New Zealand is an island country located in the south-western Pacific Ocean, near the centre of the water hemisphere. It consists of a large number of islands, estimated around 600, mainly remnants of a larger land mass now beneath the sea. The two main islands by size are the North Island and the South Island, separated by the Cook Strait; the third-largest is Stewart Island, located 30 kilometres off the tip of the South Island across Foveaux Strait. The three largest islands stretch 1,500 kilometres across latitudes 34° to 47° south.
Auckland Airport is the largest and busiest airport in New Zealand, with over 21 million passengers in the year ended March 2019. The airport is located near Mangere, a residential suburb, and Airport Oaks, a service hub suburb 21 kilometres (13 mi) south of the Auckland city centre. It is both a domestic and international hub for Air New Zealand, and as the New Zealand hub of Virgin Australia and Jetstar Airways.
ACT New Zealand, usually known as ACT, is a right-wing, classical-liberal political party in New Zealand. According to former party leader Rodney Hide, ACT stands for "individual freedom, personal responsibility, doing the best for our natural environment and for smaller, smarter government in its goals of a prosperous economy, a strong society, and a quality of life that is the envy of the world".
The Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand is a left-wing political party in New Zealand. Like many Green parties around the world it has four organisational pillars: ecology, social responsibility, grassroots democracy, and nonviolence. It also accepts Te Tiriti o Waitangi as the founding document of Aotearoa New Zealand and recognises Māori as Tangata Whenua.
Waiheke Island is the most populated and second-largest island in the Hauraki Gulf of New Zealand. Its ferry terminal in Matiatia Bay at the western end is 21.5 km (13.4 mi) from the central-city terminal in Auckland.
The Second Labour Government of New Zealand was the government of New Zealand from 1957 to 1960. It was most notable for raising taxes on alcohol, cigarettes and petrol, a move which was probably responsible for the government lasting for only one term.
Auckland Central is a New Zealand electoral division returning one member to the New Zealand House of Representatives. Its current representative is Nikki Kaye, a member of the National Party; she has represented the seat since 2008.
Epsom is a New Zealand parliamentary electorate, returning one Member of Parliament to the New Zealand House of Representatives. As of the 2017 general election, its member of parliament is David Seymour.
Mount Albert is a parliamentary electorate in Auckland, New Zealand, returning one Member of Parliament (MP) to the New Zealand House of Representatives. It was represented by David Shearer from 13 June 2009 to 31 December 2016. It was represented by Helen Clark from the 1981 general election until her resignation from Parliament on 17 April 2009. It has elected only Labour Party MPs since it was first contested at the 1946 election. The current representative is the Prime Minister and Labour Party leader, Jacinda Ardern, who was elected in a 2017 by-election gaining 77 percent of votes cast in the preliminary results.
Botany is a New Zealand parliamentary electorate, returning one Member of Parliament to the New Zealand House of Representatives. It was contested for the first time at the 2008 general election, and won by Pansy Wong for the National Party. Following Wong's resignation in late 2010, a by-election returned Jami-Lee Ross, who was confirmed by the voters in the 2011 general election. Ross left the National Party in October 2018 and became an independent.
Nicola Laura "Nikki" Kaye is the member of the New Zealand Parliament for the Auckland Central electorate. In January 2013, she was appointed to the Cabinet by Prime Minister John Key, giving her the portfolios of Food Safety, Civil Defence, and Youth Affairs, and Associate Minister of Education and Immigration. From September 2016 to early 2017 she was on sick leave from the House of Representatives, after a breast cancer diagnosis. She returned to Parliament in early 2017 to resume full duties.
Auckland is a city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country, Auckland has an urban population of around 1,628,900. It is located in the Auckland Region—the area governed by Auckland Council—which includes outlying rural areas and the islands of the Hauraki Gulf, resulting in a total population of 1,695,900. Auckland is a diverse, multicultural and cosmopolitan city, home to the largest Polynesian population in the world. A Māori-language name for Auckland is Tāmaki or Tāmaki-makau-rau, meaning "Tāmaki with a hundred lovers", in reference to the desirability of its fertile land at the hub of waterways in all directions.
Climate change in New Zealand refers to historical changes in the climate of New Zealand and New Zealand's contribution to and response to global warming. In 2014, New Zealand contributed 0.17 per cent to the world's total greenhouse gas emissions. However, on a per capita basis, New Zealand is a significant emitter - the 21st highest contributor in the world and fifth highest within the OECD.
Kennedy Gollan Montrose Graham is a New Zealand politician and former Member of Parliament for the Green Party. He has served in the New Zealand Foreign Service for sixteen years, and lectured at the University of Canterbury and Victoria University of Wellington.
The 2017 New Zealand general election took place on Saturday 23 September 2017 to determine the membership of the 52nd New Zealand Parliament. The previous parliament was elected on 20 September 2014 and was officially dissolved on 22 August 2017. Voters elected 120 members to the House of Representatives under New Zealand's mixed-member proportional (MMP) voting system, a proportional representation system in which 71 members were elected from single-member electorates and 49 members were elected from closed party lists. Around 3.57 million people were registered to vote in the election, with 2.63 million (79.8%) turning out. Advance voting proved popular, with 1.24 million votes cast before election day, more than the previous two elections combined.
James Peter Edward Shaw is a New Zealand politician and a leader of the Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand. Voters elected Shaw to the New Zealand parliament at the 2014 general election as a list representative of the Green Party. The party selected Shaw as its male co-leader in May 2015. Following Metiria Turei's resignation in August 2017, Shaw became the party's sole leader for the duration of the 2017 general election.
The NZ Climate Party is an unregistered political party in New Zealand. The party is focused on highlighting and addressing the threat of climate change. The party was launched in August 2014, and is led by Peter Whitmore.
The Opportunities Party (TOP) is a political party in New Zealand. It was founded by economist and philanthropist Gareth Morgan in November 2016. The party supports "a prosperous, fair and equitable society", tax reform, stricter immigration, environmental sustainability, a written constitution, the adoption of a universal basic income for families with children under 3, and the legalisation of cannabis. Gareth Morgan also announced he wanted to reduce the prison population by 40%. During the 2017 general election, TOP gained 2.4% of the vote and won no seats in the New Zealand House of Representatives.
The Mother of all Budgets was the nickname given to the 1991 New Zealand budget. It was the first budget delivered by the new National Party Minister of Finance Ruth Richardson and formed the catalyst of her economic reforms known in the media as "Ruthanasia".
The Sixth Labour Government has governed New Zealand since 26 October 2017. It is headed by Labour Party leader and Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern.
