Gerry Brownlee

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Honourable
Gerry Brownlee
MP
Gerry Brownlee 2017.jpg
Deputy Leader of the National Party
Deputy Leader of the Opposition
In office
14 July 2020 – 10 November 2020
LeaderJudith Collins
Preceded byNikki Kaye
Succeeded byShane Reti
In office
17 November 2003 – 27 November 2006
LeaderDon Brash
Preceded byNick Smith
Succeeded byBill English
27th Minister of Foreign Affairs
In office
2 May 2017 – 26 October 2017
Prime MinisterBill English
Preceded byMurray McCully
Succeeded byWinston Peters
Leader of the House
In office
19 November 2008 – 2 May 2017
Prime MinisterJohn Key
Bill English
Preceded byMichael Cullen
Succeeded bySimon Bridges
Minister supporting Greater Christchurch Regeneration
In office
7 September 2010 – 2 May 2017
Prime MinisterJohn Key
Bill English
Preceded byPosition established
Succeeded byNicky Wagner
38th Minister of Defence
In office
6 October 2014 – 2 May 2017
Prime MinisterJohn Key
Bill English
Preceded byJonathan Coleman
Succeeded byMark Mitchell
25th Minister of Transport
In office
12 December 2011 – 6 October 2014
Prime MinisterJohn Key
Preceded bySteven Joyce
Succeeded bySimon Bridges
13th Minister of Energy and Resources
In office
19 November 2008 – 14 December 2011
Prime MinisterJohn Key
Preceded byDavid Parker
Succeeded byPhil Heatley
Member of the New Zealand Parliament
for National party list
Incumbent
Assumed office
17 October 2020
Member of the New Zealand Parliament
for Ilam
In office
12 October 1996 – 17 October 2020
Preceded bySeat Established
Succeeded bySarah Pallett
Personal details
Born
Gerard Anthony Brownlee

(1956-02-04) 4 February 1956 (age 65)
Christchurch, New Zealand
NationalityNew Zealand
Political partyNational Party
RelationsMark Brownlee (uncle)
Scott Brownlee (cousin)
Alma materSt Bede's College
OccupationTeacher
CommitteesPrivileges Committee (Deputy Chairperson)

Gerard Anthony Brownlee (born 4 February 1956[1]) is a New Zealand politician of the New Zealand National Party. He has been a Member of Parliament since 1996, was Leader of the House, Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery and Minister of Foreign Affairs in the Fifth National Government, and served as his party's deputy leader from November 2003 until November 2006, and again from July until November 2020.

A Christchurch native, Brownlee worked as a teacher before being elected to Parliament at the 1996 election as the MP for Ilam. He held that electorate until the 2020 general election, when he was elected as a list MP.

Early life and family[]

Brownlee was born in Christchurch to Leo (a saw miller, who died in 1989) and Mary Brownlee.[2] He is the eldest of five children.[2] His uncle, Mark Brownlee, represented New Zealand in rowing at the Summer Olympic Games in 1964 and 1968,[3] and his cousin Scott Brownlee (Mark's son), represented New Zealand in rowing at the Olympics in 1992, 1996, and 2000.[4]

A Roman Catholic, he attended St Bede's College where he twice failed to gain University Entrance.[5] After leaving high school, he worked in his family's timber business and received training in carpentry. After qualifying as a builder, he retrained as a teacher and taught woodwork, technical drawing and Māori, over a period of twelve years, at Ellesmere College, and at his alma mater, St Bede's.[5]

Member of Parliament[]

New Zealand Parliament
Years Term Electorate List Party
1996–1999 45th Ilam 47 National
1999–2002 46th Ilam 36 National
2002–2005 47th Ilam 9 National
2005–2008 48th Ilam 2 National
2008–2011 49th Ilam 3 National
2011–2014 50th Ilam 4 National
2014–2017 51st Ilam 4 National
2017–2020 52nd Ilam 5 National
2020–present 53rd List 2 National


In the 1993 election, Brownlee stood as the National Party candidate in the Sydenham electorate, where he campaigned unsuccessfully against Jim Anderton, the Alliance leader. In the 1996 election he contested the nearby seat of Ilam, and won by a comfortable margin. He remained the MP for Ilam since that point until losing his seat in the 2020 election. Before that his closest brush with defeat occurred in the 2002 election wherein he had a majority of 3,872 votes - 11.52%.[6]

Brownlee's roles as an MP have included serving as the National Party's Junior Whip, shadow Leader of the House, and as the Party spokesperson on superannuation, energy, transport, local government, Māori affairs, state-owned enterprises, state services, and ACC. He was Don Brash's Deputy Leader from 2003–2006, and served as a minister and Leader of the House in the Fifth National Government.

