The Honourable
Megan Woods
MP
portrait photo of a woman in her late 40s
Woods in 2023
17th Minister of Energy and Resources
In office
26 October 2017 – 27 November 2023
Prime MinisterJacinda Ardern
Chris Hipkins
Preceded byJudith Collins
Succeeded bySimeon Brown
28th Minister of Housing
In office
27 June 2019 – 27 November 2023
Prime MinisterJacinda Ardern
Chris Hipkins
Preceded byPhil Twyford
Succeeded byChris Bishop
9th Minister for Building and Construction
In office
14 June 2022 – 27 November 2023
Prime MinisterJacinda Ardern
Chris Hipkins
Preceded byPoto Williams
Succeeded byChris Penk
5th Minister for Infrastructure
In office
1 February 2023 – 27 November 2023
Prime MinisterChris Hipkins
Preceded byGrant Robertson
Succeeded byChris Bishop
Minister for Economic Development (Acting)
In office
28 March 2023 – 12 April 2023
Prime MinisterChris Hipkins
Preceded byStuart Nash
Succeeded byBarbara Edmonds
Minister of Forestry (Acting)
In office
28 March 2023 – 12 April 2023
Prime MinisterChris Hipkins
Preceded byStuart Nash
Succeeded byPeeni Henare
Minister of Police (Acting)
In office
15 March 2023 – 20 March 2023
Prime MinisterChris Hipkins
Preceded byStuart Nash
Succeeded byGinny Andersen
26th Minister for Research, Science and Innovation
In office
26 October 2017 – 14 June 2022
Prime MinisterJacinda Ardern
Preceded byPaul Goldsmith
Succeeded byAyesha Verrall
Minister for Greater Christchurch Regeneration
In office
26 October 2017 – 6 November 2020
Prime MinisterJacinda Ardern
Preceded byNicky Wagner
Succeeded byOffice abolished
Member of the New Zealand Parliament
for Wigram
Assumed office
26 November 2011
Preceded byJim Anderton
Majority14,770
Personal details
Born (1973-11-04) 4 November 1973
Political partyLabour (since 2007)
Other political
affiliations		Progressive Party (1999–2007)
WebsiteProfile on Labour website
Academic background
Alma materUniversity of Canterbury
ThesisIntegrating the nation: Gendering Maori urbanisation and integration, 1942–1969 (2002)
Doctoral advisorKatie Pickles

Megan Cherie Woods (born 4 November 1973) is a New Zealand Labour Party politician who served as a Cabinet Minister in the Sixth Labour Government and has served as Member of Parliament for Wigram since 2011.

Early life

Woods was born and grew up in Wigram, Christchurch.[1] She attended high school at Catholic Cathedral College. She obtained a master's degree from the University of Canterbury with her thesis being titled Re/producing the nation : women making identity in New Zealand, 1906–1925.[2] She went on to obtain a PhD in history again at the University of Canterbury[3] with a thesis titled Integrating the nation: Gendering Maori urbanisation and integration, 1942–1969.[4]

Professional life

Woods was a business manager for Crop & Food Research (2005–08) and its successor organisation Plant and Food Research (2008), based at Lincoln.[1]

Political career

Woods and Anderton at the Riccarton Market

Woods was a member of the Alliance Party from 1999 until 2002, when she joined the breakaway Progressive Party. She was involved in several of Jim Anderton's re-election campaigns.[5] She contested the Christchurch Central electorate in the 2005 general election and came fourth, receiving 1077 votes (3.2% of the electorate votes).[6] She was placed fourth on the Progressive party list. As the party obtained only 1.2% of the party vote, she did not enter Parliament that year.

She was a member of the Spreydon-Heathcote community board in Christchurch from 2004 to 2007.[1]

Woods joined the Labour Party in 2007.[5] In the same year, she contested the Christchurch mayoralty for the centre-left Christchurch 2021 group, receiving 32,821 votes and coming second against Bob Parker (47,033 votes), but beating Jo Giles (14,454 votes) in the election contested by ten candidates.[7][8] She did not contest the 2008 general election or the 2010 mayoral election.

