Bill English

For other people with the same name, see William English.

New Zealand Parliament

The Right Honourable Sir Bill English KNZM
English in 2017
39th Prime Minister of New Zealand
In office 12 December 2016 –26 October 2017
Years	Term	Electorate	List	Party
1990 –1993	43rd	Wallace			National
1993 –1996	44th	Wallace			National
1996 –1999	45th	Clutha-Southland	9		National
1999 –2002	46th	Clutha-Southland	4		National
2002 –2005	47th	Clutha-Southland	1		National
2005 –2008	48th	Clutha-Southland	4		National
2008 –2011	49th	Clutha-Southland	2		National
2011 –2014	50th	Clutha-Southland	2		National
2014 –2017	51st	List	2		National
2017 –2018	52nd	List	1		National

At the 1990 general election, English stood as the National candidate in Wallace, the former electorate of National's first full-time leader, Adam Hamilton. The incumbent, Derek Angus, was retiring. English was elected with a large majority amid that year's National landslide. He would hold this seat, renamed Clutha-Southland in 1996, until 2014. He and three other newly elected National MPs (Tony Ryall, Nick Smith, and Roger Sowry) were soon identified as rising stars in New Zealand politics, and at various points were dubbed the "brat pack", the "gang of four", and the "young Turks".^{[ citation needed ]} In his first term in parliament, English chaired a select committee into social services. He was made a parliamentary under-secretary in 1993, serving under the Minister of Health. ^{[6] [9]}

First period in cabinet (1996–1999)

In early 1996, English was elevated to cabinet by Prime Minister Jim Bolger, becoming the Minister for Crown Health Enterprises and Associate Minister of Education (to Wyatt Creech). He was 34 at the time, becoming the cabinet's youngest member. ^[10] After the 1996 general election, the National Party was forced into a coalition with New Zealand First to retain government. In the resulting cabinet reshuffle, English emerged as Minister of Health. However, as a condition of the coalition agreement, NZ First's Neil Kirton (a first-term MP) was made Associate Minister of Health, effectively becoming English's deputy. This arrangement was described in the press as a "shotgun marriage", and there were frequent differences of opinion between the two ministers. ^{[11] [12]} After their relationship became unworkable, Kirton was sacked from the role in August 1997, with the agreement of NZ First leader Winston Peters. ^[13]

As Minister of Health, English was responsible for continuing the reforms to the public health system that National had begun after the 1990 general election. The reforms were unpopular, and health was perceived as one of the government's weaknesses, with the health portfolio consequently being viewed as a challenge. ^[14] English believed that the unpopularity of the reforms was in part due to a failure in messaging, and encouraged his National colleagues to avoid bureaucratic and money-focused language (such as references to "balance sheets" and "user charges") and instead talk about the improvements to services the government's reforms would bring. ^[15] He also rejected the idea that public hospitals could be run as commercial enterprises, a view which some of his colleagues had previously promoted. ^[16]

By early 1997, as dissatisfaction with Bolger's leadership began to grow, English was being touted as a potential successor, along with Jenny Shipley and Doug Graham. His age (35) was viewed as the main impediment to a successful leadership run. ^[17] National's leadership troubles were resolved in December 1997, when Bolger resigned and Shipley was elected to the leadership unopposed. English had been a supporter of Bolger as leader, but Shipley reappointed him Minister of Health in her new cabinet. ^[14]

English was promoted to Minister of Finance in a reshuffle in January 1999, a position which was at the time subordinate to the Treasurer, Bill Birch. After a few months, the pair switched positions as part of Birch's transition to retirement, with English assuming the senior portfolio. In early interviews, he emphasised his wish to be seen as a pragmatist rather than an ideologue, and said that the initiatives of some of his predecessors (Roger Douglas's "Rogernomics" and Ruth Richardson's "Ruthanasia") had focused on "fruitless, theoretical debates" when "people just want to see problems solved". ^{[7] [18]}

Opposition (1999–2008)

English in February 2005

After the National Party lost the 1999 election to Helen Clark's Labour Party, English continued on in the shadow cabinet as National's spokesperson for finance. He was elected deputy leader of the party in February 2001, following the resignation of Wyatt Creech, with Gerry Brownlee being his unsuccessful opponent. ^[19]

Leader of the Opposition

In October 2001, after months of speculation, Jenny Shipley resigned as leader of the National Party after being told she no longer had the support of the party caucus. English was elected as her replacement unopposed (with Roger Sowry as his deputy), and consequently became Leader of the Opposition. ^[20] However, he did not openly organise against Shipley, and according to The Southland Times "there was almost an element of 'aw, shucks, I'll do it then' about Mr English's ascension". ^[21]

