8th New Zealand Parliament
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The 8th New Zealand Parliament was a term of the Parliament of New Zealand.
Elections for this term were held in 4 Māori electorates and 91 general electorates on 8 and 9 December 1881, respectively. A total of 95 MPs were elected, i.e. multi-member electorates were no longer used. Parliament was prorogued in June 1884. During the term of this Parliament, three Ministries were in power.
Sessions
The 8th Parliament opened on 18 May 1882, following the 1881 general election. It sat for three sessions, and was prorogued on 27 June 1884.[1]
| Session | Opened | Adjouned |
|---|---|---|
| first | 18 May 1882 | 15 September 1882 |
| second | 14 June 1883 | 8 September 1883 |
| third | 5 June 1884 | 24 June 1884 |
Historical context
Political parties had not been established yet; this only happened after the 1890 election. Anyone attempting to form an administration thus had to win support directly from individual MPs. This made first forming, and then retaining a government difficult and challenging.[2]
Ministries
The Hall Ministry under Premier John Hall had been in power since 8 October 1879. This ministry lasted until 21 April 1882. It was succeeded by the Whitaker Ministry, which lasted until 25 September 1883. The second Atkinson Ministry succeeded it. This Ministry finished on 16 August 1884, just after the 1884 general election for the 9th Parliament.[3][4]
Electorates
Ninety-one general and four Māori electorates were used for the 1881 elections, i.e. the previous multi-member electorates were abolished. The changes were the result of the Representation Act 1881.[5] The previous electoral redistribution was undertaken in 1875 for the 1875–76 election. In the six years since, New Zealand's European population had increased by 65%. In the 1881 electoral redistribution, the House of Representatives increased the number of European representatives to 91 (up from 84 since the 1875–76 election). The number of Māori electorates was held at four. The House further decided that electorates should not have more than one representative, which led to 35 new electorates being formed: Ashburton, Auckland North, Awarua, Christchurch North, Christchurch South, Coromandel, Dunedin Central, Dunedin East, Dunedin South, Dunedin West, Foxton, Franklin North, Franklin South, Hawke's Bay, Hokonui, Inangahua, Kumara, Lincoln, Manukau, Moeraki, Peninsula, St Albans, Stanmore, Sydenham, Taranaki, Tauranga, Te Aro, Thorndon, Waimate, Waipawa, Wairarapa North, Wairarapa South, Waitotara, Wakanui, and Wellington South. In addition, two electorates that had previously been abolished were recreated: Bay of Islands and Oamaru.[6]
These changes necessitated a major disruption to existing boundaries. Only six electorates remained unchanged: Waikato, Waipa, Bruce, Lyttelton, Nelson, and Picton.[6]
Initial composition of the 8th Parliament
95 seats were created across the electorates.[7] The following table shows the successful candidate for each electorate.[8]
| Member | Electorate | MP's term |
|---|---|---|
| Montgomery, WilliamWilliam Montgomery | Akaroa | Fourth |
| Wright, Edward GeorgeEdward George Wright | Ashburton | Second |
| Pearson, William FisherWilliam Fisher Pearson | Ashley | First |
| Grey, GeorgeGeorge Grey | Auckland East | Fourth |
| Peacock, ThomasThomas Peacock | Auckland North | First |
| Dargaville, JosephJoseph Dargaville | Auckland West | First |
| Rolleston, WilliamWilliam Rolleston | Avon | Fifth |
| Joyce, James ParkerJames Parker Joyce | Awarua | Second |
| Hobbs, RichardRichard Hobbs | Bay of Islands | Second |
| Rutherford, JamesJames Rutherford | Bruce | First |
| Munro, JohnJohn Munro | Buller | First |
| Barron, WilliamWilliam Barron | Caversham | Second |
| McIlraith, HughHugh McIlraith | Cheviot | First |
| Thomson, HenryHenry Thomson | Christchurch North | First |
| Holmes, JohnJohn Holmes | Christchurch South | First |
| Thomson, James WilliamJames William Thomson | Clutha | Fourth |
| McMillan, DavidDavid McMillan | Coleridge | First |
| Cadman, AlfredAlfred Cadman | Coromandel | First |
| Bracken, ThomasThomas Bracken | Dunedin Central | First |
| Green, MatthewMatthew Green | Dunedin East | First |