Woods was selected as the Labour candidate for the 2011 election in the Wigram electorate.[1][5] She succeeded Jim Anderton, who had announced that he would retire either after winning the Christchurch mayoralty (he was unsuccessful) or at the end of the term of the 49th Parliament in November 2011. Woods was a key member of Anderton's campaign committee, along with key Progressive Party members like Jeanette Lawrence and Liz Maunsell, and Labour activists such as campaign manager Tony Milne, Ben Ross and Liana Foster.[9] Until the 2010 Canterbury earthquake, Anderton was leading in the opinion polls, and winning the mayoralty would have caused a by-election in the Wigram electorate.[10] The earthquake resulted in a mood swing in Christchurch, and Anderton lost against Bob Parker.[11] Anderton remained an MP until the end of the term of the 49th Parliament, and Woods won in the 2011 general election in the Wigram electorate.[5]

Member of Parliament

New Zealand Parliament
Years Term Electorate List Party
2011–2014 50th Wigram 47 Labour
2014–2017 51st Wigram 20 Labour
2017–2020 52nd Wigram 6 Labour
2020–present 53rd Wigram 5 Labour

In opposition: 2011–2017

Woods's candidacy, which began in late 2010, was centred on job creation in her electorate. She stated in her Labour selection speech that "Growing up here in the 1980s, I watched people lose their jobs. I saw workplaces like the Addington Workshops shut their doors forever. Now I am 36 years old and am watching jobs disappear from our communities again."[5] Woods also cited the rising cost of living for everyday people as a major concern.

During the 2011 election, Woods won the seat with 45.11% of the vote and a majority of 1,500 votes.[12] Woods won re-election in the 2014 election with an increased majority.[13]

Woods was previously Labour Party's spokesperson for the Environment and Climate Change and has served prior as the Party's spokesperson for Tertiary Education and associate spokesperson for Science and Innovation.[14][15]

During the 2017 general election, Woods retained Wigram for Labour by a margin of 4,594 votes.[16]

In government: 2017–2023

Woods was elected as a Cabinet Minister by the Labour Party caucus following Labour's formation of a coalition government with New Zealand First and the Greens.[17] As of 2017, Woods is the Minister of Energy and Resources. On 12 April, Woods announced that the Government would halt future gas and oil exploration but clarified that the existing 22 contracts would be allowed to continue.[18]

On 27 June 2019, in Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern's first major reshuffle of the coalition government, Woods was appointed Minister of Housing, replacing Phil Twyford.[19]

On 19 June 2020, Woods was given joint responsibility with Air Commodore Darryn Webb for overseeing isolation and quarantine facilities for travellers entering New Zealand, as part of the government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic.[20][21]

During the 2020 general election, Woods served as the Labour Party's campaign chairperson.[22] She retained her seat of Wigram by a final margin of 14,770 votes.[23] In early November 2020, she retained her ministerial portfolios of Housing, Energy and Resources, and Research, Science and Innovation, while picking up the position of Associate Minister of Finance.[24]

In late February 2021, Woods defended the Government's Progressive Home Ownership Scheme, which had cost NZ$17 million but only resettled 12 families in the last seven months. In response, National's housing spokesperson Nicola Willis described the programme as a failure and contended that Woods was out of touch.[25]

During the 2023 general election campaign, Woods served as Labour's campaign chairperson for a second time.[22] In early June 2023, she attracted media attention after publishing a Twitter post likening the opposition National Party's proposal to bring back the NZ$5 prescription fee to the dsytopian novel and TV show The Handmaid's Tale. In response, National's deputy leader Willis stated she was offended by Woods' post and accused the Labour Government of "going into the gutter" and making "ridicolous, baseless attacks."[26]

In Opposition, 2023–present

During the 2023 election held on 14 October, Woods was re-elected in Wigram by a margin of 1,179 votes.[27] On 5 December 2023, she was granted retention of the title The Honourable, in recognition of her term as a member of the Executive Council.[28]

In late November 2023, Woods became spokesperson for climate change, energy, resources and associate finance in the Shadow Cabinet of Chris Hipkins.[29]

