Simon Watts
Minister of Revenue | |
---|---|
Assumed office 27 November 2023 | |
Prime Minister | Christopher Luxon |
Preceded by | Barbara Edmonds |
7th Minister of Climate Change | |
Assumed office 27 November 2023 | |
Prime Minister | Christopher Luxon |
Preceded by | James Shaw |
Member of the New Zealand Parliament for North Shore | |
Assumed office 17 October 2020 | |
Preceded by | Maggie Barry |
Personal details | |
Born | 1978 or 1979 (age 44–45)[1] |
Political party | National |
Children | 2 |
Profession | Accountant |
Website | simonwatts |
Simon Glen Watts[2] (born 1971/1972)[1] is a New Zealand politician. He has been the Member of the New Zealand House of Representatives for North Shore, representing the National Party, since the 2020 New Zealand general election.
He currently serves as
Early life and career
Watts was born in Cambridge, Waikato, where his family were orchardists. He has two younger brothers.[3] He was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes as a toddler.[4]
Watts attended the
Political career
Years | Term | Electorate | List | Party | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2020–2023 | 53rd | North Shore | 65 | National | |
2023–present | 54th | North Shore | 17 | National |
In 2018 Watts attempted to gain the National nomination in the Northcote by-election to replace former Cabinet Minister Jonathan Coleman, but lost to Dan Bidois.[7]
Watts was selected as the National candidate for the North Shore electorate in March 2020, ahead of four other nominees including former Devonport-Takapuna Local Board member Joe Bergin and Kaipātiki Local Board member Danielle Grant.[5] Watts stated his objectives in politics are giving more government support to the health sector and building more roads and new infrastructure.[6] He is also concerned about improving wastewater networks to improve water quality at beaches.[3]
During the 2020 New Zealand general election, he was elected to the North Shore seat by a margin of 3,734 votes, defeating Labour's candidate Romy Udanga.[8][9] In his first term in Parliament, he sat on the health committee until December 2021 and thereafter sat on the finance and expenditure committee.[10] In the shadow cabinet of Christopher Luxon, Watts was the party spokesperson for local government, regional development, ACC, climate change, and statistics. In the local government portfolio, he was an outspoken critic of the Labour government's Water Services Reform Programme. His member's bill, the Accident Compensation (Notice of Decisions) Amendment Bill, proposed broadening the rights of employers to appeal decisions of the Accident Compensation Corporation but was defeated at its first reading on 7 April 2021.[11]
During the
Personal life
Watts is married with two sons. His wife works in marketing.[5][3]
References
- ^ a b "Candidate for North Shore electorate". Policy.nz. 5 September 2023. Retrieved 7 February 2024.
- ^ "Members Sworn". www.parliament.nz. 5 December 2023. Retrieved 7 February 2024.
- ^ a b c d "A chat with Simon Watts". Channel Magazine. Archived from the original on 27 October 2020. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
- ^ a b Whyte, Anna (24 March 2024). "How does a paramedic become New Zealand's Climate Change Minister?". The Post. Stuff. Retrieved 24 March 2024.
- ^ a b c "National selects North Shore candidate". Rangitoto Observer. 18 March 2020. Archived from the original on 27 October 2020. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
- ^ a b Bhatia, Ripu (30 September 2020). "North Shore candidates for local MP". Stuff. Archived from the original on 27 October 2020. Retrieved 19 October 2020.
- ^ "Green turned National Vernon Tava knocked out of candidate selection for Northcote". Stuff. 10 April 2018. Archived from the original on 14 July 2018. Retrieved 10 April 2018.
- ^ "North Shore - Official Result". Electoral Commission. 6 November 2020. Retrieved 7 January 2021.
- ^ Manch, Thomas (19 October 2020). "New National MPs face 'bittersweet' welcome to Parliament". Stuff. Archived from the original on 24 October 2020. Retrieved 19 October 2020.
- ^ "Watts, Simon - New Zealand Parliament". www.parliament.nz. 13 February 2024. Retrieved 7 February 2024.
- ^ "Accident Compensation (Notice of Decisions) Amendment Bill". bills.parliament.nz. Retrieved 7 February 2024.
- ^ "North Shore - Official Result". Electoral Commission. 3 November 2023. Archived from the original on 11 December 2023. Retrieved 15 December 2023.
- ^ Palmer, Russell (24 November 2023). "Cabinet lineup for new government unveiled - who gets what?". Radio New Zealand. Archived from the original on 4 December 2023. Retrieved 15 December 2023.
- ^ "New Climate Change Minister Simon Watts not expecting criticism at COP28 over fossil fuels U-turn". RNZ. 29 November 2023. Retrieved 7 February 2024.
External links
- Media related to Simon Watts at Wikimedia Commons