Peter Davis (sociologist)
| Peter Davis | |
|---|---|
 Peter Davis in Chile in 2004 | |
| Spouse of the Prime Minister of New Zealand | |
|
In office 10 December 1999 – 19 November 2008 | |
| Preceded by | Burton Shipley |
| Succeeded by | Bronagh Key |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Peter Byard Davis 25 April 1947 Milford on Sea, Hampshire, England |
| Nationality | New Zealander |
| Political party | Labour Party |
| Spouse(s) | Helen Clark (m. 1981) |
| Alma mater | University of Auckland |
| Profession | Sociologist |
| Website | University website |
Peter Byard Davis (born 25 April 1947) is a New Zealand sociologist, professor, and the husband of former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark.
Early life
Davis was born in Milford on Sea, Hampshire, England, on 25 April 1947,[1] and spent his childhood in Tanzania, where his father worked for a mining company.[2] His father was born in China and his mother in India, but a great-great-grandfather had grown up in New Zealand.[3] Davis gained a master's degree in sociology and statistics at the London School of Economics.[3] He moved to New Zealand in 1970 to work at the University of Canterbury[3] and completed a PhD at the University of Auckland.[2] He became a naturalised New Zealander in 1972.[1]
Personal life
He met Clark—then a political-science lecturer at Auckland—in 1977[3] and they married shortly after she first won election to Parliament in the 1981 general election.
Career
Davis specialises in medical sociology, and he currently works as the Director of the Social Statistics Research Group and Professor of Sociology at the University of Auckland, with part-time appointments in the School of Population Health and the Department of Statistics, also at the University of Auckland. Previously he served as Professor of Public Health at the University of Otago's Christchurch School of Medicine.
He has previously served on the Auckland Area Health Board, and was a representative in 1989 when his wife (Health Minister at the time) suspended that body. Davis has achieved international recognition in his field, having worked as a consultant for the World Health Organization.
Notes
- 1 2 "New Zealand, naturalisations, 1843–1981". Ancestry.com Operations. 2010. Retrieved 10 April 2017. (Subscription required (help)).
- 1 2 Van Beynen, Martin (2006). "Davis's trouble and strife". The Press (23 September 2006): 7.
- 1 2 3 4 Bain, Helen (1998). "The man called Mr Clark". The Dominion (21 December 1998): 8.
References
- University of Auckland- press release
- Wayne Thompson: "PM's spouse eases long-distance stress" in The New Zealand Herald, Friday 6 February 2004
- University of Auckland profile