Murray Stuart McCully (born 19 February 1953) is a former New Zealand politician. He is a member of the
National Party, and served as
Minister of Foreign Affairs
A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between co ...
from 2008 to 2017.
Early life
Born in
Whangārei
Whangārei () is the northernmost city in New Zealand and the regional capital of Northland Region. It is part of the Whangārei District, a local body created in 1989 from the former Whangārei City, Whangārei County and Hikurangi Town coun ...
, McCully was educated at Arapohue Primary School,
Dargaville High School, the
University of Auckland
, mottoeng = By natural ability and hard work
, established = 1883; years ago
, endowment = NZD $293 million (31 December 2021)
, budget = NZD $1.281 billion (31 December 2021)
, chancellor = Cecilia Tarrant
, vice_chancellor = Dawn F ...
, and
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 kno ...
. He has a
Bachelor of Laws
Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Ch ...
degree and is a qualified barrister and solicitor, working as a lawyer before entering politics. He had a long-term relationship with political journalist and columnist Jane Clifton, with whom he had two sons,
which ended in the 2010s.
Member of Parliament
McCully first stood for Parliament in
1975 in
Auckland Central, reducing
Richard Prebble
Richard William Prebble (born 7 February 1948) is a former member of the New Zealand Parliament. Initially a member of the Labour Party, he joined the newly formed ACT New Zealand party under Roger Douglas in 1996, becoming its leader from 19 ...
's majority to 289. He next stood for
East Coast Bays in
1984
Events
January
* January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888.
* January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...
, coming second to
Gary Knapp.
In
1987
File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, ...
, McCully defeated Knapp and entered Parliament as
MP for
East Coast Bays on
Auckland
Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about ...
's
North Shore. He held that seat at three general elections.
At the
1996 election he became MP for the new seat of
Albany before returning, in the
2002 election, as MP for the reconstituted
East Coast Bays seat. McCully retired from parliamentary politics in 2017.
Over his career, McCully held senior ministerial appointments in both the Fourth and Fifth National Governments. He had a reputation as a party strategist, "fix-it man" and "Machiavellian Dark Prince."
Fourth National Government, 1990–1999
McCully's first ministerial appointment was as
Minister of Customs and Associate Minister of Tourism in 1991. He held later appointments under the premierships of
Jim Bolger
James Brendan Bolger ( ; born 31 May 1935) is a New Zealand retired politician of the National Party who was the 35th prime minister of New Zealand, serving from 1990 to 1997.
Bolger was born to an Irish immigrant family in Ōpunake, Taran ...
and
Jenny Shipley
Dame Jennifer Mary Shipley (née Robson; born 4 February 1952) is a New Zealand former politician who served as the 36th prime minister of New Zealand from 1997 to 1999. She was the first female prime minister of New Zealand, and the first woma ...
as
Minister of Housing,
Minister of Immigration and Minister for Sport, Fitness and Leisure.
As Sport and Tourism Minister, McCully reportedly "headhunted" future
Australian Prime Minister
The prime minister of Australia is the head of government of the Commonwealth of Australia. The prime minister heads the executive branch of the federal government of Australia and is also accountable to federal parliament under the principl ...
Scott Morrison
Scott John Morrison (; born 13 May 1968) is an Australian politician. He served as the 30th prime minister of Australia and as Leader of the Liberal Party of Australia from 2018 to 2022, and is currently the member of parliament (MP) for th ...
to head up the new Office of Sport and Tourism.
Murray McCully resigned from his Tourism portfolio in April 1999 after questions were raised regarding his handling of the resignation and subsequent payout of members of the Tourism board. These questions culminated in a report of the Controller and Auditor General that deemed these payouts "unlawful," although the report accepted that all involved had proceeded on the basis of advice and "their genuine perception of what was in the best interests of New Zealand’s tourism industry."
Opposition, 1999–2008
The National Party lost government at the 1999 general election and did not regain the treasury benches until 2008. During nine years of opposition, McCully held various opposition spokesperson roles including in the local government, housing, sport, state services, immigration, foreign affairs and defence portfolios.
