| The Honourable John Archibald Banks CNZM QSO |
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|---|---|
| 38th Mayor of Auckland City | |
| In office 2007 – 31 October 2010 |
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| Preceded by | Dick Hubbard |
| Succeeded by | abolished |
| In office 2001–2004 |
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| Preceded by | Christine Fletcher |
| Succeeded by | Dick Hubbard |
| Minister of Police | |
| In office 1990–1996 |
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| Prime Minister | Jim Bolger |
| Member of the New Zealand Parliament for Whangarei |
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| In office 1981 – 1999 |
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| Preceded by | John Gordon Elliott |
| Succeeded by | Philip Heatley |
| Member of the New Zealand Parliament for Epsom |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 2011 |
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| Preceded by | Rodney Hide |
| Minister for Small Business | |
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 12 December 2011 |
|
| Prime Minister | John Key |
| Preceded by | Maurice Williamson |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 2 December 1946 Wellington, New Zealand |
| Nationality | New Zealand |
| Political party | ACT New Zealand |
| Other political affiliations |
National Party (until 2011) |
| Website | johnbanks.co.nz |
John Archibald Banks, CNZM QSO (born 2 December 1946) is a New Zealand politician. He served as Mayor of Auckland City for two terms, from 2001 to 2004, and from 2007[1] to 2010. He was a member of Parliament for the National Party from 1981 to 1999 and was a Cabinet Minister from 1990 to 1996.
In 2010, Banks lost the mayoralty race for the newly formed Auckland Council to Len Brown, the serving mayor of Manukau City.[2]
In May 2011, he joined ACT New Zealand and was elected as the sole MP for the party in the Epsom Electorate in the November 2011 election.
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Banks, born in Wellington, moved to Auckland while still at high school. His father, Archie spent much of his life in prison, a fact Banks does not try to hide, going as far as to mention his father's prison experiences in his criticism of the style of the proposed Mount Eden Prisons building.[3]
In his career before entering politics, Banks worked as a market researcher in the pharmaceutical industry, as a commercial property developer, and as a restaurant owner. He served for a time as Chairman of the New Zealand Licensed Restaurant and Cabaret Association.
Banks began his political career in local-body politics with election to the Birkenhead Borough Council.
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| Years | Term | Electorate | List | Party |
| 1981–1984 | 40th | Whangarei | National | |
| 1984–1987 | 41st | Whangarei | National | |
| 1987–1990 | 42nd | Whangarei | National | |
| 1990–1993 | 43rd | Whangarei | National | |
| 1993–1996 | 44th | Whangarei | National | |
| 1996–1999 | 45th | Whangarei | 16 | National |
| 2011–present | 50th | Epsom | 4 | ACT |
In the 1978 general election, Banks stood as the National Party candidate for the Roskill electorate, but was unsuccessful. In the 1981 election, he stood in a different seat, Whangarei, and won. He would retain this seat for the remainder of his parliamentary career with the National Party.
When National won the 1990 elections, Banks entered Cabinet, becoming Minister of Police, Minister of Tourism, and Minister of Sport.
While Minister of Police, he was fined $750 for answering his cell phone on a commercial flight in 1991.[4]
Banks gained a position as the host of a talkback radio programme on Radio Pacific in August 1992,[5] taking over the Sunday afternoon timeslot from former Prime Minister Sir Robert Muldoon,[6] for whom he had occasionally substituted during 1991 and 1992.[7] In 1995, his fellow National Party Member of Parliament John Carter rang his programme impersonating a workshy Māori called Hone, which caused widespread offence.[8]
In 1996, he resigned from Cabinet, becoming a backbencher after he refused to participate in the same cabinet as New Zealand First leader and coalition partner Winston Peters.
Banks retired from Parliament at the 1999 elections.
In 2011 he won the seat of Epsom for the ACT party becoming the sole MP for the party.
In 2001, he contested and won the Auckland City mayoralty, defeating the incumbent Christine Fletcher (herself also a former National MP). Banks remained controversial in his new role, although often regarding financial and management issues rather than social policy. He governed with the support of the traditional incumbent ticket at Auckland City, Citizens and Ratepayers Now. Banks brought in a streamlined decision making process at council, kept spending increases within inflation, sold half of the Auckland International Airport shares to pay off Auckland City's increasing debt and proposed massive transport projects such as the Eastern Transport Corridor. Banks' personal style, coupled with his mayoral agenda, polarised many Aucklanders. In 2001 he was caught speeding on a jet ski close to the beach, not long after criticising boy racers.[9] He also said Asian immigrants had filthy habits such as spitting on footpaths. [10]
A serious challenge to his mayoralty came from philanthropic cereal-maker Dick Hubbard in late August 2004. Six weeks out from the next election, a New Zealand Herald public opinion poll gave Hubbard 32.2 per cent and Banks 27.3 per cent, with Christine Fletcher trailing by a wide gap.
