| Grant Robertson MP |
|
|---|---|
| Deputy Leader of the Opposition | |
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 13 December 2011 |
|
| Leader | David Shearer |
| Preceded by | Annette King |
| Deputy Leader of the Labour Party | |
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 13 December 2011 |
|
| Leader | David Shearer |
| Preceded by | Annette King |
| Member of the New Zealand Parliament for Wellington Central |
|
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 8 November 2008 |
|
| Preceded by | Marian Hobbs |
| Majority | 1,904[1] |
| Personal details | |
| Born | October 30, 1971 Palmerston North, New Zealand |
| Political party | Labour |
| Residence | Northland, Wellington, New Zealand |
| Profession | Senior Research Marketing Manager, Otago University Wellington School of Medicine |
| Website | www.grantrobertson.co.nz |
Grant Robertson (born 30 October 1971) is a New Zealand politician and Member of Parliament. He was elected to represent the Labour Party in the seat of Wellington Central at the 2008 general election.[2] Robertson replaced Marian Hobbs, who had retired.
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Robertson was born in Palmerston North. His family also lived in Hastings before settling in Dunedin. Robertson studied political studies at the University of Otago, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts with honours in 1995.[3] His honours thesis studied the restructuring of the New Zealand University Students' Association in the 1980s.[4] Robertson served as President of the Otago University Students' Association in 1994 and New Zealand University Students' Association in 1996.[3]
Robertson joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade after leaving university. His overseas postings included the United Nations in New York. Robertson was also managed the NZ Overseas Aid Programme to Samoa – a $7.7 million fund with projects in diverse areas such basic education, healthcare, public sector capacity building, small business development, empowerment of women.[3]
Robertson returned to New Zealand during the first term of the Fifth Labour Government to work as a Ministerial advisor to Minister for the Environment Marian Hobbs and later Prime Minister Helen Clark. During his time in Clark's office, Robertson was rumoured to have the nickname "H3" during the 2005 General Election (H1 being Clark, and H2 being Chief of Staff, Heather Simpson).[5]
After the 2005 Election, Robertson left the Prime Minister's office to work as the Senior Research Marketing Manager for the University of Otago based at the Wellington School of Medicine.[6]
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| Years | Term | Electorate | List | Party |
| 2008–2011 | 49th | Wellington Central | 46 | Labour |
| 2011–present | 50th | Wellington Central | 14 | Labour |
In late 2006, sitting MP for Wellington Central, Marian Hobbs announced that she would be retiring at the 2008 General Election. Robertson was considered to be a front runner [7] and was subsequently selected unopposed.[8] Robertson ran a well-staffed campaign, based on local issues like the closure of the Crossways Community Centre and threats to the Public Service. He was also involved in the formation of a Wellington inner-city residents' association.[9]
On 1 September 2008, the Labour Party published its list for the 2008 general election and ranked Robertson at number 46.[10]
In the Wellington Central electorate, Robertson defeated National candidate, Stephen Franks by 1,904 votes.[1] Robertson's plurality, although far less than the 6,180 vote difference held by his predecessor from the previous election,[11] was a reflection of a large swing in party votes to the National Party from Labour in the electorate, and Robertson's status as a non-incumbent candidate.
In his maiden statement (given on 9 December 2008), Robertson alluded to his sexuality as a part, but not the whole, of his identity:
Robertson was appointed Labour's spokesperson for State Services, and associate spokesperson for Arts, Culture and Heritage and Foreign Affairs by Labour leader Phil Goff.[15]
In May 2010 Robertson's Ethical Investment (Crown Financial Institutions) Bill was drawn from the member's ballot.[16][17][18] According to Robertson, the Bill "sought to have clear and consistent criteria for ethical investment in the legislation that govern our major investment funds such as the Super Fund and ACC".[19] Although the Bill gained support from MPs in the Green and Maori parties, the Bill was defeated at its first reading.[20]
On 15 June 2010, Opposition Leader Phil Goff appointed Robertson to be Portfolio Spokesperson for Tertiary Education, in addition to taking the parliamentary second row and being promoted to number 20 in the line-up, the highest of the 2008 intake of Labour MPs to be promoted at that point. This was the first shadow cabinet reshuffle since Labour had lost the 2008 general election to National, as a result of the Ministerial Credit Card scandal involving three Labour MPs.[21] In the election year reshuffle, on 2 February 2011, Robertson was further promoted to the front bench to take the Health portfolio.[22] Commenting on the promotion, Phil Goff said that Robertson has "made a very strong impact in a very short time" and that he "has a promising future ahead of him"[23]
Following the 2011 general election and Annette King's resignation as party deputy leader, Robertson was elected by the Labour caucus as the new deputy leader.
The political publication Trans-Tasman has reviewed Grant Robertson each year since he became an MP, as part of their annual review of Parliament (known as Roll Call). MPs are scored between one (lowest) and ten (highest) out of ten for their work during that year:
| Year | Score | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| 2008[24] | N/A/10 | Another former Beehive Staffer. Lazy campaign against Stephen Franks, should have held a safe seat with a bigger majority. |
| 2009[25] | 4.5/10 | Took it to the Government over state sector cuts and Labour relations. Going up. |
| 2010[26] | 5/10 | Streetwise MP knows weak points and exploits them. Uses the media well to get his points across. Must be on the priority promotion list. |
Robertson lives in Northland, Wellington, with his partner Alf,[3] who he met through playing rugby together for the Wellington-based Crazy Knights, New Zealand's first gay rugby team.[12] After 10 years in a relationship, they held a civil union ceremony in January 2009.[27]
Robertson is the grandson of Bob Wilkie, who ran unsuccessfully for Labour in the Wairarapa electorate in 1954 and 1957.[28]
| Parliament of New Zealand | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Marian Hobbs |
Member of Parliament for Wellington Central 2008- |
Incumbent |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by Annette King |
Deputy Leader of the Opposition 2011– |
Incumbent |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by Annette King |
Deputy Leader of the Labour Party 2011– |
Incumbent |
|}