Ruth Dyson

For the English keyboardist, see Ruth Dyson (keyboardist).

The Honourable Ruth Dyson
Ruth Dyson in 2011
Assistant Speaker of the House of Representatives
In office 3 July 2019 – 17 October 2020
Preceded by	Poto Williams
Succeeded by	Jenny Salesa
Chief Government Whip in the House of Representatives
In office 26 October 2017 – 27 June 2019
Prime Minister	Jacinda Ardern
Preceded by	Jami-Lee Ross
Succeeded by	Michael Wood
28th President of the Labour Party
In office 1988–1993
Leader	David Lange Geoffrey Palmer Mike Moore
Preceded by	Rex Jones
Succeeded by	Maryan Street
8th Minister for Senior Citizens
In office 28 January 2003 – 19 November 2008
Prime Minister	Helen Clark
Preceded by	Lianne Dalziel
Succeeded by	John Carter
7th Minister for ACC
In office 15 August 2002 – 5 November 2007
Prime Minister	Helen Clark
Preceded by	Lianne Dalziel
Succeeded by	Maryan Street
Member of the New Zealand Parliament for Lyttelton
In office 1993–1996
Preceded by	Gail McIntosh
Succeeded by	Constituency abolished
Member of the New Zealand Parliament for Labour party list
In office 1996–1999
Member of the New Zealand Parliament for Banks Peninsula
In office 1999–2008
Preceded by	David Carter
Succeeded by	Constituency abolished
Majority	1,923 (4.78%)
Member of the New Zealand Parliament for Port Hills
In office 2008–2020
Preceded by	New constituency
Succeeded by	Constituency abolished
Majority	7,916
Personal details
Born	Ruth Suzanne Dyson (1957-08-11) 11 August 1957 Wellington, New Zealand
Political party	Labour Party
Occupation	Politician

Ruth Suzanne Dyson (born 11 August 1957) is a New Zealand politician. She is a member of the Labour Party and became a Member of Parliament in 1993. She represented the Port Hills electorate from the 2008 election to 2020, when she retired.

Early years

Dyson was born in Lower Hutt. Her father served in the New Zealand Army, and so Dyson's family frequently moved around the country. Dyson joined the Labour Party in Westport in 1979, and worked as a campaign organiser for Labour MP Kerry Burke in the 1981 and 1984 election. In 1985, she moved to Wellington, where she worked with Labour MP Fran Wilde on the Homosexual Law Reform Bill. She worked for Wilde's re-election campaign in the 1987 election, and later held a number of senior offices in the Labour Party, including that of president.

Member of Parliament

New Zealand Parliament

Years	Term	Electorate	List	Party
1993–1996	44th	Lyttelton			Labour
1996–1999	45th	List	19		Labour
1999–2002	46th	Banks Peninsula	15		Labour
2002–2005	47th	Banks Peninsula	22		Labour
2005–2008	48th	Banks Peninsula	14		Labour
2008–2011	49th	Port Hills	14		Labour
2011–2014	50th	Port Hills	5		Labour
2014–2017	51st	Port Hills	none		Labour
2017–2020	52nd	Port Hills	24		Labour

Dyson first entered Parliament in the 1993 election, winning the Lyttelton electorate against National's David Carter. In the 1996 election, the Lyttelton electorate was abolished, and Dyson stood in Banks Peninsula, losing to Carter, who had in the meantime become an MP through winning the 1994 Selwyn by-election. She became a list MP owing to her position on the Labour Party's list. In the 1999 election, however, she defeated Carter to win Banks Peninsula. She has remained the MP for the area (later renamed Port Hills) since that time, holding the seat until her retirement in 2020.

Dyson was a senior member of the Labour Party during the Helen Clark-led Fifth Labour Government, serving in a range of health and employment-related portfolios including Minister for Disability Issues (1999–2000; 2001–2008), Minister for ACC (2002–2007), Minister of Labour (2005–2007) and Minister for Social Development and Employment (2007–2008).

Fifth Labour Government, 1999–2008

When the Labour Party won power in the 1999 general election, Dyson was appointed to a number of minor ministerial roles, including Disability Issues and Associate Health and Associate Social Development. However, she resigned them on 31 October 2000 after being caught drink driving. She regained most of her ministerial responsibilities on 4 June 2001.

As Minister for Disability Issues, she led the development of what would become the New Zealand Sign Language Act 2006, which gave New Zealand Sign Language the status of an official language of New Zealand. In her valedictory statement in 2020, Dyson reflected on the Act: "I regret that it wasn't more prescriptive in its implementation, because its roll-out has been slower than it could have been. That should be fixed."

In a reshuffle on 31 October 2007, Dyson was promoted to Minister for Social Development, which she held until the Clark government lost power at the 2008 general election. Despite the swing against Labour at that election, Dyson won the new Port Hills electorate with an increased margin.

Opposition, 2008–2017

The National Party won the 2008 election, putting Labour in Opposition where it would remain for the next nine years. During this time Dyson held a range of portfolios, including health (2008–2011), internal affairs (2011–2013), conservation and disability issues (2013–2015), Canterbury Earthquake Recovery (2013–2014) and senior citizens (2013–2017). She was also deputy chair of the Health select committee (2008–2011) and chair of the Government Administration select committee (2011–2017).

In December 2009 Dyson's Resource Management (Requiring Authorities) Amendment Bill, which would amend the Resource Management Act 1991 to reintroduce a public interest test for projects seeking requiring authority, was drawn from the member's ballot. The bill was defeated at its first reading.

Dyson was criticised in December 2015 for describing National's Speaker David Carter as "incompetent, biased... lazy [and] sexist" on Twitter.

Sixth Labour Government and retirement, 2017–2020

Dyson had been positioned to be Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives (to Trevor Mallard) if Labour won the 2017 general election. While Labour was able to form a Government (in coalition with New Zealand First), the National Party's Anne Tolley was appointed as Deputy Speaker instead. Dyson was put in the role of Labour's Senior Whip. However, when the Assistant Speaker Poto Williams was appointed as a Minister outside Cabinet in July 2019, Dyson was named as her replacement.

Dyson was also chair of the Abortion Legislation Committee (a special select committee that examined the Abortion Legislation Bill) and a member of the Epidemic Response Committee (which considered the government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic).

In March 2019, Dyson indicated that she would not seek re-election at the 2020 general election. While the Port Hills electorate was disestablished for that election, Labour's candidate for the replacement electorate of Banks Peninsula was Tracey McLellan.

External links

• Parliamentary page
• Labour Party biography
• Port Hills Electorate website