McCully is understood to have been a key player in many of the leadership changes the National Party experienced while in opposition. McCully supported
Bill English
Sir Simon William English (born 30 December 1961) is a New Zealand former National Party politician who served as the 39th prime minister of New Zealand from 2016 to 2017 and as the 17th deputy prime minister of New Zealand and minister of f ...
to replace Jenny Shipley as National Party leader in the
2001 New Zealand National Party leadership election,
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 ...
to replace English in
2003, and
Gerry Brownlee
Gerard Anthony Brownlee (born 4 February 1956) is a New Zealand politician of the New Zealand National Party. He has been a Member of Parliament since 1996, was Leader of the House, Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery and Minister of ...
to replace
Nick Smith as deputy leader in 2003. McCully was appointed "parliamentary assistant" to Brash and was reportedly the only MP Brash told about his decision to stand down in 2006.
Fifth National Government, 2008–2017
After the
National Party won the
2008 election, McCully was sworn in as a Cabinet Minister on 19 November 2008. McCully was appointed
Minister of Foreign Affairs
A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between co ...
,
Minister for Sport and Recreation, and Minister for the
Rugby World Cup
The Rugby World Cup is a men's rugby union tournament contested every four years between the top international teams. The tournament is administered by World Rugby, the sport's international governing body. The winners are awarded the Webb E ...
by
New Zealand Prime Minister 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 ...
.
In November 2015, McCully was off work after surgery for removal of a growth that was found to be benign.
On 15 December 2016, following the announcement that Key would retire from politics and the appointment of
Bill English
Sir Simon William English (born 30 December 1961) is a New Zealand former National Party politician who served as the 39th prime minister of New Zealand from 2016 to 2017 and as the 17th deputy prime minister of New Zealand and minister of f ...
as Prime Minister, McCully announced that he would not stand for parliament in 2017 (in
that year's general election).
English and McCully had previously had a fractious relationship, relating to when McCully orchestrated the removal of English as party leader in 2003.
Reflecting on his time as the Minister of Foreign Affairs, McCully said his most challenging and rewarding work was New Zealand's role in the Pacific: "I’ve put a lot of my personal effort into ensuring that we actually live up to the expectations our neighbours have of us and the responsibilities we should carry." He continued as Minister of Foreign Affairs under English until 2 May 2017, when he was succeeded by
Gerry Brownlee
Gerard Anthony Brownlee (born 4 February 1956) is a New Zealand politician of the New Zealand National Party. He has been a Member of Parliament since 1996, was Leader of the House, Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery and Minister of ...
.
In December 2016, McCully played a critical role in the
United Nations Security Council Resolution 2334.
Political views
In 2004, McCully voted against a bill to establish
civil unions. In 2005, he voted for the
Marriage (Gender Clarification) Amendment Bill 2005, which would have amended the Marriage Act to define marriage as only between a man and a woman.
In 2013, McCully voted against the
Marriage (Definition of Marriage) Amendment Bill, a bill allowing same-sex couples to marry in New Zealand.
Awards and honours
While still a Member of Parliament, McCully was appointed a
Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to foreign policy in the
2015 New Year Honours.
In 2019, McCully was appointed an
Honorary Companion of the Order of Fiji, for services to relations between Fiji and New Zealand.
See also
*
List of foreign ministers in 2017
This is a list of foreign ministers in 2017. Africa
*
*#Ramtane Lamamra (2013–2017)
*#Abdelkader Messahel (2017–2019)
* -
*#Georges Rebelo Chicoti (2010–2017)
*#Manuel Domingos Augusto (2017–2020)
* - Aurélien Agbénonci (2016–prese ...
*
Politics in New Zealand
References
External links
Profileat National party
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{{DEFAULTSORT:McCully, Murray
1953 births
Living people
New Zealand National Party MPs
New Zealand foreign ministers
Members of the Cabinet of New Zealand
Ministers of Housing (New Zealand)
Sports ministers of New Zealand
20th-century New Zealand lawyers
People from Whangārei
People from the Auckland Region
Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives
New Zealand MPs for Auckland electorates
Unsuccessful candidates in the 1984 New Zealand general election
Unsuccessful candidates in the 1975 New Zealand general election
Companions of the New Zealand Order of Merit
Companions of the Order of Fiji
21st-century New Zealand politicians