MP Adrian Rurawhe elected Speaker after Trevor Mallard’s resignation

Te Tai Hauāuru MP Adrian Rurawhe has been elected as Parliament’s new Speaker today and National Party leader Christopher Luxon said his party will support the election and not put up anyone up to stand against him.

Labour MP Rurawhe was nominated by the government as the new Speaker of Parliament at 2pm after outgoing Speaker Trevor Mallard resigned at 1.45pm.

Rurawhe thanked the Prime Minister for allowing him to take up this post.

“I will carry on a long tradition of upholding the rights and privileges of this house … like freedom of speech,” he said.

“We may disagree with each other…but it’s really important to hear those voices.”

He confirmed that opposition parties would have the opportunity to hold the government accountable.

Rurawhe said he noticed some areas for improvement in the question time, which many opposition parties appreciated. “Unfortunately, there are many of them.”

He mentioned that the government’s questions to itself needed to be brief.

He said the answer should be “cut” and more concise.

Rurawhe noted that he’s not an expert on all rules, but said “fairness” is paramount, and he uses his radar to determine what’s acceptable and what’s not.

He said there was an opportunity for a stronger debate, but it had to be done fairly.

He referred to Mallard as his predecessor and was committed to continuing efforts to make parliament a “family-friendly” environment.

Rurawhe’s whānau and supporters in the gallery sang a waiata to him.

Warm welcome from PM

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern opened her speech with a quote from Ratana – citing Rurawhe’s history – as her way of welcoming him as Speaker.

Ardern said she prioritized Rurawhe’s ability to use “a light touch and a firm hand” as speaker.

She believes the House of Representatives will be satisfied that Rurawhe has acted fairly.

She mentioned how he was the second Māori to take on the role, which would make his whānau and his Labour family proud.

Luxon: No need to propose someone for a job

Luxon warmly welcomed Rurawhe for the role and said it was no surprise he was chosen for the role given his legacy.

Luxon hopes that Rurawhe will reflect on his achievements and celebrate with his whānau. Luxon said he was sure that Rurawhe would act with integrity and that there was no need to recommend someone for the position.

Talking to Mallard, Luxon admitted to their argument and how National had lost faith in him. However, he acknowledged his service and wished him and the Irish people the best of luck in his new role.

Mallard claim to evict MPs

Gaurav Sharma, speaking for the first time since being sacked by Labour, said it was refreshing to hear Rurawhe talk about “fairness”.

“Some people today mentioned transparency and integrity,” he said.

Sharma claims he spoke to Mallard two weeks ago about the issues he faced and whether he could get legal support.

“But the Speaker said, ‘Okay, if you raise any questions about your Labour colleagues and [they] Challenge it and it will be the end of your career’ and then the Speaker ends up going to the whip office and telling them I’ve actually filed a complaint. “

Following this comment, Mallard can be heard saying “liar”.

When Sharma tried to go on, Lullah interrupted him, saying that Sharma’s grievances were not suitable for debate in the House of Representatives at the moment, as it was only meeting to elect the next speaker.

Rurawhe warned Sharma that if he continued like this, he would be interrupted.

Sharma concluded by saying that he hoped Rurawhe would remain neutral and show fairness.

Speaking outside the House of Representatives, Labour MP Chris Hipkins would not say whether he felt Sharma’s words were appropriate, but did hint at his views.

“The election of a new speaker is a moment of humility and grace, and I think what we’ve seen in the debate is that some people can do it and some people can’t.”

Labour MP and former chief whip Kieran McAnulty, who is at the centre of Sharma’s bullying allegations, said he thought Sharma’s comments were inappropriate.

Asked if Sharma’s comments were true, McAnuti said: “I don’t even know what he’s talking about, so I can’t give you an honest answer”.

Rurawhe said the reason he cut off Sharma was that he was taking risks beyond what is usually expected in speaker elections.

He said Sharma could use “other avenues” to pursue his case.

‘A Maori day’

Greens co-leader Marama Davidson said Marad had presided over very difficult times, brought up the coronavirus but promoted a good culture in Parliament.

In Rurawhe, Davidson said “what a day for a Maori”, referring to the fact that he was the second Maori in New Zealand history.

Despite the challenges, she wished him the best of luck in supporting kaupapa Māori tikanga in parliament.

Bill leader slams outgoing mallard

Act’s David Seymour congratulated Rurawhe on his election into the role. He cited past democratic issues around the world, noting that Rurawhe had more influence on the development of democracy in New Zealand than anyone else in the country.

Seymour said Rurawhe would start from a “low base” due to “democratic decline”, alluding to Trevor Mallard’s term as speaker.

To the displeasure of some Labour MPs, Seymour went on to point to several flaws he believed were caused by the mallard.

“I have great and sincere hopes for you,” he said.

Second Maori becomes Speaker

Rurawhe is Deputy Speaker and will be the second Māori to become Speaker – the first being the late Sir Peter Tapsell, who held the position under Jim Bolger’s National Government from 1993 to 1996.

Mallard will remain on the backbench before leaving in October to prepare for his new role as New Zealand’s ambassador to Ireland.

Rurawhe was nominated unanimously in the House of Representatives today, and upon confirmation, all MPs received a standing ovation.

Rurawhe, who was welcomed in parliament this morning with whānau and friends, said it was “a little overwhelming but a real honour” to be the speaker after serving as assistant and deputy for the past five years.

He said his priorities were to continue the “family-friendly environment” of parliament and a strong interrogation of the government.

“I’m absolutely committed to giving the Opposition and the entire House every opportunity to hold the government accountable, to hold the government accountable.”

When asked how he differs from Mallard, Rurawhe said his approach will be based on his past experience.

“I’ll bring my life story, my way of doing things, my experience, including being chairman of iwi for 10 years, which was a challenge in itself and I learned a lot of skills.”

He noted that he has the potential to allow freer debate in the House of Representatives than his predecessor.

“I think it could happen, but it needs to happen in a way that still preserves the rights and privileges of the House, it can’t just be laissez-faire for its own sake.”

The election of the Speaker will include brief speeches by Rurawhe and party leaders before Rurawhe travels to the Government House to be formally sworn in by the Governor General.

It is an informal convention for a newly elected Speaker to feign an unwillingness to do the job, and pretend to resist when the Government whips escort them to the Speaker’s chair, although Mallard did not follow that tradition himself.

It dates back to the days when the Speaker reported the views of Parliament to the British monarch – with the risk of punishment if the monarch was unhappy.

Luxon said he welcomed Rurawhe in the role.

“I think he has the good characteristics of what I see as a good leader. One is that he takes responsibility for personal humility and low ego, but has a great deal of determination to make sure parliaments and democracy work well.

“So we look forward to change and hope he does well.”

Luxon said Mallard had a mixed record as speaker — saying Mallard welcomed and supported new MPs and made parliament more family-friendly.

“But National has serious concerns, we have two motions of no confidence and I think his attitude is very uneven. I think even if I go back and look at the debates over the last few years, lives have been lost. This place, so I Hope we get more freedom in future debates.

That’s why I think we’re very much looking forward to Adrian taking over as Speaker. “

He noted that Mallard would expel or punish MPs for laughing or interjecting, saying it had lost the vitality of the debate.

Since 2017, Mallard has had troubled relations with the National Party during his tenure as Speaker, including several motions of no confidence against him. National has often accused Mallard of bias in his decisions and of controlling the debate too much.

National rejects Mallard’s false claims about a parliamentary worker’s involvement in rape and his handling of parliamentary protests in February and March – including the use of music and sprinklers, following an inquiry into parliament’s workplace culture Attempt to drive protesters out.