Fifth Labour Government, 1999–2008[]

Brownlee challenged the vacant deputy leadership of the National Party in 2001, but was defeated by Bill English.[7][8] English eventually succeeded to the leadership later that year. However, by 2003 Brownlee was seen by Labour Party MP Phil Goff and Scoop columnist Paulo Politico as a potential challenger to English's leadership.[9][10] English was eventually replaced as National Party leader by former Reserve Bank Governor Don Brash. Brownlee was thought to be a possible deputy leader to Brash but declined to pursue the position, which went to Nick Smith.

Shortly after his election, however, Smith opted to take two weeks of stress leave, saying that the protracted leadership disputes had exhausted him. When Smith returned to Parliament, Brownlee challenged him for the deputy leadership. Informed of the challenge,[11] Smith resigned, and on 17 November 2003 Brownlee won the caucus vote unopposed. Initially, Smith alleged that while he was on stress leave, "a campaign to oust me was conducted in the media while I was under the leader's instructions to make no comment."[12] Audrey Young wrote in the New Zealand Herald that Brownlee and Murray McCully were rumoured to have been behind the campaign to oust Smith as deputy leader.[13]

After becoming a deputy leader, Brownlee continued his confrontational and colourful style of political debate. Following the controversy surrounding Brash's Orewa Speech of 27 January 2004, Brownlee became the National Party's spokesman for Maori Affairs in place of Georgina te Heuheu, who resigned from the position after refusing to endorse Brash's comments. Brownlee's approach to this portfolio involved criticising the government's policies regarding perceived special treatment for Māori, an issue at the core of National's 2005 election manifesto.

When Brash resigned as National Party Leader in November 2006, Brownlee was reported as "probably" considering a bid to remain in the deputy leadership;[14] however, he stepped aside in place to allow former leader Bill English to take the deputy leadership and was appointed the third-ranked National Party MP by new party leader John Key.[15]

Fifth National Government, 2008–2017[]

Following the election of the Fifth National Government in November 2008, Brownlee was appointed a member of the Executive Council of New Zealand[16] and to Cabinet as Minister of Economic Development, Minister of Energy and Resources[17] and as Associate Minister for the Rugby World Cup.[18] He also became the Leader of the House, making him responsible for the schedule of Government business, allocating time for non-governmental and opposition business to be presented to the house and announcing the Business Statement for the Parliamentary sitting dates to the house and its members.

Brownlee, as Minister of Foreign Affairs, meets Rex Tillerson, US Secretary of State, 6 June 2017

As the Government's most senior Christchurch-based MP, Brownlee led the Government's work in earthquake recovery after the 2010, 2011 earthquakes and 2016 earthquakes. Following National's re-election in 2011 and 2014, Brownlee additionally served as Minister of Transport, Minister of Defence, and Minister of Civil Defence. When Bill English became Prime Minister, Brownlee succeeded Murray McCully as Minister of Foreign Affairs.[19]

Brownlee was selected to represent New Zealand in London at the funeral of former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.[20]

In 2013, Brownlee voted against the Marriage (Definition of Marriage) Amendment Bill, a bill allowing same-sex couples to marry in New Zealand.[21]

Sixth Labour Government, 2017–present[]

From 2018 to 2020, Brownlee served in Opposition as Shadow Leader of the House, and was the National Party Spokesperson for Disarmament, NZSIS, and GCSB. He was the Deputy Chairperson on the Privileges, Standing Orders, and Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Select Committees, as well as a member of the Business Committee and the Parliamentary Service Commission.[22]

On 14 July 2020, Brownlee was elected by the National Party parliamentary caucus as the Deputy Leader of the National Party following a leadership election held after the resignation of Party Leader Todd Muller that same day. Judith Collins was elected as the leader of the National Party.[23][24]

During the 2020 New Zealand general election, Brownlee lost his seat of Ilam to Labour candidate Sarah Pallett by a final margin of 3,463 votes.[25] Dominic Harris of news website Stuff described it "perhaps the most unlikely of election night coups".[26] Despite this defeat, Brownlee returned to Parliament due to his high ranking on the National Party list.[27]

On 6 November 2020, Brownlee announced his resignation as deputy leader of National.[28] He was succeeded by Shane Reti.[29]

