Minister of Defence (New Zealand)

Minister of Defence
Minister of Defence
	Coat of arms of New Zealand
	Flag of New Zealand
	Incumbent; Judith Collins; since 27 November 2023
	Ministry of Defence
Style	The Honourable
Member of	Cabinet of New Zealand; Executive Council;
Reports to	Prime Minister of New Zealand
Appointer	Governor-General of New Zealand
Term length	At His Majesty's pleasure
Formation	22 July 1862
First holder	Reader Wood
Salary	$288,900
Website	www.beehive.govt.nz

The minister of defence is a minister in the New Zealand Government with responsibility for the New Zealand Defence Force and the Ministry of Defence.

The present minister is Judith Collins, a member of the National Party.^[2]

History

Initially, military affairs in New Zealand were controlled by the British-appointed governor, without input from the New Zealand Parliament, which was only established in 1853. There was no minister of defence as such, as the governor retained control over all armed forces in the colony.^[3] However, senior military officers did serve as members of the Executive Council. Three such appointments were made: Lieutenant Colonel Robert Wynyard, Major General Thomas Simson Pratt, and Lieutenant General Duncan Alexander Cameron.

In 1863, under the premiership of Alfred Domett, a minister for colonial defence was appointed. Reader Wood, a former militia officer, became the first minister. This post continued to exist with only brief interruption until Edward Stafford's short-lived premiership of 1872, in which no defence minister was appointed. As a consequence of the New Zealand Wars, the defence portfolio was considered closely linked to the post of Minister of Native Affairs — on occasion, the latter post was formally titled "Minister of Native Affairs and Defence". It was not until the premiership of Robert Stout in 1884 that a separate minister of defence was formally appointed, and not until 1887 that the post was given to someone who was not simultaneously minister of native affairs. Until 1896 the responsibility for the New Zealand Police rested with the minister of defence before being allocated to the minister of justice instead.^[4]

During World War II, the post was supplemented by several others — a minister of national service (conscription), a minister of supply and munitions, a minister in charge of war expenditure, and a minister of armed forces and war co-ordination. All were part of the special War Cabinet, but only the first was a member of the regular domestic Cabinet.

List of defence ministers

Key

Independent Liberal Reform United Labour National NZ First

No.		Name	Term of Office
	1	Reader Wood	22 July 1862	30 October 1863	Domett
	2	Harry Atkinson	24 November 1864	16 October 1865	Weld
	3	Theodore Haultain	31 October 1865	28 June 1869	Stafford
	4	Donald McLean	28 June 1869	10 September 1872	Fox
1872–1884: No separate appointments, although John Bryce twice held office as "Minister of Native Affairs and Defence"; broken by William Rolleston from 4 February to 19 October 1881
	5	John Ballance	16 July 1884	8 October 1887	Stout
	6	Thomas Fergus	8 October 1884	17 October 1889	Atkinson
	7	William Russell	17 October 1889	24 January 1891	Atkinson
	8	Richard Seddon	24 January 1891	22 June 1896	Ballance
	8	Richard Seddon	24 January 1891	22 June 1896	Seddon
	9	Thomas Thompson	22 June 1896	23 January 1900
	(8)	Richard Seddon	23 January 1900	10 June 1906
	10	Albert Pitt	21 June 1906	18 November 1906	Hall-Jones
	10	Albert Pitt	21 June 1906	18 November 1906	Ward
	11	Joseph Ward	23 November 1906	28 March 1912	Ward
	12	Arthur Myers	28 March 1912	10 July 1912	Mackenzie
	13	James Allen	10 July 1912	28 April 1920	Massey
	14	Heaton Rhodes	21 July 1920	18 January 1926	Massey
					Bell
					Coates
	15	Frank Rolleston	18 January 1926	26 November 1928
	16	William Downie Stewart Jr	28 November 1928	10 December 1928
	17	Thomas Wilford	10 December 1928	10 December 1929	Ward
	18	John Cobbe	10 December 1929	6 December 1935	Ward
	18	John Cobbe	10 December 1929	6 December 1935	Forbes
	19	Fred Jones	6 December 1935	13 December 1949	Savage
	19	Fred Jones	6 December 1935	13 December 1949	Fraser
	20	Tom Macdonald	13 December 1949	26 September 1957	Holland
	21	Dean Eyre	26 September 1957	12 December 1957	Holyoake
	22	Phil Connolly	12 December 1957	12 December 1960	Nash
	(21)	Dean Eyre	12 December 1960	12 December 1966	Holyoake
	23	David Thomson	12 December 1966	9 February 1972	Holyoake
	24	Allan McCready	9 February 1972	8 December 1972	Marshall
	25	Arthur Faulkner	8 December 1972	10 September 1974	Kirk
	26	Bill Fraser	10 September 1974	12 December 1975	Rowling
	(24)	Allan McCready	12 December 1975	13 December 1978	Muldoon
	27	Frank Gill	13 December 1978	21 August 1980
	(23)	David Thomson	28 August 1980	26 July 1984
	28	Frank O'Flynn	26 July 1984	24 July 1987	Lange
	29	Bob Tizard	24 July 1987	9 February 1990	Lange
	29	Bob Tizard	24 July 1987	9 February 1990	Palmer
	30	Peter Tapsell	9 February 1990	2 November 1990	Palmer
	30	Peter Tapsell	9 February 1990	2 November 1990	Moore
	31	Warren Cooper	2 November 1990	1 March 1996	Bolger
	32	Paul East	1 March 1996	5 December 1997	Bolger
	33	Max Bradford	5 December 1997	10 December 1999	Shipley
	34	Mark Burton	10 December 1999	12 October 2005	Clark
	35	Phil Goff	12 October 2005	19 November 2008	Clark
	36	Wayne Mapp	19 November 2008	14 December 2011	Key
	37	Jonathan Coleman	14 December 2011	6 October 2014
	38	Gerry Brownlee	6 October 2014	2 May 2017
	38	Gerry Brownlee	6 October 2014	2 May 2017	English
	39	Mark Mitchell	2 May 2017	26 October 2017	English
	40	Ron Mark	26 October 2017	6 November 2020	Ardern
	41	Peeni Henare	6 November 2020	1 February 2023	Ardern
	41	Peeni Henare	6 November 2020	1 February 2023	Hipkins
	42	Andrew Little	1 February 2023	27 November 2023	Hipkins
	43	Judith Collins	27 November 2023	Incumbent	Luxon

References

^ https://www.parliament.nz/media/3151/parliamentary-salaries-and-allowances-determination-2016.pdf ^{[bare URL PDF]}
^ "Ministerial List". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. Retrieved 6 November 2020.
^ McLean, Gavin (2006). The Governors: New Zealand's Governors and Governors-General. Dunedin: Otago University Press. p. 63. ISBN 1-877372-25-0.
^ "The Cabinet". The Star. No. 5498. 25 February 1896. p. 3.

External links

New Zealand Ministry of Defence

[1] ttps://www.parliament.nz/media/3151/parliamentary-salaries-and-allowances-determination-2016.pdf ^{[bare URL PDF]}

[2] "Ministerial List". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. Retrieved 6 November 2020.

[3] McLean, Gavin (2006). The Governors: New Zealand's Governors and Governors-General. Dunedin: Otago University Press. p. 63. ISBN 1-877372-25-0.

[4] "The Cabinet". The Star. No. 5498. 25 February 1896. p. 3.

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[2]

[3]

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Current Government

History

List of defence ministers

See also

References

External links