Aged 39 when he was elected, English became the second-youngest leader in the National Party's history, after Jim McLay (who was 38 when elected in 1984). He also became only the third Southlander to lead a major New Zealand political party, after Joseph Ward and Adam Hamilton. ^[22] However, English failed to improve the party's performance. In the 2002 election, National suffered its worst electoral defeat ever, gaining barely more than twenty percent of the vote. English described it as "the worst day of my political life". Both party insiders and the general public were split as to how much to blame him for the loss, but most of the party believed that English would be able to rebuild National's support. ^[23]

By late 2003, however, National's performance in opinion polls remained poor. The party had briefly increased its popularity in the year following the election, but by October its support had fallen to levels only slightly better than what it achieved in the last ballot. English also appeared in a boxing match for a charity against entertainer Ted Clarke. This did not boost his polling or that of the National party either, with suggestions that it devalued his image as a serious politician. Don Brash, former governor of the Reserve Bank and a relative newcomer to politics, began to build up support to replace English. On 28 October, Brash gained sufficient backing in Caucus to defeat English in a leadership contest. ^[24]

Shadow cabinet roles and deputy leader

On 2 November 2003, when Brash changed responsibilities for certain MPs, English became National's spokesman for education, ranked at fifth place in the party's parliamentary hierarchy. He remained in parliament after the 2005 election. In his new shadow education portfolio, English performed strongly, and remained a party favourite despite his election defeat as leader in 2002, eventually being returned to the finance portfolio in August 2004 as deputy spokesman (while still retaining responsibility for education). ^[25]

In November 2006, Brash resigned as leader. English was considered as a potential replacement leader (running against John Key) or deputy leader (against incumbent Gerry Brownlee) in the ensuing leadership election. However, a contest was avoided when the MPs agreed a Key/English ticket would run unopposed in a display of party unity. ^{[26] [27]} English took over the deputy leadership and the finance portfolio in the Key shadow cabinet. ^[27]

Fifth National Government (2008–2017)

See also: Fifth National Government of New Zealand

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance (2008–2016)

English interviewed as a part of the Vote Chat forum at the University of Otago, October 2011

At the 2008 election, English was re-elected by his electorate, winning by a margin of about 15,500 votes. ^[28] He became Deputy Prime Minister of New Zealand and Minister of Finance ^[29] in the fifth National Government, being sworn into office on 19 November 2008 and continued to serve in those roles until becoming Prime Minister on 12 December 2016. He was also made Minister of Infrastructure in National's first term of government ^{[29] [30]} and Minister responsible for Housing New Zealand Corporation and minister responsible for the New Zealand flag consideration process in its third. ^[31]

He was comfortably re-elected in Clutha-Southland in the 2011 election but opted to run as a party-list candidate in 2014. ^{[32] [33]}

The pairing of John Key as leader of the National Party and English as his deputy has been compared to that of Bob Hawke and Paul Keating (in Australia) and Tony Blair and Gordon Brown (in the UK). ^[34]

English acceded to the role of finance minister in the continuing wake of the financial crisis. In response to New Zealand's rising debt, English made budget deficit-reduction his main priority. His first budget outlined three focuses in New Zealand's financial recovery: "improving the business environment and removing roadblocks to growth; investment in productive infrastructure; and improving the way government works". ^[35] One of his first acts was creating the National Infrastructure Unit, charged with formulating a plan for infrastructure projects and investments. ^[35] He commissioned a government-wide spending review, with an aim to reducing government expenditure—with the exceptions of a two-year stimulus package and long-term increases on infrastructure spending. ^{[36] [35]}

In April 2011, the Opposition criticised English for suggesting that New Zealand businesses could use New Zealand's low wages to help it compete with Australia. ^[37] The National Government campaigned for re-election in 2011 on its economic record. The Government boasted growth for five consecutive quarters up to mid-2010, totalling 1.6% of real GDP. ^[38]

Strong growth resulted in a surplus of $473 million for the 2015/16 financial year, projected to rise to $8.5 billion by 2020/21. In his 2016 Economic and Fiscal Update address, English stated that reducing debt and tackling the costs of the 2016 Kaikōura earthquake were higher priorities than reducing rates of tax. ^[39]

