Sir Brian Joseph Roche (born ) is a New Zealand business executive. Roche was born in the

Hawke's Bay Hawke's Bay ( mi, Te Matau-a-Māui) is a local government region on the east coast of New Zealand's North Island. The region's name derives from Hawke Bay, which was named by Captain James Cook in honour of Admiral Edward Hawke. The region is ...

. He attended St John's College in

Hastings Hastings () is a large seaside town and borough in East Sussex on the south coast of England, east to the county town of Lewes and south east of London. The town gives its name to the Battle of Hastings, which took place to the north-west ...

. He obtained a Bachelor of Commerce and Administration from

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 know ...

. He started his working career with Coopers and Lybrand in 1979 as an accountant. He stayed with the company, which later became

PricewaterhouseCoopers PricewaterhouseCoopers is an international professional services brand of firms, operating as partnerships under the PwC brand. It is the second-largest professional services network in the world and is considered one of the Big Four accounting ...

, for 20 years and became a senior partner. In the 1990s, he was chief Crown negotiator for

Treaty of Waitangi claims and settlements Claims and settlements under the Treaty of Waitangi have been a significant feature of New Zealand politics since the Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975 and the Waitangi Tribunal that was established by that act to hear claims. Successive governments ...

; he had a major influence on the 1997

Ngāi Tahu Ngāi Tahu, or Kāi Tahu, is the principal Māori (tribe) of the South Island. Its (tribal area) is the largest in New Zealand, and extends from the White Bluffs / Te Parinui o Whiti (southeast of Blenheim), Mount Mahanga and Kahurangi Poi ...

settlement. In 2004, Roche became the inaugural chairman of the

Auckland Regional Transport Authority The Auckland Regional Transport Authority (ARTA) was the central co-ordinating agency for transport (especially but not only public transport) in the Auckland Region of New Zealand from 2004 to 2010. In this role, ARTA provided public transport ...

. In 2008, he was appointed the inaugural chairman of the

NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency (commonly known as Waka Kotahi, and abbreviated as NZTA) is a New Zealand Crown entity tasked with promoting safe and functional transport by land, including the responsibility for driver and vehicle licensing, an ...

. In the same year, he was appointed deputy commissioner of the Hawke's Bay District Health Board after the elected board was sacked by the then-

Minister of Health A health minister is the member of a country's government typically responsible for protecting and promoting public health and providing welfare and other social security services. Some governments have separate ministers for mental health. Coun ...

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 Parli ...

. From January 2010 until April 2017, Roche was chief executive 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 telecommunica ...

. Since 2013, Roche was chairman of the

Hurricanes A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depend ...

rugby union franchise. He led the team that gained the

2011 Rugby World Cup The 2011 Rugby World Cup was the seventh Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition inaugurated in 1987. The International Rugby Board (IRB) selected New Zealand as the host country in preference to Japan and South Af ...

hosting rights for New Zealand and later chaired group that organised the championship, taking over from

Jock Hobbs Michael James Bowie Hobbs (15 February 1960 – 13 March 2012), generally known as Jock Hobbs, was a New Zealand rugby union player and administrator. A Flanker (rugby union), flanker, he played for Canterbury Rugby Football Union, Canter ...

. He has been chairman of Antarctica New Zealand,

Tait Communications Tait Communications is a multinational radio communications company with headquarters based in Christchurch, New Zealand. The company has offices in 17 countries and employs 869 staff (2011). Tait develops voice and data radio technologies, ex ...

, and the Wellington Gateway Project. On 11 June 2019, Roche commenced his second term as chairman of the NZ Transport Agency. A condition of the appointment was Roche's resignation from the Wellington Gateway Project to avoid a conflict of interest. In the

2017 New Year Honours The 2017 New Year Honours are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours were awarded as part of the New Year celebrati ...

, Roche was appointed a

Knight Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit The New Zealand Order of Merit is an order of merit in the New Zealand royal honours system. It was established by royal warrant on 30 May 1996 by Elizabeth II, Queen of New Zealand, "for those persons who in any field of endeavour, have ren ...

, for services to the State and business. In August 2020, Roche and Heather Simpson were chosen to lead a new group to support the Ministry of Health in improving COVID-19 border security.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Roche, Brian Year of birth missing (living people) 1950s births Living people Knights Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit New Zealand business executives People educated at St John's College, Hastings Victoria University of Wellington alumni People from the Hawke's Bay Region New Zealand sports executives and administrators Hawke's Bay District Health Board members