| Fish, HenryHenry Fish | Dunedin South | First |
| Dick, ThomasThomas Dick | Dunedin West | Fourth |
| Pyke, VincentVincent Pyke | Dunstan | Fourth |
| McDonald, AllanAllan McDonald | East Coast | Second |
| Tole, JosephJoseph Tole | Eden | Third |
| Atkinson, HarryHarry Atkinson | Egmont | Sixth |
| Wilson, JamesJames Wilson | Foxton | First |
| Harris, BenjaminBenjamin Harris | Franklin North | Second |
| Hamlin, EbenezerEbenezer Hamlin | Franklin South | Third |
| Postlethwaite, WilliamWilliam Postlethwaite | Geraldine | First |
| Sutter, JamesJames Sutter | Gladstone | First |
| Petrie, JosephJoseph Petrie | Greymouth | First |
| Sutton, FredFred Sutton | Hawkes Bay | Third |
| Wynn-Williams, HenryHenry Wynn-Williams | Heathcote | First |
| Fitzgerald, Gerard GeorgeGerard George Fitzgerald | Hokitika | First |
| Driver, HenryHenry Driver | Hokonui | Fifth |
| Mason, ThomasThomas Mason | Hutt | Second |
| Weston, Thomas S.Thomas S. Weston | Inangahua | Second |
| Feldwick, HenryHenry Feldwick | Invercargill | Second |
| Wilson, IsaacIsaac Wilson | Kaiapoi | First |
| Seddon, RichardRichard Seddon | Kumara | Second |
| O'Callaghan, ArthurArthur O'Callaghan | Lincoln | First |
| Allwright, HarryHarry Allwright | Lyttelton | Second |
| Johnston, Walter WoodsWalter Woods Johnston | Manawatu | Fourth |
| O'Rorke, MauriceMaurice O'Rorke | Manukau | Sixth |
| Mitchelson, EdwinEdwin Mitchelson | Marsden | First |
| Mackenzie, Francis WallaceFrancis Wallace Mackenzie | Mataura | First |
| McKenzie, JohnJohn McKenzie | Moeraki | First |
| Hursthouse, RichmondRichmond Hursthouse | Motueka | Third |
| de Lautour, CecilCecil de Lautour | Mount Ida | Third |
| Buchanan, JohnJohn Buchanan | Napier | First |
| Levestam, HenryHenry Levestam | Nelson | Second |
| Kelly, ThomasThomas Kelly | New Plymouth | Fifth |
| Swanson, WilliamWilliam Swanson | Newton | Fourth |
| Shrimski, SamuelSamuel Shrimski | Oamaru | Third |
| Moss, FrederickFrederick Moss | Parnell | Third |
| Seaton, JamesJames Seaton | Peninsula | Second |
| Connoly, EdwardEdward Connoly | Picton | First |
| Macandrew, JamesJames Macandrew | Port Chalmers | Eighth |
| Stevens, JohnJohn Stevens | Rangitikei | First |
| Thorne George, SeymourSeymour Thorne George | Rodney | Third |
| Bathgate, JohnJohn Bathgate | Roslyn | Second |
| Hall, JohnJohn Hall | Selwyn | Fifth |
| Brown, John EvansJohn Evans Brown | St Albans | Third |
| Pilliet, WalterWalter Pilliet | Stanmore | First |
| White, WilliamWilliam White | Sydenham | First |
| Fulton, JamesJames Fulton | Taieri | Second |
| Trimble, RobertRobert Trimble | Taranaki | Second |
| Morris, GeorgeGeorge Morris | Tauranga | Second |
| Johnston, Charles JohnCharles John Johnston | Te Aro | First |
| Sheehan, JohnJohn Sheehan | Thames | Fourth |
| Levin, WilliamWilliam Levin | Thorndon | Second |
| Turnbull, RichardRichard Turnbull | Timaru | Third |
| Brown, James ClarkJames Clark Brown | Tuapeka | Fifth |
| Whyte, John BlairJohn Blair Whyte | Waikato | Second |
| Green, JamesJames Green | Waikouaiti | Second |
| Steward, WilliamWilliam Steward | Waimate | Second |
| Shephard, JosephJoseph Shephard | Waimea | Third |
| Whitaker, Frederick AlexanderFrederick Alexander Whitaker | Waipa | Second |
| Smith, William CowperWilliam Cowper Smith | Waipawa | First |
| Beetham, GeorgeGeorge Beetham | Wairarapa North | Third |
| Buchanan, Walter ClarkeWalter Clarke Buchanan | Wairarapa South | First |
| Dodson, HenryHenry Dodson | Wairau | First |
| Duncan, Thomas YoungThomas Young Duncan | Waitaki | First |
| Hurst, William JohnWilliam John Hurst | Waitemata | Second |
| Bryce, JohnJohn Bryce | Waitotara | Fifth |
| Wason, CathcartCathcart Wason | Wakanui | Second |
| Fergus, ThomasThomas Fergus | Wakatipu | First |
| Daniel, TheophilusTheophilus Daniel | Wallace | First |
| Watt, William HoggWilliam Hogg Watt | Wanganui | Second |
| Hutchison, WilliamWilliam Hutchison | Wellington South | Second |
| Tomoana, HenareHenare Tomoana | Eastern Maori | Third |
| Tawhai, HoneHone Tawhai | Northern Maori | Second |
| Taiaroa, Hori KereiHori Kerei Taiaroa | Southern Maori | Fourth |
| Wheoro, Wiremu TeWiremu Te Wheoro | Western Maori | Second |
Changes during term
There were a number of changes during the term of the 8th Parliament.
