Iain Lees-Galloway
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Iain Francis Lees-Galloway (born 18 September 1978), initially Iain Galloway, is a New Zealand former politician. He represented the
Palmerston North Palmerston North (; mi, Te Papa-i-Oea, known colloquially as Palmy) is a city in the North Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Manawatū-Whanganui region. Located in the eastern Manawatu Plains, the city is near the north bank of the ...
electorate in Parliament for the Labour Party. He was the Minister for Workplace Relations,
Immigration Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, and ...
, and
ACC ACC most often refers to: * Atlantic Coast Conference, an NCAA Division I collegiate athletic conference located in the US *American College of Cardiology, A US-based nonprofit medical association that bestows credentials upon cardiovascular spec ...
. He was dismissed by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern from Cabinet on 22 July after an affair with a staff member over a period of 12 months. He did not stand for reelection in the 2020 election.


Early life

Lees-Galloway was born on 18 September 1978 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 ...
, where he attended Kings College. He moved to Palmerston North to study at
Massey University Massey University ( mi, Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa) is a university based in Palmerston North, New Zealand, with significant campuses in Albany and Wellington. Massey University has approximately 30,883 students, 13,796 of whom are extramural or ...
where he was president of the Massey University Students' Association in 2005. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from Massey in 2016.


Professional experience

Before entering Parliament Lees-Galloway worked for the
New Zealand Nurses Organisation The New Zealand Nurses Organisation (NZNO) is New Zealand's largest trade union and professional organisation that represents the nursing profession, midwives and caregivers. It is one of the oldest organisations of this type in the world, traci ...
as an organiser and subsequently publicity coordinator.


Member of Parliament


Fifth National Government, 2008–2017

Lees-Galloway joined the Labour Party in 2005 and became chairman of the Palmerston North branch in the following year. He was selected as successor to retiring MP
Steve Maharey Steven Maharey (born 3 February 1953) is a New Zealand academic and former politician of the Labour Party. Elected to Parliament for the first time in 1990 , he was Minister of Social Development and Employment from 1999 to 2005 and Ministe ...
, who became Vice Chancellor of Massey University, in a contested Labour Party selection for the . He defeated the National Party candidate, Malcolm Plimmer, with a majority of 1,117 votes. Lees-Galloway was confirmed in the with a majority increased from 1,117 in 2008 to 3,285 in the latest election. In the , Lees-Galloway was challenged by the
Mayor of Palmerston North The Mayor of Palmerston North is the head of the municipal government of Palmerston North, New Zealand, and presides over the Palmerston North City Council. The current mayor is Grant Smith, who became mayor in a February 2015 by-election. This ...
,
Jono Naylor Jonathan Mark Naylor (born 1966), commonly known as Jono Naylor, is a New Zealand politician from Palmerston North. He was Mayor of Palmerston North from 2007 until 2014, when he was elected to the House of Representatives in the as a list MP ...
, but remained successful. Lees-Galloway had a majority of 2,212 votes over Naylor. During his tenure, Lees-Galloway has served as the Labour Party's spokesperson for Veteran's Affairs, Transport and, Land Information and has served associate spokesperson for Health. Prior to that, he was associate spokesperson on health (drugs and alcohol) and defence. He served as junior whip for the Labour Party from 2013 to 2014. He has had three bills drawn from the member's ballot. In September 2010, his Smoke-free Environments (Removing Tobacco Displays) Amendment Bill was drawn from the member's ballot, attempting to ban the display of tobacco products and smoking accessories at points of sale. The bill's objective was subsequently adopted in a Government bill which came into force 23 July 2012. Lees-Galloway's Electoral (Adjustment of Thresholds) Amendment Bill was also drawn from the member's ballot in February 2013. It proposed amendments to the Electoral Act 1993, implementing the recommendations of the Electoral Commission with respect to the party vote threshold. In October 2013, his Land Transport (Safer Alcohol Limits for Driving) Amendment Bill, was drawn and progressed to First Reading. This bill would have lowered the allowable blood alcohol content (BAC) from 0.08g to 0.05g per 100mls of blood when driving. The Government announced their own legislation that would do the same after Lees-Galloway's bill was drawn. The legislation was passed July 2014. As his party's spokesperson for Workplace Relations, Lees-Galloway was a leading voice alongside trade unions in the campaign to eliminate zero-hour contracts in New Zealand. In 2016, after a year and a half long campaign that involved tens of thousands of New Zealanders, industrial action by union members, parliamentary negotiations, agreements were made with the National government. Lees-Galloway submitted an amendment to the Employment Standards Legislation Bill that addressed the issue and was approved overwhelmingly. The bill unanimously passed in parliament on 11 March 2016 and took effect April 2016. The legislation is thought to be one of the first laws in the developed world to end the use of deals criticised as exploitative. Lees-Galloway has declared the reforms "a win for working people" of New Zealand.


