David Spence Thomson (14 November 1915 – 25 October 1999) was a New Zealand politician of the National Party.

Biography

Thomson was born in Stratford, the son of former Stratford mayor

Percy Thomson Percy Thomson (17 November 1884 – 24 August 1962) was a New Zealand lawyer and politician. He served as mayor of Stratford from 1929 to 1933, and again from 1938 to 1947. Early life and family Born in Dunedin on 17 November 1884, Thomson was ...

. He was a dairy farmer. He served in the Army in the Middle East in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and was a

Prisoner of War A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of wa ...

in 1942. He was awarded the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC i ...

(MC) later in 1942. He married June Grace Adams in April 1942. They had one son and three daughters. In the post-war years he was chairman of

Federated Farmers Federated Farmers of New Zealand is a lobby and advocacy group for all farmers: arable including fruit and vegetables, dairy and meat and their often remote communities. It has a network of 24 regional organisations and six industry groups. F ...

. In 1953, he was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal.

Parliamentary career

Thomson was first elected to Parliament, representing the Stratford electorate, in as a member of the National Party. He was returned for that electorate in every election until 1978, when it was disestablished. He served two terms as the Member of Parliament for

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 Dist ...

(the replacement seat) from 1978 to 1984, when he retired. When Thomson entered Parliament,

Keith Holyoake Sir Keith Jacka Holyoake, (; 11 February 1904 – 8 December 1983) was the 26th prime minister of New Zealand, serving for a brief period in 1957 and then from 1960 to 1972, and also the 13th governor-general of New Zealand, serving from 1977 ...

's government was in its second term. Thomson was appointed a minister in the government's third term, after the 1966 election. He initially held the roles of

Minister of Defence A defence minister or minister of defence is a Cabinet (government), 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 coun ...

, Minister in charge of Publicity, War Pensions and Rehabilitation, and Minister Assistant to the Prime Minister. Later he was also

Minister of Tourism The Minister of Tourism is the head of the governmental department that specializes in tourism, recreation and/or culture. The position exists in many different countries under several names: *Ministry of Tourism and Environment (Albania) * Minist ...

. For the government's fourth and final term, from 1969 to 1972, Thomson was Minister of Police and latterly in 1972 was Minister of Immigration. Thomson won re-election in 1972 but National was unable to form a government. He served as National's Labour and Immigration spokesperson under Jack Marshall, and as Justice, Police and Immigration spokesperson under Robert Muldoon. National formed a new government in 1975. Thomson was Minister of Justice from 1975 to 1978 and Minister of Defence and Leader of the House from 1978 to 1984, when he retired. In the 1993 New Year Honours, Thomson was appointed a

Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, George III, King George III. ...

, for public services.

Footnotes

References

* * *''Stratford District Centenary, R Habershon, (1978, Stratford District Council Centennial Committee)''

External links

National Library of NZ, CartoonNational Library of NZ, Image of Cabinet Ministers, 1966National Library of NZ, Image of opening of Ministerial Council, 1968
, - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Thomson, David 1915 births 1999 deaths Members of the Cabinet of New Zealand New Zealand defence ministers New Zealand farmers New Zealand National Party MPs New Zealand prisoners of war in World War II New Zealand military personnel of World War II World War II prisoners of war held by Germany New Zealand Army officers People from Stratford, New Zealand New Zealand Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George New Zealand MPs for North Island electorates New Zealand recipients of the Military Cross New Zealand members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives 20th-century New Zealand politicians Justice ministers of New Zealand