The campaign gained notoriety as one of the "nastiest" and hardest-fought in memory. In September 2004, Banks's campaign manager, Brian Nicolle, resigned amidst allegations of "gutter politics" after he ordered distribution of copies of a National Business Review article highly critical of Hubbard to hundreds of letterboxes in Auckland, and then proceeded to deny it. Nicolle eventually confirmed he ordered the article distribution. This was done without the authorisation of Banks as the candidate, which helped make the story even more controversial during the campaign.
The New Zealand Herald poll's pattern held for most of the campaign as the postal votes came in. On 9 October 2004, Hubbard defeated "Banksie" in his bid to be re-elected as Mayor of Auckland. At the same time, the city also elected a centre-left council, dominated by the City Vision and Action Hobson councillors. In early interviews after his election loss, Banks stated that he would look after his varied business interests, both in New Zealand and Australia.
For a time, rumours suggested that he might return to national politics, standing as a candidate either for the National Party or for ACT New Zealand. Speculation eventually focused on ACT, and several meetings took place between Banks and senior party members. In the end, however, Banks declined to become an ACT candidate, despite indications that he could win a seat for the ailing party that would guarantee them representation.
In February 2005, Banks returned to talkback radio reprising his "Breakfast with Banksie" early morning radio show on Radio Pacific.
In October 2006, Banks announced he was giving serious consideration to standing for the Auckland Mayoralty again. He indicated that if he did become Mayor again, he would practise a more inclusive style of leadership with a firmer focus on financial matters. He has indicated qualified support for the proposed 2007 "Hero Parade", which was an annual gay parade held in the 1990s prior to his becoming Mayor.[11] Banks ditched the controversial Eastern Corridor proposal that caused a split in his voting base.
In July 2007 Banks announced his intention to stand for Mayor in the October 2007 local body election, running on a platform of "affordable progress" and transparency in council meetings. Polls soon showed him in a clear lead.[12] Banks campaigned heavily on platforms of affordable progess, plus openness and accountability, particularly in regard to Auckland City's leaky homes crisis.
On 13 October 2007, Banks was re-elected as mayor of Auckland, becoming only the second Mayor in Auckland City's history to have come back to the Mayoralty after defeat, the other being Dove-Myer Robinson in 1968.
Upon his successful re-election, Banks indicated a number of initial changes and spending cuts in order to meet his goal of keeping future rates increases at affordable levels. Banks and the Citizens and Ratepayers council majority re-introduced a streamlined council structure, bringing in five super-committees instead of the previous 14 committees.[13]
Banks has also campaigned on job creation and economic development initiatives, such as a film friendly policy for Auckland, to attract television, movie and commercial filming. The benefits of the film industry was reported as almost $900 million in GDP activity for Auckland region.[14]
His personality, especially during his first mayoral term, has been called that of a bully, "raised by Sir Robert Muldoon in the ways of the bear pit". However, it has been commented that his leadership style became much less brusque and confrontative in his second term, something he himself ascribes to the "long, cold shower" he received in being defeated by political newcomer Dick Hubbard in the 2004 elections.[15]
Banks supported pushing for a unitary authority or a "supercity" from 2001. After the Royal Commission on Auckland Governance recommended and the Government confirmed it would introduce a single council for the Auckland region, Banks confirmed he would stand in the 2010 Auckland mayoral election for the new Auckland Council. Banks has been critical of some of the aspects of the new supercity, favouring increased powers to the local boards that would represent people at the grassroots level. Banks was the second highest polling mayoral candidate, but was beaten by Len Brown by more than 10% of the electoral vote share.
On 18 May 2011 Banks joined ACT New Zealand and applied to contest the Epsom electorate for the party in the 2011 general election.[16] He was confirmed as the party's candidate on 28 May.[17]
In November 2011, a recording of a conversation held between Banks and John Key was leaked to Herald On Sunday.[18][19] 3 News also obtained copies of the recording suggesting the two politicians were discussing issues related to ACT New Zealand's leadership.[18]
Banks lives in Remuera,[20] with his wife Amanda Medcalf who he married in December 1987. They adopted three children from a Saint Petersburg orphanage in 1995, a girl and two boys.[21][22] He holds a private pilot's licence, for fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters.[23]
Banks presently has a number business interests, including the healthfoods sector, is also a director of Huljich Wealth Management (NZ) Ltd, a Kiwisaver provider, and a trans-Tasman business consultancy called "Sugar international".
In addition to his pilot's license, Banks also is an avid motorcar and motorcycle enthusiast, owning and regularly riding a Harley Davidson motorbike.
He was made a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the 2011 Queen's Birthday Honours, for services to local body affairs.[24]
| Parliament of New Zealand | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by John Gordon Elliott |
Member of Parliament for Whangarei 1981–1999 |
Succeeded by Philip Heatley |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by Christine Fletcher |
Mayor of Auckland City 2001–2004 2007–2010 |
Succeeded by Dick Hubbard |
| Preceded by Dick Hubbard |
Succeeded by Len Brown |
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