2026 in New Zealand

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Decades:	2000s 2010s 2020s
See also:	History of New Zealand List of years in New Zealand Timeline of New Zealand history

This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by editing the page to add missing items, with references to reliable sources.

The following lists events that have happened or are expected to happen during 2026 in New Zealand.

Incumbents

• Regal and vice-regal
• Government
• Other party leaders in parliament
• Judiciary
• Main centre leaders

Regal and vice-regal

• Head of state – Charles III
• Governor-General – Cindy Kiro

• 
  Charles III
• 
  Cindy Kiro

Government

Legislature term: 54th New Zealand Parliament.

The Sixth National Government, elected in 2023, continues.

• Speaker of the House – Gerry Brownlee
• Prime Minister – Christopher Luxon
• Deputy Prime Minister – David Seymour
• Leader of the House – Chris Bishop
• Minister of Finance – Nicola Willis
• Minister of Foreign Affairs – Winston Peters

• 
  Gerry Brownlee
• 
  Christopher Luxon
• 
  David Seymour
• 
  Chris Bishop
• 
  Nicola Willis
• 
  Winston Peters

Other party leaders in parliament

• Labour – Chris Hipkins (Leader of the Opposition)
• Green – Marama Davidson and Chlöe Swarbrick
• ACT – David Seymour
• NZ First – Winston Peters
• Te Pāti Māori – Rawiri Waititi and Debbie Ngarewa-Packer

• 
  Chris Hipkins
• 
  Marama Davidson
• 
  Chlöe Swarbrick
• 
  David Seymour
• 
  Winston Peters
• 
  Rawiri Waititi
• 
  Debbie Ngarewa‑Packer

Judiciary

• Chief Justice – Helen Winkelmann
• President of the Court of Appeal – Christine French
• Chief High Court judge – Sally Fitzgerald
• Chief District Court judge – Heemi Taumaunu

• 
  Helen Winkelmann
• 
  Christine French

Main centre leaders

• Mayor of Auckland – Wayne Brown
• Mayor of Tauranga – Mahé Drysdale
• Mayor of Hamilton – Tim Macindoe
• Mayor of Wellington – Andrew Little
• Mayor of Christchurch – Phil Mauger
• Mayor of Dunedin – Sophie Barker

• 
  Wayne Brown
• 
  Mahé Drysdale
• 
  Tim Macindoe
• 
  Andrew Little
• 
  Phil Mauger

Events

• January
• February
• March
• April
• May
• June
• July
• August
• September
• October
• November
• December

January

• 1 January – Manage My Health, provider of the country's biggest patient health information portal, confirmed a data breach affecting "6–7 percent of the approximately 1.8 million registered users", around 120,000 people. ^{[1] [2]} The breach may have resulted from ManageMyHealth's outdated encryption software. ^[3] A ransom demand for $60,000, for 108 GB of data, was reportedly made by a person or group named Kazu. ^[3]
• 2 January:
  • Members of the New Zealand Professional Firefighters Union (NZPFU) stage a one-hour strike at mid-day as part of a pay dispute with Fire and Emergency New Zealand. ^[4]
  • The Mayoral Relief Fund is activated for Horowhenua residents in response to recent windstorm damage in late December 2025. ^[5]
• 3 January:
  • Heavy rain causes flash flooding in Wairoa. MetService issues heavy rain and severe thunderstorm warnings in the upper and eastern North Island. ^[6] Overnight flooding in Tolaga Bay leads to the closure of State Highway 35 between Tolaga Bay and Okitu, and the evacuation of local residents. ^[7]
  • Social networking website Neighbourly confirms that 150 GB of data including usernames, emails, GPS coordinates, posts and messages were stolen during a data breach that occurred on New Year's Day. ^{[8] [9]}
• 5 January – The High Court of New Zealand grants an injunction filed by ManageMyHealth to prevent third parties from accessing patients' data obtained during a recent data breach. Health Minister Simeon Brown commissions a review in response to the ManageMyHealth cyber security breach. ^[10]
• 7 January – High Court Justice David Johnston issues an injunction preventing anyone from publishing stolen data from Neighbourly. ^[9]
• 8 January – The MV Connemara is forced to return to Wellington due to a mechanical fault with its ramp. 200 passengers are stranded overnight. ^[11]
• 9 January:
  • The Department of Conservation reports that the critically endangered kākāpō started breeding previous week for the first time in four years. ^[12]
  • A 5.4 magnitude earthquake strikes Waverley, Taranaki at a depth of 107km. ^[13]