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Megan Woods.
  1. 1 2 3 4 Conway, Glenn (20 September 2010). "Anderton follower chosen for Wigram". The Press. Archived from the original on 21 September 2010. Retrieved 21 September 2010.
  2. ↑ Woods, Megan (1997). Re/producing the nation : women making identity in New Zealand, 1906–1925 (Masters thesis). UC Research Repository, University of Canterbury. doi:10.26021/3628. hdl:10092/4827.
  3. ↑ "Dr Megan Woods". Plant & Food Research. Retrieved 20 October 2010.
  4. ↑ Woods, Megan (2002). Integrating the nation: Gendering Maori urbanisation and integration, 1942–1969 (Doctoral thesis). UC Research Repository, University of Canterbury. doi:10.26021/4042. hdl:10092/4352.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 "Megan Woods to stand for Labour in Wigram". Newshub. 19 September 2010. Archived from the original on 20 June 2020. Retrieved 20 October 2010.
  6. ↑ "Official Count Results – Christchurch Central". Electoral Commission. Archived from the original on 27 May 2010. Retrieved 20 October 2010.
  7. ↑ Gay, Edward; Ihaka, James (13 October 2007). "New faces aplenty in local government shake-ups". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 23 October 2011.
  8. ↑ "Christchurch City Mayor". Local Elections 2010. Archived from the original on 27 August 2010. Retrieved 14 October 2011.
  9. ↑ The People's Mayor Announces. 18 July 2010. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 28 October 2017.
  10. ↑ Booker, Jarrod (12 September 2010). "Anderton presses on with mayoral bid". The New Zealand Herald. Archived from the original on 28 October 2017. Retrieved 20 October 2010.
  11. ↑ "Parker re-elected in Christchurch". The Dominion Post. 9 October 2010. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 10 October 2010.
  12. ↑ "Official Count Results – Wigram". Electoral Commission. 10 December 2011. Archived from the original on 19 January 2020. Retrieved 11 September 2014.
  13. ↑ "Official Count Results – Wigram". Electoral Commission. 20 September 2014. Archived from the original on 21 January 2020. Retrieved 20 September 2014.
  14. ↑ "About Megan". Megan Wood's website. Archived from the original on 20 October 2017.
  15. ↑ "Megan Woods". New Zealand Labour Party. Archived from the original on 26 November 2014. Retrieved 30 November 2014.
  16. ↑ "Wigram – Official Result". Electoral Commission. Archived from the original on 17 January 2020. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
  17. ↑ "Who's in? Who's out?". Radio New Zealand. 20 October 2017. Archived from the original on 20 July 2018. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
  18. ↑ "Oil, gas exploration move a 'kick in the guts' for Taranaki – mayor". Radio New Zealand. 11 April 2018. Archived from the original on 12 November 2019. Retrieved 11 April 2018.
  19. ↑ Cooke, Henry (27 June 2019). "PM takes housing off Phil Twyford in first major reshuffle". Stuff. Archived from the original on 17 December 2019. Retrieved 27 June 2019.
  20. ↑ Cooke, Henry (19 June 2020). "Housing Minister Megan Woods taking on responsibility for border management". Stuff. Archived from the original on 20 June 2020. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
  21. ↑ "Housing Minister Megan Woods to oversee managed isolation and quarantine facilities". Radio New Zealand. 19 June 2020. Archived from the original on 20 June 2020. Retrieved 20 June 2020.
  22. 1 2 Malpass, Luke (27 May 2023). "Professionals, true believers and mad men: the teams behind the election campaigns". The Post. Archived from the original on 26 May 2023. Retrieved 5 August 2023.
  23. ↑ "Wigram – Official Result". Electoral Commission. Retrieved 13 November 2020.
  24. ↑ "Ministerial List for Announcement on Monday" (PDF). Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 2 November 2020. Archived (PDF) from the original on 3 November 2020. Retrieved 4 November 2020.
  25. ↑ "Progressive Home Ownership Scheme houses just 12 families in seven months". Radio New Zealand. 24 February 2021. Archived from the original on 25 February 2021. Retrieved 3 March 2021.
  26. ↑ Palmer, Russell (1 June 2023). "National brands Labour's Handmaid's Tale tweet as 'appalling'". Radio New Zealand. Archived from the original on 13 June 2023. Retrieved 5 August 2023.
  27. ↑ "Wigram - Official Result". Electoral Commission. 3 November 2023. Archived from the original on 23 November 2023. Retrieved 26 November 2023.
  28. ↑ "Retention of the title "The Honourable"". New Zealand Gazette. 8 December 2023. Retrieved 8 December 2023.
  29. ↑ "Labour Party leader Chris Hipkins reveals new shadow Cabinet". Radio New Zealand. 30 November 2023. Archived from the original on 11 December 2023. Retrieved 16 December 2023.
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