Sixth Labour Government, 2017–2020

During the , Lees-Galloway was re-elected in Palmerston North, defeating the National Party's candidate Adrienne Pierce by 6,392 votes. He was designated as Minister of Immigration by the Labour Party caucus following Labour's formation of a
coalition government A coalition government is a form of government in which political parties cooperate to form a government. The usual reason for such an arrangement is that no single party has achieved an absolute majority after an election, an atypical outcome in ...
with
New Zealand First New Zealand First ( mi, Aotearoa Tuatahi), commonly abbreviated to NZ First, is a nationalist and populist political party in New Zealand. The party formed in July 1993 following the resignation on 19 March 1993 of its leader and founder, Winst ...
and the
Greens Greens may refer to: *Leaf vegetables such as collard greens, mustard greens, spring greens, winter greens, spinach, etc. Politics Supranational * Green politics * Green party, political parties adhering to Green politics * Global Greens * Europ ...
. Because Lees-Galloway had both Workplace Relations and Immigration, both areas where Labour and New Zealand First had great differences of opinion, he had a tough job within the coalition. One minister said that he was “at the front line of the differences between Labour and NZ First”, while a Labour source said, "Every single immigration issue was absolute torture". Tracey Martin, a NZ First MP, said that her party's relationship with Lees-Galloway was “incredibly fraught". A source from NZ First described Lees-Galloway as "arrogant", and a Labour cabinet minister said that he "was not very good at hiding the dismay on his face. Even when he was silent, you could see how pissed off he was." On 20 July 2018, Lees-Galloway in his capacity as Immigration Minister granted visas for the Canadian
alt right The alt-right, an abbreviation of alternative right, is a far-right, white nationalist movement. A largely online phenomenon, the alt-right originated in the United States during the late 2000s before increasing in popularity during the mid-2 ...
activists Lauren Southern and Stefan Molyneux to visit New Zealand for a speaking tour in August 2018.
Mayor of Auckland The Mayor of Auckland is the directly elected head of the Auckland Council, the local government authority for the Auckland Region in New Zealand, which it controls as a unitary authority. The position exists since October 2010 after the amalga ...
Phil Goff Philip Bruce Goff (born 22 June 1953) is a New Zealand politician. He was a member of the New Zealand Parliament from 1981 to 1990 and again from 1993 to 2016. He served as leader of the Labour Party and leader of the Opposition between 11 No ...
had denied them access to
Auckland Council Auckland Council ( mi, Te Kaunihera o Tāmaki Makaurau) is the local government council for the Auckland Region in New Zealand. It is a territorial authority that has the responsibilities, duties and powers of a regional council and so is ...
facilities on the grounds that they were there to stir ethnic and political tensions. While Lees-Galloway described Southern and Molyneux's views as counter to the "kind and tolerant values" of the vast majority of New Zealanders, he cleared their visas on the grounds that they had fulfilled immigration character requirements including not having been convicted of a crime or previously barred from Australia and the United Kingdom. In October and November 2018, Lees-Galloway was criticised by the opposition National Party over his decision to grant residency to the convicted Czech drug smuggler Karel Sroubek, who had a lengthy criminal record in both the
Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...
and New Zealand. The case also attracted considerable media interest in New Zealand and led the Czech government to seek Sroubek's extradition. In December 2018, Lees-Galloway attributed his decision to
Immigration New Zealand Immigration New Zealand ( mi, Te Ratonga Manene; INZ), formerly the New Zealand Immigration Service (NZIS), is the agency within the New Zealand Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) that is responsible for border control, issu ...
's failure to provide information on Sroubek's criminal activities in the Czech Republic.


Dismissal

On 22 July 2020 Lees-Galloway was dismissed from his immigration, workplace relations and ACC ministerial portfolios by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern after admitting an inappropriate but consensual relationship with a person working in one of his agencies. Prime Minister Ardern dismissed Lees-Galloway after receiving information from
Opposition Leader The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...
Judith Collins Judith Anne Collins (born 24 February 1959) is a New Zealand politician who served as the Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the New Zealand National Party from 14 July 2020 to 25 November 2021. She was the second female Leader of the Natio ...
, stating that she had lost confidence in him for "improperly using his position of power." Additionally, there was an official probe into his spending, though this did not find anything inappropriate. Lees-Galloway issued a statement admitting that he had acted "completely inappropriately" in his position and could not continue as a minister. He also apologised to the Prime Minister and his family "for letting them down". Lees-Galloway kept a generally low profile after the demotion, apart from going to Parliament to give his
valedictory speech A valediction (derivation from Latin ''vale dicere'', "to say farewell"), or complimentary close in American English, is an expression used to say farewell, especially a word or phrase used to end a letter or message, Lees-Galloway did not stand at the 2020 election.
Tangi Utikere Tangi William Edward Utikere (born ) is a New Zealand politician, and Member of Parliament for since 2020. He was the deputy mayor of Palmerston North from 2016 to 2020, being the first non-European to serve in that role. Early life and prof ...
, the deputy mayor of Palmerston North, replaced Lees-Galloway as the Labour Party candidate for the Palmerston North electorate, and won the electorate. On 29 September 2020, Lees-Galloway was granted retention of the title "
The Honourable ''The Honourable'' (British English) or ''The Honorable'' (American English; see spelling differences) (abbreviation: ''Hon.'', ''Hon'ble'', or variations) is an honorific style that is used as a prefix before the names or titles of certain ...
" for life, in recognition of his term as a member of the Executive Council.


Career after Parliament

After leaving Parliament, Lees-Galloway took up a temporary role as lead organiser for the
New Zealand Nurses Organisation The New Zealand Nurses Organisation (NZNO) is New Zealand's largest trade union and professional organisation that represents the nursing profession, midwives and caregivers. It is one of the oldest organisations of this type in the world, traci ...
. He also started a business venture called Here’s Good, which would provide information about and promotion for businesses and aid in donating to good causes.


Personal life

Lees-Galloway is married to kindergarten teacher Claire; the couple have three children.


References


External links


Official website


on New Zealand Parliament website
Page
on New Zealand Labour Party's website , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Lees-Galloway, Iain 1978 births People educated at King's College, Auckland Living people New Zealand Labour Party MPs Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives New Zealand MPs for North Island electorates Association of Community Access Broadcasters 21st-century New Zealand politicians Candidates in the 2017 New Zealand general election Members of the Cabinet of New Zealand