Allowances issue

In 2009, the media, including TVNZ and TV3 revealed that English was receiving about NZ$900 a week as part of a living allowance for ministers, to live in his own NZ$1.2 million Wellington home. At the time, English also received $276,200 in his annual salary as deputy prime minister. ^{[40] [41]} It was also revealed other ministers with homes in the capital city were also claiming accommodation allowances. ^[42] On 3 August 2009, Prime Minister John Key started a review of the housing allowances claimed by cabinet ministers. ^[43] English subsequently paid back $12,000 and only claimed about $24,000 a year in living allowances. ^[44] The Auditor-General's office said in September 2009 that they were making "preliminary enquiries" into parliamentary housing expenses in response to a letter of complaint from Progressive party leader Jim Anderton. ^[45] Two days later English stated that he would no longer take up any housing allowance and had paid back all the allowance he had received since the November 2008 election. ^[46]

Prime Minister (2016–2017)

Premiership of Bill English 12 December 2016 –26 October 2017

English is regarded as more socially conservative than his predecessor, John Key. ^{[83] [84]} He has stated his opposition to voluntary euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide, ^{[85] [86]} same-sex civil unions, ^[87] and the decriminalisation of prostitution. ^[88] As prime minister he opposed any "liberalisation" of abortion law. ^[89]

In 2004, English voted against a bill to establish civil unions for both same-sex and opposite-sex couples. ^[90] In 2005, he voted for the Marriage (Gender Clarification) Amendment Bill, which would have amended the Marriage Act to define marriage as only between a man and a woman. ^[91] English voted against the Marriage (Definition of Marriage) Amendment Bill, a bill that legalised same-sex marriage in New Zealand. ^[92] However, in December 2016 he stated, "I'd probably vote differently now on the gay marriage issue. I don't think that gay marriage is a threat to anyone else's marriage". ^[93]

In 2009, English voted against the Misuse of Drugs (Medicinal Cannabis) Amendment Bill, a bill aimed at amending the Misuse of Drugs Act so that cannabis could be used for medical purposes. ^[94]

Personal life

English (left) at a 2011 Anzac Day service in Wellington, alongside then-Governor-General Sir Anand Satyanand (centre)

English met his future wife, Mary Scanlon, at university. She was studying medicine at the time, and became a general practitioner. Both her parents were immigrants, her father being Samoan and her mother Italian, born on the island of Stromboli. They have six children: a daughter and five sons. ^{[95] [96]}

English is a practising Roman Catholic, ^[84] but has stated that he considers his religious beliefs personal and thus separate from politics. ^[97]

In June 2002, English took part in TV3's Fight For Life, a celebrity boxing fundraiser to raise money for the Yellow Ribbon anti-youth-suicide campaign, influenced by the death of a teenage nephew in 1997. He lost a split decision to former university colleague Ted Clarke. ^[98]

Honours

In the 2018 Queen's Birthday Honours, English was appointed a Knight Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services of over 27 years to the State. ^[99]

See also

• List of New Zealand governments
• Politics of New Zealand

• New Zealand portal
• Politics portal

References

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External links

• Profile at National Party
• Profile Archived 10 April 2016 at the Wayback Machine on Parliament.nz
• Releases and speeches at Beehive.govt.nz

New Zealand Parliament
Preceded by Derek Angus	Member of Parliament for Wallace 1990–1996	Constituency abolished
New constituency	Member of Parliament for Clutha-Southland 1996–2014	Succeeded by Todd Barclay
Political offices
Preceded by Jenny Shipley	Minister of Health 1996–1999	Succeeded by Wyatt Creech
Preceded by Bill Birch	Minister of Finance 1999	Succeeded by Bill Birch
	Treasurer of New Zealand 1999	Succeeded by Michael Cullen
Preceded by Jenny Shipley	Leader of the Opposition 2001–2003	Succeeded by Don Brash
Preceded by Michael Cullen	Deputy Prime Minister of New Zealand 2008–2016	Succeeded by Paula Bennett
	Minister of Finance 2008–2016	Succeeded by Steven Joyce
New office	Minister of Infrastructure 2008–2011	Position abolished
	Minister for the Housing New Zealand Corporation 2014–2016	Succeeded by Amy Adams
Preceded by John Key	Prime Minister of New Zealand 2016–2017	Succeeded by Jacinda Ardern
	Minister of National Security and Intelligence 2016–2017
Preceded by Jacinda Ardern	Leader of the Opposition 2017–2018	Succeeded by Simon Bridges
Party political offices
Preceded by Wyatt Creech	Deputy Leader of the National Party 2001	Succeeded by Roger Sowry
Preceded by Jenny Shipley	Leader of the National Party 2001–2003	Succeeded by Don Brash
Preceded by Gerry Brownlee	Deputy Leader of the National Party 2006–2016	Succeeded by Paula Bennett
Preceded by John Key	Leader of the National Party 2016–2018	Succeeded by Simon Bridges
Honorary titles
Preceded by Peter Dunne	Father of the House 2017–2018	Succeeded by Nick Smith

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