Controversy and faux pas[]

In Opposition[]

Brownlee received criticism during the 1999 election campaign when he ejected Neil Able, a 60-year-old Native Forest Action campaigner, from the National Party's 1999 election campaign launch. The ejection took place with what many, including watching journalists, considered excessive force. Neil Able started civil assault proceedings against Brownlee, seeking damages of $60,000. In 2002, a District Court judge found in favour of Mr Able that Brownlee had "used excessive and unnecessary force on Mr Abel when he tried to remove him from a staircase handrail". Brownlee was ordered to pay Neil Able $8,500 in damages.[30][31] Brownlee later sought unsuccessfully to have $48,000 of his legal fees reimbursed by the Government.[32]

COVID-19 misinformation accusations[]

Brownless was widely criticised during the COVID-19 pandemic for comments he made that were widely interpreted to be promoting misinformation and conspiracy theories regarding the NZ Government response to the pandemic. In particular, his comments were considered to imply that the Government was withholding information about confirmed cases, without providing any evidence that this was the case.[33] Brownlee was also accused of attacking the integrity of independent public servants and promoting the propagation of misinformation.[34][35]

As Minister of Energy and Resources[]

In August 2009, Brownlee was criticised by Forest and Bird Spokesperson Kevin Hackwell for playing down government discussions to possibly allow more mining within conservation areas. Hackwell was reported as stating that "If the Government's to go down this line they could be buying a fight with the people of the Coromandel, with the people of New Zealand generally, who have put these areas aside and want them protected for their conservation values".[36] The New Zealand mining industry was reported as welcoming the move.[37]

In early December 2009, Forest and Bird released a leaked document that included the proposal to remove part of the conservation status of Mount Aspiring National Park to allow mining.[38] The result of the controversy was that the government decided not to explore considerations amongst significant debate on the issue in the House, in submissions to the Select Committees and within the National Party's own parliamentary caucus.[39]

On the withdrawal Brownlee stated "I suspect few New Zealanders knew the country had such considerable mineral potential before we undertook this process, and I get a sense that New Zealanders are now much more aware of that potential". He went on that it might contribute to economic growth and further stated that "New Zealanders have given the minerals sector a clear mandate to go and explore that land, and where appropriate, within the constraints of the resource consent process, utilise its mineral resources for everyone's benefit". An additional announcement from Conservation Minister Kate Wilkinson pronounced that future National Park land would receive protections, stating that, "This is an added layer of protection for New Zealand's most highly valued conservation land..."[40]

As Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery[]

A protest sign in Christchurch criticising Brownlee's performance as Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery (photographed in September 2013)

After the 2010 Canterbury earthquake, Brownlee, as the senior-most Christchurch MP in government, was appointed Minister for Canterbury Earthquake Recovery on 7 September 2010. The role gave Brownlee substantial powers in supervising and coordinating the involvement of central government, local government, and the private sector in rebuilding Christchurch.

On 14 September 2010, Brownlee introduced the Canterbury Earthquake Response and Recovery Act 2010 into the house with leave to pass the legislation in one sitting. This Bill was passed by the time the House adjourned at 10.02 pm.[41]

Brownlee had little sympathy for attempts to preserve heritage buildings, saying not long after the 2011 quake: "My absolutely strong position is that the old dungers, no matter what their connection, are going under the hammer."[42]

In 2012, it was reported that the idea of using part of Christchurch's residential red zone for an international rowing regatta course known as East Lake had found the support of Brownlee as Earthquake Recovery Minister.[43]

In September 2012, Brownlee accused residents in Christchurch's newly created TC3 zone of "carping and moaning" for comments they made in a survey conducted by the main local newspaper. The comments were about perceived inaction by the authorities, including the government. He apologised soon after.[44]

As Minister of Transport[]

In March 2012, Brownlee made controversial comments about Finland in a parliamentary session. Rejecting a New Zealand Labour Party plan to model the economy on Finland, he said Finland: "has worse unemployment than us, has less growth than us, can hardly feed the people who live there, has a terrible homicide rate, hardly educates its people, and has no respect for women." Finnish Foreign Minister Erkki Tuomioja, said that Finland would not take any action as the comments were clearly a device for internal politics rather than an attack on Finland. He continued to say: "I doubt he even knows where Finland is."[45]

In November 2014 Brownlee was fined $2000 by New Zealand's Civil Aviation Authority for a breach of airport security that occurred at Christchurch Airport on 24 July 2014. An official inquiry found that Brownlee and two of his aides had evaded airport security screening by entering a departure lounge through an exit door while in a rush to board a domestic flight.[46]

