Dr Anae Neru Asi Tuiataga Leavasa is a New Zealand politician. He was elected as 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 ...

in the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

for the Labour Party in 2020.

Early life and family

Leavasa's parents immigrated from

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands (Manono Island, Manono an ...

in the 1980s. His mother is from

Le'auva'a Le'auva'a ("the people from the boat") is a village on the island of Upolu in Samoa. The population is 3274. Although the village, with an area of 5.558 km2, is geographically located on Upolu, the village is politically (and historically) pa ...

and Solosolo and his father is from

Vaiala Vaiala is a village on the island of Upolu in Samoa. It is situated on the central north coast of the island, to the east of the capital Apia. The village is in the political district of Tuamasaga Tuamāsaga is a district of Samoa, with a populat ...

and Vaimoso. He was born in

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

and has four brothers and an older sister. His mother's uncle was Minister of Education in Samoa and his paternal grandfather was Minister of Agriculture in Samoa.

Tuimalealiʻifano Vaʻaletoʻa Sualauvi II Afioga Tuimalealiʻifano Vaʻaletoʻa Eti Sualauvi II (born 29 April 1947) is a Samoan politician who is the current O le Ao o le Malo (head of state) of Samoa, in office since 2017. He was appointed to the Tama-a-ʻaiga title of Tuimalealiʻifa ...

, the

O le Ao o le Malo The ''O le Ao o le Malo'' ( Samoan for "Head of State") is the head of state of Samoa. The position is described in Part III of the 1960 Samoan constitution. At the time the constitution was adopted, it was anticipated that future heads of st ...

(head of state of Samoa), is also an uncle. Leavasa received secondary education at Marcellin College and

Auckland Grammar School 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 I ...

. As a teenager, Leavasa survived metastatic bone cancer. He has only one lung and has a metal joint in one knee, and walks with a slight limp. He earned his medical degree from the University of Auckland Medical School and was awarded fellowship of the Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners in 2014. Prior to entering Parliament, Leavasa worked for 12 years as a general practitioner and sports doctor in

Māngere Māngere () or Mangere is one of the largest suburbs in Auckland, in northern New Zealand. It is located on mainly flat land on the northeastern shore of the Manukau Harbour, to the northwest of Manukau City Centre and 15 kilometres south of ...

. He is married and has one child.

Political career

Leavasa was elected to the

Māngere-Ōtāhuhu Local Board Māngere-Ōtāhuhu Local Board is one of the 21 local boards of the Auckland Council, and is overseen by the council's Manukau ward councillors. The board is governed by seven board members elected at-large. The board's administrative area incl ...

in the 2019 elections. At the Leavasa stood for parliament for the Labour Party and was ranked 52nd on the party list. He also ran for the

Takanini Takanini is a southern suburb of Auckland, in northern New Zealand. It is located on the shores of the Pahurehure Inlet, 28 kilometres southeast of the Auckland CBD. The suburb is home to a Fonterra Brands milk plant (part of the dairy compan ...

electorate which he won by a margin of 7,724 votes. This was the first election after Takanini had been created and many, including

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 ...

political scientist Lara Greaves, had anticipated prior to the election that the seat would be won by National.

Political views

Dr Leavasa depicts himself as a social conservative with a Christian faith background. He opposed the 2020 decriminalisation of abortion, saying: "I come from a faith background, and so I won't move on my moral convictions. In regards to the abortion legislation, I would have, from a faith background and a conservative view, have voted against it." Leavasa wants the government to build more housing to accommodate Takanini's growing population and to also reduce the health risks from overcrowding.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Leavasa, Neru 1980s births Living people New Zealand Labour Party MPs Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives New Zealand list MPs 21st-century New Zealand politicians New Zealand Christians People from Māngere