| By-election | Electorate | Date | Incumbent | Reason | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1882 | Franklin North | 9 June | Benjamin Harris | Election declared void | Benjamin Harris |
| 1882 | Wakanui | 16 June | Cathcart Wason | Election declared void | Joseph Ivess |
| 1882 | Stanmore[9] | 11 July | Walter Pilliet | Election declared void | Walter Pilliet |
| 1883 | Peninsula | 22 January[10] | James Seaton | Death | William Larnach |
| 1883 | Selwyn | 6 April | John Hall | Resignation | Edward Lee |
| 1883 | Inangahua | 14 May | Thomas S. Weston | Resignation | Edward Shaw |
| 1883 | Bruce | 29 June | James Rutherford | Death | James McDonald |
| 1884 | Selwyn | 15 February | Edward Lee | Death | Edward Wakefield |
| 1884 | Thorndon | 13 May | William Levin | Resignation | Alfred Newman |
| 1884 | Kaiapoi | 16 May | Isaac Wilson | Resignation | Edward Richardson |
| 1884 | East Coast | 16 June | Allan McDonald | Resignation | Samuel Locke |
Notes
- ↑ Scholefield 1950, p. 68.
- ↑ King 2003, p. ?.
- ↑ King 2003, p. 534.
- ↑ Scholefield 1950, pp. 37–38.
- ↑ "Representation Act 1881(45 VICT 1881 No 14)". New Zealand Legal Information Institute. Retrieved 2 April 2012.
- 1 2 McRobie 1989, pp. 43–48.
- ↑ "General elections 1853–2005 - dates & turnout". Elections New Zealand. Archived from the original on 27 May 2010. Retrieved 6 June 2010.
- ↑ Cooper 1882, pp. 1–3.
- ↑ "Stanmore Election". The Star (4437). 14 July 1882. p. 3. Retrieved 30 May 2010.
- ↑ "The Peninsula Election". Otago Daily Times (6534). 23 January 1883. p. 2. Retrieved 28 June 2012.
References
- Cooper, G. S. (1882). Votes Recorded for Each Candidate. Government Printer. Retrieved 24 October 2015.
- Cyclopedia Company Limited (1902). The Cyclopedia of New Zealand : Auckland Provincial District. Christchurch.
- Cyclopedia Company Limited (1903). "Southland". The Cyclopedia of New Zealand : Otago & Southland Provincial Districts. Christchurch.
- Cyclopedia Company Limited (1906). "Present And Past Members Of Parliament". The Cyclopedia of New Zealand : Nelson, Marlborough & Westland Provincial Districts. Christchurch.
- Cyclopedia Company Limited (1908). "Former Members Of The House Of Representatives". The Cyclopedia of New Zealand : Taranaki, Hawke’s Bay & Wellington Provincial Districts. Christchurch.
- King, Michael (2003). The Penguin History of New Zealand (20 ed.). Auckland: Penguin Books. ISBN 0-14-301867-1.
- Scholefield, Guy (1950) [First ed. published 1913]. New Zealand Parliamentary Record, 1840–1949 (3rd ed.). Wellington: Govt. Printer.
- Wilson, James Oakley (1985) [First ed. published 1913]. New Zealand Parliamentary Record, 1840–1984 (4th ed.). Wellington: V.R. Ward, Govt. Printer. OCLC 154283103.