Kieran McAnulty

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Kieran McAnulty

MP
Kieran McAnulty.jpg
Chief Government Whip in the House of Representatives
Incumbent
Assumed office
2 November 2020
Prime MinisterJacinda Ardern
Preceded byMichael Wood
Member of the New Zealand Parliament
for Wairarapa
Incumbent
Assumed office
17 October 2020
Preceded byAlastair Scott
Member of the New Zealand Parliament
for Labour party list
In office
23 September 2017 – 17 October 2020
Personal details
Born (1985-01-31) 31 January 1985 (age 36)
Eketahuna, New Zealand
Political partyLabour

Kieran Michael McAnulty (born 31 January 1985) is a New Zealand Labour Party politician. First elected to parliament in 2017, he is the Chief Government Whip and the Member of Parliament for the Wairarapa electorate.

Personal life[]

McAnulty was born in Eketahuna.[1] McAnulty's family have lived in the Wairarapa area for more than 170 years, with his great grandmother's great grandfather, Henry Burling arriving as an early settler in what is now the town of Featherston.[2] He has previously worked for the T.A.B. as a bookmaker covering the racing industry and an economic development advisor for the Masterton District Council.[3] He is a volunteer firefighter, board member of both Wings over Wairarapa and Golden Shears, a trustee of the Masterton Community Trust and Chair of Relay For Life.[2] In September 2016 McAnulty wrestled a car thief who was trying to steal his ute to the ground in Masterton.[4]

Political career[]

McAnulty stood in the North Island electorate of Wairarapa at the 2014 election, but was defeated by National's Alastair Scott.[5] He had previously been offered the Wairarapa candidacy in 2011, but declined.[3]

Member of Parliament[]

New Zealand Parliament
Years Term Electorate List Party
2017–2020 52nd List 38 Labour
2020–present 53rd Wairarapa 26 Labour

McAnulty stood for Labour in Wairarapa again in the 2017 election and reduced Scott's majority but failed to win the electorate. He instead entered Parliament via the party list, where he was ranked 38.[6][7]

In November 2017 he was appointed Labour's junior whip.[8]

On 25 September 2019, McAnulty was ejected from Parliament by the Speaker of the House Trevor Mallard for making disparaging remarks about National Party leader Simon Bridges during a Parliamentary debate about Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern's meeting with US President Donald Trump. In addition, Mallard also ejected New Zealand First MP Shane Jones for similar disruptive behaviour.[9]

During the 2020 New Zealand general election, McAnulty contested the Wairarapa electorate for Labour, taking it by a final margin of 6,545 votes.[10] On 2 November 2020, following the election, the Labour caucus elected McAnulty as its chief whip.[11]

Political Views[]

McAnulty identifies as a socialist[12][13] and describes himself as a republican who would like for New Zealand to abandon its associations with the British Royal Family and instead elect their own local head of state.[8][14]

McAnulty, despite the profession of his Catholic faith, is in favour of more open abortion laws,[15] McAnulty states:

"who am I to push my views and my personal circumstances on the choice of a woman? Who am I, as a bloke, who will never have to make this decision for himself, to vote to prevent a woman making a choice for herself? I go back to the point I said earlier: I was raised that my religious views are mine only. So I will not use my vote today to impose any particular view that I may have to prevent the choice of a woman to make on her own body."

McAnulty is in favour of decriminalising cannabis, and has admitted to smoking cannabis twice.[16][17]

References[]

  1. ^ Cooke, Henry (18 September 2020). "Jacinda Ardern makes big push for Labour win in Wairarapa". Stuff. Retrieved 18 September 2020.
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b "Kieran McAnulty". New Zealand Labour Party. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b Fuller, Piers (10 October 2017). "A young Wairarapa MP shows a natural flair for politics". Stuff. Retrieved 10 October 2017.
  4. ^ "Labour young gun tackles thief to the ground in the middle of the Masterton". Stuff. 29 September 2016. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
  5. ^ "Official Count Results – Wairarapa". Electoral Commission. 10 October 2014. Retrieved 12 September 2017.
  6. ^ "Revised Labour Party List for the 2017 Election". Scoop.co.nz. 15 August 2017. Retrieved 15 August 2017.
  7. ^ "Successful Candidates". Electoral Commission. 23 September 2017. Archived from the original on 28 September 2017. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  8. ^ Jump up to: a b Bennett, Lucy (8 January 2019). "Meet the Backbenchers: Kieran McAnulty". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 9 August 2020.
  9. ^ Small, Zane (25 September 2019). "Labour MP Kieran McAnulty booted from House for mocking Simon Bridges". Newshub. Archived from the original on 30 December 2019. Retrieved 26 September 2019.
  10. ^ "Wairarapa – Official Result". Electoral Commission. Retrieved 6 November 2020.
  11. ^ "Wairarapa MP elected chief government whip". The New Zealand Herald. 5 November 2020. Retrieved 6 November 2020.
  12. ^ Vance, Andrea (23 May 2021). "As Labour looks to its historic foundations, National needs to start letting go of the past". Stuff. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  13. ^ "The New Zealand "Socialists" Who Govern Like Neoliberals". jacobinmag.com. Retrieved 13 June 2021.
  14. ^ "Wairarapa Labour man calls for republic vote". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 13 June 2021.
  15. ^ "Abortion Legislation Bill — Third Reading". New Zealand Parliament. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  16. ^ "Joint views not shared". Times Age. 4 December 2019. Retrieved 13 June 2021.
  17. ^ "Meet the Backbenchers: Kieran McAnulty". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 13 June 2021.

External links[]

New Zealand Parliament
Preceded by
Alastair Scott 		Member of Parliament for Wairarapa
2020–present 		Incumbent
Party political offices
Preceded by
Michael Wood 		Senior Whip of the Labour Party
2020–present 		Incumbent
Retrieved from ""