Nicola Willis (politician)

Nicola Valentine Willis MP (born 7 March 1981) is Deputy Leader of the National Party and its finance spokesperson in the New Zealand Parliament. Willis inherited Steven Joyce's seat in Parliament as the next on the party list after his retirement from politics in March 2018.

Early life

Willis was born and raised in Port Howard, Wellington. She is the eldest of three children. Willis's mother was a journalist in the Parliamentary Press Gallery, her father a partner in corporate law firm Bell Gully. After a "privileged childhood", she first attended Samuel Marsden Collegiate, a private school for girls, before asking to spend her last two years of high school boarding at King's College in Auckland – a decision she regretted.

She graduated with a first-class honours degree in English literature from Victoria University of Wellington in 2003, and earned a post-graduate diploma in journalism from the University of Canterbury in 2017. She was a member of the Victoria University Debating Society, and competed in international tournaments.

After graduation, she took up a position as a research and policy advisor for Bill English and went on to serve as a senior advisor to John Key in 2008 In 2012, Willis joined dairy co-operative Fonterra, taking on senior management roles, as well as serving on the board of Export NZ, a division of lobbyist group Business New Zealand.

Political career

First term

Willis contested the 2017 election as National's candidate for the electorate of Wellington Central, and was number 48 on the party list. She gained 26% of the electorate vote after distribution of preferences. On the party list vote, National lost two parliamentary seats while the Labour and Green parties each gained one. Willis was second in line should there be a vacancy in a list seat held by a National Party MP during the 52nd New Zealand Parliament, and she and Maureen Pugh entered parliament several months later, after the resignations of Bill English and Steven Joyce in March 2018.

Leader Simon Bridges appointed Willis National's spokesperson on early childhood education.

Willis was vocal against Grant Guilford's attempt to change Victoria University of Wellington's name to the University of Wellington.

Willis played a significant role in the leadership coup that saw Bridges removed as Leader and replaced by Todd Muller, acting as Muller's "numbers man" alongside Chris Bishop. She was subsequently promoted to 14th in caucus with the portfolios of Housing and Urban Development, and retaining Early Childhood Education. Muller resigned after 55 days becoming the shortest serving leader of any political party represented in Parliament in New Zealand's history, being replaced by Judith Collins. Willis was promoted to the front bench as 13th in caucus, and taking the education spokesperson role. With Muller's backers Bishop and Willis rising under Collins, political commentators speculated that "potential dissenters are being kept busy with big new portfolios".

Second term and Deputy Leadership

During the 2020 New Zealand general election, her party raised her ranking on its party list from 48th to 13th, making her return to parliament a certainty. She also contested the Wellington Central electorate, losing to the incumbent Grant Robertson.

After National Party Judith Collins lost a confidence vote and was removed by the National caucus on 25 November 2021, Willis was seen by the media and commentators as a contender to replace Collins as Leader of the National Party or to become deputy to whoever was elected leader. Despite the speculation, Willis never launched a leadership bid, although was asked by Botany MP and former Air New Zealand CEO Christopher Luxon to be his running mate as he launched campaign for the leadership. She and Luxon were elected Deputy Leader and Leader respectively unopposed on 30 November 2021, after Luxon's main rival, Simon Bridges, dropped his leadership bid.

Luxon unveiled his first shadow cabinet in December and expectedly ranked Willis 2nd in his caucus lineup. She retained her Housing portfolio while picking up the Social Investment portfolio and being appointed Deputy Leader of the Opposition. Following Finance Spokesperson Simon Bridges announcement of his intention to resign from politics in March 2022, Willis was appointed as his replacement as Finance Spokesperson, while surrendering the Housing portfolio to Chris Bishop.

On 19 November 2022, Willis was selected as the National party candidate in the Northern Wellington electorate of Ōhāriu ahead of the 2023 New Zealand general election, instead of being re-selected in the Wellington Central electorate that she had unsuccessfully sought in the previous two elections.

Political beliefs

Willis is described as a social liberal, and has a focus on LGBT rights and action on climate change. She is a member of the National Party's BlueGreen environmental caucus. Willis supports euthanasia, and is pro-choice.

In the 2020 New Zealand general election, Willis' unsuccessful campaign in the Wellington Central focussed heavily on increasing roading in the central city, with the slogan 'Four Lanes to the Planes'.

Personal life

Willis married Duncan Small in 2007, and they have four children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Willis, Nicola
1981 births
Living people
New Zealand National Party MPs
Unsuccessful candidates in the 2017 New Zealand general election
21st-century New Zealand politicians
21st-century New Zealand women politicians
New Zealand list MPs
Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives
People from Wellington City
Victoria University of Wellington alumni
University of Canterbury alumni
Fonterra people
Candidates in the 2020 New Zealand general election
Women deputy opposition leaders
Deputy opposition leaders
People educated at Samuel Marsden Collegiate School
People educated at King's College, Auckland