Christopher John Baillie (born ) is a New Zealand politician who became a

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

for New Zealand at the 2020 general election, as a representative of the

ACT New Zealand ACT New Zealand, known simply as ACT (), is a right-wing, classical-liberal political party in New Zealand. According to former party leader Rodney Hide, ACT's values are "individual freedom, personal responsibility, doing the best for our natur ...

party.

Early life and career

In a speech to Parliament, Baillie said that he was born to a unionist,

Labour Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

-supporting household and he believes his contrasting political views originated from his father's support for marine engineer workers on strike. Baillie said that, at 12 years old, he considered the strike unreasonable. Baillie worked in the police for 14 years, has owned a pub, and has worked as a special needs teacher. While working as a teacher he initiated a discussion group at his school,

Nayland College Nayland College is a coeducational state secondary school located in Stoke, Nelson, New Zealand. It is one of three secondary schools in Nelson which are coeducational. The school was officially opened on 3 February 1966. Crest The crest is di ...

, prompted by what he perceived as "hysteria" about climate change, and the effect of this on student mental health. Some of Baillie's former students have criticised his meetings, where he reportedly spoke out against well-known climate change activists including

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (; ; born October 13, 1989), also known by her initials AOC, is an American politician and activist. She has served as the U.S. representative for New York's 14th congressional district since 2019, as a member of th ...

and

Greta Thunberg Greta Tintin Eleonora Ernman Thunberg (; born 3 January 2003) is a Swedish environmental activist who is known for challenging world leaders to take immediate action for climate change mitigation. Thunberg's activism began when she persuaded ...

. Many people have criticised Baillie for being a climate change denier, however, Baillie rejects the term.

Political career

Baillie joined ACT at the end of 2019. He met the party's leader, David Seymour, in early 2020 and after that meeting decided to run for Parliament. Baillie ran for the electorate of . He did not win the electorate, placing fourth with 1320 votes, but ACT won 7.6% of the party vote, which entitled it to ten MPs, including Baillie. He is ACT's spokesperson for Small Business, Workplace Relations and Safety, Education, and Police.

Political views

Baillie is in favour of reducing the effects of red tape on businesses. He has expressed concern about the effects on businesses of increases in the minimum wage or number of sick days, and the complexity of the personal grievance process. Baillie is in favour of 90-day employment trials, stating "The 90-day (employment) trials in my particular business worked really well. I work with disadvantaged kids and through my policing, I've worked with people who struggle to get a job, and taking away (90-day trials) was a real disservice and made it even more of a challenge for the most vulnerable people in our society to try and get a job." He is also in favour of charter schools.

Personal life

Baillie plays the trumpet and has been a member of multiple jazz bands. He has also played rugby for over 30 years. Baillie owns The Honest Lawyer restaurant in Nelson.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Baillie, Chris 1960s births Living people ACT New Zealand MPs Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives New Zealand list MPs