As Foreign Minister[]

In May 2017, less than a week after being appointed as Foreign Minister, Brownlee was publicly corrected by the Prime Minister, Bill English, after claiming that a New Zealand-sponsored United Nations Security Council Resolution on Israel (about settlements in occupied territories) was "premature".[47] The Prime Minister said Brownlee was "still getting familiar" with the language used by his predecessor, Murray McCully, who had authorised the sponsorship of the resolution.[47] Responding to questions in Parliament on Brownlee's behalf, Deputy Prime Minister Paula Bennett commented that Brownlee's use of the word "premature" was because the Government "would have liked to give Israel notice of the resolution, and our part in that, but did not."[48][49]

English said he had confidence that Brownlee was clear on New Zealand's position now, a position that had not changed since the Government had chosen to push through the resolution.[47] Brownlee had been a Cabinet minister at the time; however, the decision to co-sponsor the resolution (described by McCully and Bennett as being in line with New Zealand's "long-standing position") had not gone to Cabinet.[48][50]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Alister Taylor (2001). New Zealand Who's Who Aotearoa 2001 Edition. Alister Taylor Publishers. p. 177. ISSN 1172-9813.
  2. ^ a b Wright, Michael (27 February 2016). "Gerry Brownlee, the making of the man in charge". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 21 September 2016.
  3. ^ Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Mark Brownlee". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 2 December 2016. Retrieved 21 September 2016.
  4. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2 December 2016. Retrieved 21 September 2016.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  5. ^ a b Young, Audrey (21 November 2003). "Gerry Brownlee, upstart with the big voice". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 25 January 2016.
  6. ^ "Official Count Results – Ilam" (PDF). Chief Electoral Office, Wellington. 10 August 2002. Retrieved 18 October 2020.
  7. ^ "Bunfight for deputy Nat leader begins". TVNZ. 1 February 2001. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
  8. ^ "English takes National's deputy leader job". The New Zealand Herald. 7 February 2001. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
  9. ^ Phil Goff (10 January 2003). "Brownlee u-turn on nukes motivated by ambition". Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade New Zealand Government. Archived from the original on 10 November 2020. Retrieved 15 August 2010.
  10. ^ Paulo Politico (10 January 2003). "Brownlee's Uranium Breath Leadership Challenge". Scoop News. Retrieved 15 August 2010.
  11. ^ "Brownlee mooted for deputy role". TVNZ. 17 November 2003. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
  12. ^ NZPA (17 November 2003). "Smith resigns after losing confidence of National Party leader". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 15 August 2010.
  13. ^ Young, Audrey (18 November 2003). "McCully at centre of Nats whisper row". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 15 August 2010. The whisper goes that Mr McCully was so appalled that new leader Don Brash backed Dr Smith for the deputy leadership over Ilam MP Gerry Brownlee that as soon as Dr Smith had been bundled out of the building Mr McCully and Mr Brownlee began a campaign to ensure that Dr Brash would never want him back.
  14. ^ "Power puts hand up for deputy's role". Wanganui Chronicle. 25 November 2006. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
  15. ^ "National Party list". 8 October 2008. Archived from the original on 14 October 2008.
  16. ^ "Members of Executive Council appointed". New Zealand Gazette. 21 November 2008. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
  17. ^ "Appointment of Ministers". New Zealand Gazette. 21 November 2008. Archived from the original on 17 February 2017. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
  18. ^ "Ministerial List for Announcement" (PDF). Scoop.co.nz. 17 November 2008. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
  19. ^ Moir, Jo (24 April 2017). "Gerry Brownlee appointed foreign affairs minister and newcomer Mark Mitchell gets big promotion". Stuff. Retrieved 28 May 2020.
  20. ^ "Govt sends Brownlee to Thatcher's funeral". 3 News NZ. 12 April 2013. Archived from the original on 1 February 2014. Retrieved 12 April 2013.
