| The Honourable Damien O'Connor MP |
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|---|---|
| Minister of Tourism | |
| In office 19 October 2005 – 19 November 2008 |
|
| Prime Minister | Helen Clark |
| Succeeded by | John Key |
| Member of the New Zealand Parliament for West Coast |
|
| In office 1993 – 1996 |
|
| Preceded by | Margaret Moir |
| Member of the New Zealand Parliament for West Coast-Tasman |
|
| In office 1996 – 2008 |
|
| Succeeded by | Chris Auchinvole |
| Member of the New Zealand Parliament for Labour Party list |
|
| In office 2008 – 2011 |
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| Member of the New Zealand Parliament for West Coast-Tasman |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 2011 |
|
| Preceded by | Chris Auchinvole |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 16 January 1958 Westport |
| Nationality | New Zealand |
| Political party | Labour |
| Committees | Primary Production Committee |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
Damien Peter O'Connor is a New Zealand politician from the West Coast of the South Island. He is a member of the Labour Party and a Member of Parliament.
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O'Connor was born in Westport on 16 January 1958. Before becoming an MP, he worked in a variety of jobs in farming and tourism. During a five-year stint in Australia, he worked as a machinery operator and in sales. On his return to New Zealand he established Buller Adventure Tours, an adventure tourism company, which he owned and operated in a partnership.
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| Years | Term | Electorate | List | Party |
| 1993–1996 | 44th | West Coast | Labour | |
| 1996–1999 | 45th | West Coast-Tasman | 32 | Labour |
| 1999–2002 | 46th | West Coast-Tasman | none | Labour |
| 2002–2005 | 47th | West Coast-Tasman | none | Labour |
| 2005–2008 | 48th | West Coast-Tasman | none | Labour |
| 2009–2011 | 49th | List | 37 | Labour |
| 2011–present | 50th | West Coast-Tasman | none | Labour |
He was first elected to Parliament in the 1993 elections, recapturing the West Coast seat after the upset victory of National's Margaret Moir in the 1990 elections.
He retained his seat in the 1993 elections. He won the reconfigured West Coast-Tasman seat in the 1996 elections, and was the MP for the electorate until 2008.
O'Connor is regarded as being on the right of the Labour Party and has, with permission, voted against his colleagues on at least one occasion.
He was the Minister of Rural Affairs, the Minister of Tourism, as well as Immigration and Associate Minister of Health.
At the 2008 general election O'Connor was beaten by National candidate Chris Auchinvole, who had previously been a list MP. Auchinvole's majority was 971.[1] His position on the Labour Party list meant that O'Connor couldn't return to Parliament immediately. When the list MP Michael Cullen retired in May 2009, O'Connor regained his position as Member of the House of Representatives because he was the highest-ranked candidate on the list not already an MP.[2]
O'Connor is currently Labour's spokesperson for Rural Affairs, Spokesperson for Biosecurity and Associate Spokesperson for Agriculture. for the election of the 50th New Zealand Parliament O'Connor announced he would only contest the electorate and not seek another selection for the list.
In April 2011 O'Connor attracted criticism from Labour Party leader Phil Goff after describing the list MP selection process as being run by "self-serving unionists and a gaggle of gays."[3]
At the 2011 general election O'Connor regained the West Coast-Tasman electorate from National's Chris Auchinvole with a majority of 2287 votes.[3]
O'Connor is past president of the Buller Promotion Association, a member of the West Coast Tourism Development Group, a member of the West Coast Business Development Board and a founding director of Buller Community Development Company. He also won West Coast Young Farmer of the Year.
O'Connor is an active sportsman and represented Buller at athletics. A keen skier and whitewater rafter, he enjoys jetboating, motorsports and plays rugby for the New Zealand Parliamentary Team.
| Parliament of New Zealand | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Margaret Moir |
Member of Parliament for West Coast 1993-1996 |
Constituency abolished |
| New constituency | Member of Parliament for West Coast-Tasman 1996-2008 |
Succeeded by Chris Auchinvole |