Bill English’s 27 years in politics
Henry Cooke outlines the National leader’s decades-long career, from the backbench to the ninth floor.
National leader Bill English has been a crucial figure in New Zealand’s politics for a generation. He was first elected in 1990, before some of today’s MPs were even alive. Yesterday morning – 9971 days later – he announced his resignation.
Over the last 27 years, English has held almost every job you can in politics, with two long terms in Government and two spots in Opposition. Here’s a look back at his lengthy career:
Before Parliament
English was born in Southland in 1961, the 10th child in a family of 12 offspring. He would carry on a penchant for large families, having six kids himself.
English attended St Patricks College in Upper Hutt for high school, where he was head boy.
After studying commerce at Otago University (and meeting his wife, Mary), English came to Wellington to study English Literature at Victoria. It was here in 1980 that he joined National.
Ten years later, after some time working in Treasury and on his farm, English ran for Parliament in the deep-blue, deep-south Wallace electorate. He won, easily.
A brat-pack backbencher
English came to Parliament as part of the National wave in 1990, with the party winning 67 of the 97 seats on offer.
This was a ‘‘rambunctious’’ and often ill-disciplined caucus, as he said yesterday. It featured former prime minister Robert Muldoon, still croaking out criticisms of the way things were done, along with an ambitious and popular MP by the name of Winston Peters.
English soon became part of a fast-rising group of backbenchers known variously as ‘‘the new young turks’’ or the ‘‘brat pack’’. It featured English, Roger Sowry, Nick Smith, and Tony Ryall. The most enduring memory of these four is a photo of them wolfing down McDonald’s – echoing shots of a Labour group eating fish and chips a decade earlier.
Ina North And South profile from 1991, English said he wouldn’t be in politics long. After all, ‘‘the days when someone was in politics for 25 years are over.’’
As it turned out he wouldn’t be a backbencher long. English quickly ascended the party ranks, becoming an under-secretary in 1993 and health minister in 1996 – aged just 34, he was the youngest member of cabinet and held one of the country’s toughest jobs.
Politically, he was clearly a social conservative – actively trying to reduce abortion rates while health minister (and voting against marriage equality later) – but a ‘‘pragmatist’’ on economic issues. Just before National lost power in 1999, English had his first stint as finance minister.
Opposition leader
National lost in 1999 but English’s career was on the up. In late 2001, he took over from Jenny Shipley as leader, with Roger Sowry as his deputy. Given what was to happen in the next year, he probably now wishes he had bided his time.
This is where English’s meteoric rise hit a huge bump. Despite his clear change to the party, National failed to pick up any momentum in the opinion polls. Helen Clark dominated the 2002 election, winning 41.27 per cent of the vote to National’s 20.93 per cent – its lowest result ever. ‘‘It will go down in the history books as a bad result for us, ‘‘ English said. It certainly did.
But unlike in 2008 and now 2017, the losing leader did not resign quickly. English retained the confidence of his caucus at first. But by late 2003, the polls stayed low and a badly judged boxing match stunt embarrassed the party. In October, Don Brash rolled him, and English became simply its education spokesman.
Political rebirth
But this would not be end for English, who was still a relatively young man. After Brash lost the 2005 election, English had another go at leader before deciding to be John Key’s deputy instead.
As National came to Government in 2008, English became deputy prime minister and finance minister, just as the world’s economy was tanking. Most agree he steered New Zealand through the storm with a lot of finesse.
English worked hard on a new data-driven and individually tailored approach to social issues he dubbed ‘‘social investment’’. Labour described this as early intervention by another name but English put in enough work across the public sector that the new Government will undoubtedly keep some parts of this approach.
Then, at the end of 2016, a dream he had long given up on was suddenly handed to him: Key was stepping down, and would be supporting English to replace him.
Others ran for the spot but English won easily, sewing up the necessary support so well that the his rivals withdrew before a vote.
Just like that he was prime minister, and it looked set to stay that way, with Labour under Andrew Little struggling to get its polling out of the 20s, despite a housing crisis and the loss of one of the more popular leaders National had ever had.
New Zealand seemed quite happy for him to be there. Many still disagreed with him politically but no-one could argue he wasn’t up for the job in terms of experience. Over his year in office, he introduced some long-teased tax cuts, along with more money for social investment and a slightly new look for National’s front bench.
Then Jacinda Ardern happened. English had a good energetic campaign, but the image of a grey-haired prime minister battling the youthful Ardern did not resemble the election bid National had wanted.
Indeed, he led National to a solid result as the largest party in Parliament with 44.5 per cent of the vote. Yet this was not enough to govern without NZ First’s help. In the end, Peters chose Labour.
As long ago as that might seem now, this was the beginning of the end. English may have retained the respect of his caucus but very few people believed him when he said he would stand in 2020.
Yesterday, they were proved right. After 27 years in Parliament, a year as the prime minister, several as the Opposition leader, and years of work in both camps, English will be heading home on March 1.
But is it the end of public life? Unlikely. English is 56 and not the kind of person who would want a quiet retirement, whatever he says. If there’s one thing his career can tell us, it’s that he is very hard to get rid of.