  21. ^ "Gay marriage: How MPs voted". The New Zealand Herald. 18 April 2013. Archived from the original on 19 April 2016. Retrieved 3 December 2016.
  22. ^ "Hon Gerry Brownlee". New Zealand Parliament. 2 July 2020. Archived from the original on 14 July 2020. Retrieved 14 July 2020.
  23. ^ Whyte, Anna (14 July 2020). "Judith Collins new National Party leader, Gerry Brownlee deputy". 1 News. Archived from the original on 14 July 2020. Retrieved 14 July 2020.
  24. ^ Walls, Jason (14 July 2020). "Judith Collins is new National Party leader, Gerry Brownlee her deputy". The New Zealand Herald. Archived from the original on 14 July 2020. Retrieved 14 July 2020.
  25. ^ "Ilam - Official Result". Electoral Commission. Retrieved 9 November 2020.
  26. ^ Harris, Dominic (18 October 2020). "Election 2020: Sarah Pallett promises 'more inclusive' style after defeating Gerry Brownlee in Ilam". Stuff. Archived from the original on 24 October 2020. Retrieved 19 October 2020.
  27. ^ "2020 General Election and Referendums - Official Result Successful Candidates". Electoral Commission. Retrieved 9 November 2020.
  28. ^ "Gerry Brownlee steps down as National's deputy leader". 1 News. TVNZ. 6 November 2020. Archived from the original on 10 November 2020. Retrieved 6 November 2020.
  29. ^ "Live: National MPs talk to media after Shane Reti elected new deputy leader". Stuff. 10 November 2020. Retrieved 10 November 2020.
  30. ^ "'Humbled' MP accepts ruling on assault case". The New Zealand Herald. 16 March 2002. Archived from the original on 3 February 2014. Retrieved 16 April 2012.
  31. ^ Thompson, Alastair (15 March 2002). "Gerry Brownlee MP Ordered To Pay $8500 For Assault". Scoop.co.nz.
  32. ^ Trevett, Claire (7 April 2012). "We're paying for MPs' legal bills, but it's a secret". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 15 April 2012.
  33. ^ Moodie, Kim (9 August 2020). "'It doesn't add up': Gerry Brownlee says Government warning of a second wave 'very puzzling'". The New Zealand Herald.
  34. ^ Satherley, Dan (13 August 2020). "Coronavirus: Gerry Brownlee denies COVID-19 questions make him a conspiracy theorist". Newshub.
  35. ^ "Judith Collins hits back at Grant Robertson after he called National's claims 'nonsense'". . 13 August 2020.
  36. ^ NZCity (1 December 2009). "Brownlee talks down mining plan". NZ City.
  37. ^ NZ City/Newstalk ZB (27 August 2009). "Conservation land could be mined – Govt". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 15 September 2010.
  38. ^ NZPA (1 December 2009). "Leaked report recommends mining option for Mt Aspiring". The New Zealand Herald.
  39. ^ Tracey Wakins & Vernon Small (23 March 2010). "Cracks Appear in Mining Plan". The Manawatu Standard. Retrieved 15 September 2010.
  40. ^ Business Desk (20 July 2010). "Brownlee mining dream in tatters". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 15 September 2010.
  41. ^ Hansard (14 September 2010). "Daily Progress of the House for Tuesday 14 September". Hansard and Parliamentary journals.
  42. ^ Gates, Charlie (17 August 2019). "Emergency power that took over 700 Christchurch buildings is still in force". Stuff. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
  43. ^ "Could a water theme revitalise the east?". The Press. 18 August 2012. Archived from the original on 22 September 2012. Retrieved 21 September 2016.
  44. ^ Wright, Michael (12 September 2012). "Brownlee apologises for 'moaning' comments" – via Stuff.co.nz.
  45. ^ "Kohuministerin Suomihaukut" (in Finnish). Iltalehti. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
  46. ^ Rutherford, Hamish (18 November 2014). "Gerry Brownlee fined for airport security breach". Stuff.co.nz. Archived from the original on 29 November 2014. Retrieved 18 November 2014.
  47. ^ a b c Kirk, Stacey (8 May 2017). "Gerry Brownlee 'premature' in making Israel comments: Prime Minister Bill English". Stuff. Retrieved 28 May 2020.
  48. ^ a b "3. Foreign Affairs, Minister—United Nations Security Council Resolution Condemning Israeli Settlements in Palestinian Territory - New Zealand Parliament". www.parliament.nz. 4 May 2017. Retrieved 28 May 2020.
  49. ^ Young, Audrey (4 May 2017). "Brownlee statements about UN's Israel resolution at odds with Prime Minister's". The New Zealand Herald. ISSN 1170-0777. Retrieved 28 May 2020.
  50. ^ Sachdeva, Sam (15 June 2017). "NZ-Israel ties restored, PM unmoved on resolution". Newsroom. Archived from the original on 10 November 2020. Retrieved 28 May 2020.

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