Predicted and scheduled

• 30 March – The Greater Wellington Regional Council is expected to introduce contactless payment options alongside Snapper cards on public transportation, citing delays with the national ticket solution Motu Move . ^[14]
• 31 March – One NZ is expected to shut down its 2G call network. Spark NZ is expected to shut down its 3G network. ^[15]
• 1 June – The 2026 King's Birthday Honours will be announced.
• 1 November – The New Zealand government is expected to end welfare assistance to 18- and 19-year olds whose parents earn over NZ$65,000. ^[16]
• 19 December – The last possible day on which the 2026 general election can be held.
• 31 December – The 2027 New Year Honours will be announced.

Holidays and observances

Public holidays in New Zealand in 2026 are as follows: ^[17]

• 1 January – New Year's Day
• 2 January – Day after New Year's Day
• 6 February – Waitangi Day
• 3 April – Good Friday
• 6 April – Easter Monday
• 25 April – Anzac Day
• 27 April – Anzac Day observed
• 1 June – King's Birthday
• 10 July – Matariki
• 26 October – Labour Day
• 25 December – Christmas Day
• 26 December – Boxing Day
• 28 December – Boxing Day observed

Sport

• Commonwealth Games
• Lawn bowls
• Olympics
• Paralympics
• Tennis

Commonwealth Games

Main article: New Zealand at the 2026 Commonwealth Games

A New Zealand team will compete at the 2026 Commonwealth Games, 23 July – 2 August.

Lawn bowls

• Men's singles champion – Rohan Ware (Belfast Bowling Club) ^[18]
• Men's pair champions – Ethan Kelleher and Hamish Kelleher (Halswell Bowling Club) ^[19]
• Women's singles champion – Mandy Boyd (Elmwood Park Bowling Club) ^[19]
• Women's pair champions – Mandy Boyd (Elmwood Park Bowling Club) and Kirsten Edwards (Stoke Bowling Club) ^[18]

Olympics

Main article: New Zealand at the 2026 Winter Olympics

A New Zealand team will compete at the 2026 Winter Olympics, 6–22 February.

Paralympics

Main article: New Zealand at the 2026 Winter Paralympics

A New Zealand team will compete at the 2026 Winter Paralympics, 6–15 March.

Tennis

The ASB Classic tournament is being held in Auckland, 5–17 January. ^[20]

Deaths

Deaths January  · February  · March  · April  · May  · June  · July  · August  · September  · October  · November  · December

January

• 1 January
  • Dame Karen Poutasi, public health administrator and public servant, Director-General of Health (1995–2006), chief executive of the New Zealand Qualifications Authority (2006–2020), chair of Te Whatu Ora (2023–2024) (born 1950). ^[21]
  • Leslie Snape, oral and maxillofacial surgeon (Christchurch Hospital, University of Otago, Christchurch), president of the Australian and New Zealand Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons (2011–2013), Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of England (since 2007) (born 1947). ^[22]
• 4 January – Jules Radich, businessman and local politician, Dunedin City Councillor (2019–2022, since 2025), Mayor of Dunedin (2022–2025) (born 1954). ^[23]
• 7 January – Gus Gale. mathematics educator, principal of Hornby High School (1983–1994), B. H. Neumann award (1992) (born 1934). ^[24]
• 8 January – Sir Tim Shadbolt, activist and politician, Mayor of Waitemata City (1983–1989), Mayor of Invercargill (1993–1995, 1998–2022) (born 1947). ^[25]

• 
  Dame Karen Poutasi
• 
  Jules Radich
• 
  Sir Tim Shadbolt

References

• New Zealand portal
• Current events portal
• Oceania portal
• Modern history portal

