Judith Collins
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Parl. | Electorate | List Pos. | Party |
| 47th | Clevedon | 48 | National |
| 48th | Clevedon | 7 | National |
Judith Anne Collins (24 February 1959 - ) is a New Zealand politician. She is a member of the National Party.
Collins was born in Hamilton. In 1977, she studied at Canterbury University, but switched to Auckland University in 1979. From Auckland, she obtained first an LLB and then a LLM. After leaving university, she began work as a lawyer, specialising in employment, property, commercial, and tax law. She was active in legal associations, being President of the Auckland District Law Society and Vice-President of the New Zealand Law Society. She also served as chairperson of the Casino Control Authority.
Collins was elected to Parliament in the 2002 elections as MP for Clevedon. Clevedon, although technically a new electorate, was largely based on the old Hunua seat, held by National's Warren Kyd. Collins' challenge to Kyd's candidacy in Clevedon was controversial, as sitting MPs were rarely opposed for reselection. In Parliament, Collins became National's Associate Spokesperson on Health and Spokesperson on Internal Affairs. In 2003, these responsibilities were changed for those of Associate Spokesperson on Justice and Spokesperson on Tourism. She was generally regarded as having performed well enough, and she now serves as Spokesperson on Social Welfare, Spokesperson on Family, and Spokesperson on Pacific Island Affairs. She is ranked seventh in the current National Party caucus.
