( mi, Te Tira Tiaki) is the public-service department of New Zealand charged with promoting New Zealand's national security by collecting and analysing information of an intelligence nature. ...
, confirmed that the spy agency had established links between Chinese state-sponsored actors known as "Advanced Persistent Threat 40" (APT40) and malicious cyber activity in New Zealand. In addition, Little confirmed that New Zealand was joining other Western governments including the United States, United Kingdom, Australia and the European Union in condemning the Chinese Ministry of State Security and other Chinese state-sponsored actors for their involvement in the 2021 Microsoft Exchange Server data breach. In response, the Chinese Embassy in New Zealand rejected the New Zealand Government's claims, claiming that China was a staunch defender of cybersecurity and firmly opposed all forms of cyber attacks and crimes. In mid-June 2022, Little in his capacity as Health Minister acknowledged that the country's health system was under strain due to a manpower shortage and the effects of COVID-19 and the seasonal flu on hospitals and health clinics. However, he denied that health services were facing a crisis. In response, the National Party's health spokesperson Shane Reti accused Little of denying that New Zealand's healthcare system was facing a crisis. Little's remarks were criticised by various unidentified health workers, who reported that significant staff shortages and hospital demand in response to COVID-19 and the seasonal flu were straining hospital resources. In early July 2022, the Association of General Surgeons issued an open letter to Little stating that the staffing shortage was undermining the ability of doctors to deliver care to patients. In late October 2022, Little in his capacity as Minister of
Treaty of Waitangi The Treaty of Waitangi ( mi, Te Tiriti o Waitangi) is a document of central importance to the History of New Zealand, history, to the political constitution of the state, and to the national mythos of New Zealand. It has played a major role in ...
negotiations apologised to the
Taranaki Taranaki is a region in the west of New Zealand's North Island. It is named after its main geographical feature, the stratovolcano of Mount Taranaki, also known as Mount Egmont. The main centre is the city of New Plymouth. The New Plymouth D ...
–based
Māori 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 ...
iwi (tribe) Ngāti Maru on behalf of the New Zealand Crown for land confiscations that occurred following the
New Zealand Wars The New Zealand Wars took place from 1845 to 1872 between the New Zealand colonial government and allied Māori on one side and Māori and Māori-allied settlers on the other. They were previously commonly referred to as the Land Wars or the M ...
. Though the tribe had not taken part in the fighting, most of their land had been confiscated by the Crown.


Personal life

Little currently lives in
Island Bay Island Bay is a coastal suburb of Wellington, the capital of New Zealand, situated south of the city centre. Island Bay lies on the bay which shares its name, one of numerous small bays off Cook Strait and west of Lyall Bay. 500m offshore in ...
,
Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by ...
with his wife Leigh and their son. He was diagnosed with early-stage
prostate cancer Prostate cancer is cancer of the prostate. Prostate cancer is the second most common cancerous tumor worldwide and is the fifth leading cause of cancer-related mortality among men. The prostate is a gland in the male reproductive system that su ...
in 2009; but after receiving treatment, he was given a clean bill of health. He has subsequently had annual check-ups.


See also

*
Shadow Cabinet of Andrew Little Andrew Little assembled a shadow cabinet after he was elected Leader of the Labour Party in New Zealand. He composed this of individuals who acted for the party as spokespeople in assigned roles while he was Leader of the Opposition (2014–17) ...
* Politics of New Zealand


References


External links


Profile on the Labour Party website
, - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Little, Andrew 1965 births 21st-century New Zealand politicians Candidates in the 2017 New Zealand general election Leaders of the Opposition (New Zealand) Living people Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives New Zealand Labour Party leaders New Zealand Labour Party MPs New Zealand list MPs New Zealand trade unionists People educated at New Plymouth Boys' High School People from New Plymouth Victoria University of Wellington alumni Victoria University of Wellington Students' Association presidents Members of the Cabinet of New Zealand 20th-century New Zealand lawyers Candidates in the 2020 New Zealand general election Justice ministers of New Zealand