1. "ManageMyHealth confirms cyber breach". RNZ . 31 December 2025. Archived from the original on 5 January 2026. Retrieved 1 January 2026.
2. Hunt, Tom (1 January 2026). "More than 120,000 Kiwis' health data breached". The Waikato Times . Retrieved 1 January 2026.
3. "GPs worried by lack of information on ManageMyHealth data breach". RNZ . 1 January 2026. Archived from the original on 3 January 2026. Retrieved 1 January 2026.
4. Tyson, Jessica (2 January 2026). "Public urged to be careful as firefighters strike today". Te Ao Māori News . Archived from the original on 2 January 2026. Retrieved 2 January 2026.
5. "Mayoral Relief Fund activated for Horowhenua residents after severe weather". RNZ . 2 January 2026. Retrieved 2 January 2026.
6. "Flash flooding in Wairoa, Gisborne motorists warned over wild weather". 1News . 3 January 2025. Archived from the original on 4 January 2026. Retrieved 4 January 2026.
7. "Weather: State highway reopens, evacuees return as East Coast recovers from heavy rain". RNZ . 4 January 2026. Archived from the original on 4 January 2026. Retrieved 4 January 2026.
8. "Neighbourly data breach: User names, emails and messages accessed". The New Zealand Herald . 3 January 2026. Retrieved 4 January 2026.
9. Stevens, Ric (7 January 2026). "High Court acts swiftly to try to contain Northland-focused Manage My Health, Neighbourly cyber attacks". The New Zealand Herald . Archived from the original on 9 January 2026. Retrieved 9 January 2026.
10. "High Court grants injunction over ManageMyHealth cyber breach". 1News . 5 January 2026. Archived from the original on 5 January 2026. Retrieved 5 January 2026.
11. "200 passengers stranded on Bluebridge ferry overnight". RNZ . 9 January 2026. Archived from the original on 9 January 2026. Retrieved 9 January 2026.
12. "New Zealand's rare flightless parrot begins breeding again". Radio France International . 9 January 2026. Retrieved 9 January 2026.
13. Ruru, Karanama (9 January 2026). "Deep magnitude 5.4 earthquake earthquake in central North Island felt by thousands". Stuff . Retrieved 11 January 2026.
14. James, Nick (8 December 2025). "Wellington commuters to get contactless payment options in 2026". RNZ . Archived from the original on 9 December 2025. Retrieved 9 December 2025.
15. Dirga, Nik (15 December 2025). "The 3G shutdown in NZ is starting. Here's what you need to know". RNZ . Retrieved 31 December 2025.
16. Dexter, Giles (5 October 2025). "Jobseeker: Parents earning more than $65k must support 18-19yo children". RNZ . Archived from the original on 5 October 2025. Retrieved 6 October 2025.
17. "Holidays and anniversary dates". Employment New Zealand. 12 February 2025. Archived from the original on 31 August 2024. Retrieved 29 November 2025.
18. Anderson, Ian (6 January 2026). "Rohan Ware completes family legacy with national bowls title". Stuff . Retrieved 11 January 2026.
19. "Mandy Boyd claims 10th national title with maiden singles win at bowls championships". Stuff . 10 January 2026. Retrieved 11 January 2026.
20. "ASB Classic" . Retrieved 29 November 2025.
21. "Dame Karen Poutasi, first female director-general of health, dies aged 76". RNZ News . 2 January 2026. Retrieved 2 January 2026.
22. "Les Snape obituary". The Press . 3 January 2026. Retrieved 3 January 2026.
23. Miller, Grant; Shaw, Ruby (4 January 2026). "Former Dunedin mayor Jules Radich dies". Otago Daily Times . Archived from the original on 4 January 2026. Retrieved 4 January 2026.
24. "Neville Gale obituary". The Press . 10 January 2026. Retrieved 10 January 2026.
25. "Sir Tim Shadbolt has died at age 78". RNZ News . 8 January 2026. Retrieved 8 January 2026.