Sir Roger
Douglas, politician
Sir Roger Owen Douglas (born 5 December 1937), a New Zealand
politician, formerly served as a senior New Zealand Labour Party
Cabinet minister. He became arguably best-known for his prominent
role in the radical economic restructuring undertaken by the Fourth
Labour Government during the 1980s ("Rogernomics"). In 1993 he
founded the Association of Consumers and Taxpayers (the forerunner
of the ACT New Zealand Party) with Derek Quigley. In 2008 he
returned to Parliament as an ACT Party backbencher.
Douglas
was born in Auckland on 5 December 1937. His family had strong ties
with the trade-union movement, and actively engaged in politics. His
maternal grandfather Bill Anderton, who was Labour Member of
Parliament for Eden from 1935 to 1946 and for Auckland Central from
1946 to 1960, was a cabinet minister in the Second Labour
Government. His father Norman Douglas, a union secretary, was MP for
Auckland Central from 1960 to 1975. His brother
Malcolm Douglas was
briefly Labour MP for Hunua 1978–79.
Douglas received his
secondary education at Auckland Grammar School, and gained a degree
in accountancy from the University of Auckland.
He was
elected MP for Manukau (now Manurewa) in 1969. During the Labour
government of 1972-75 he was given the portfolios of broadcasting
and the post office, and in the 1974 reshuffle he took on housing in
place of the post office. In opposition again, he moved from the
shadow portfolios of trade and industry, and overseas trade, to his
abiding interest, finance, in 1983.
In 1984 he became
finance minister. Reform of the tax system, removal of subsidies and
controls, conversion of many government departments into
corporations in the name of efficiency, removal of import barriers,
and introduction of other open market concepts - these were some of
the changes introduced by Douglas. The policies were so closely
identified with him that they spawned a new term in finance jargon:
"rogernomics." Because they strained relations with the party's
powerful trade union wing, the government had a great deal riding on
the Douglas doctrine that moneymakers must be free to make money
before government can use it to provide for the underprivileged. He
was knighted in 1991.
In 1997, in a back-handed compliment,
the founders of the annual award for "The Worst Transnational
Corporation operating in New Zealand", as voted by "four or five
eminent judges – academics, community leaders, artists, even
sportspeople", named it the "Roger Award" after Sir Roger
Douglas.
During his absence from national politics Douglas
held senior positions at a number of prominent companies such as BIL
which he briefly served as Executive Chairman. He also currently
serves as the managing director of his own group, Roger Douglas
Associates.
28 Sep 2011
Controversial New Zealand MP Sir Roger Douglas has delivered his
farewell speech at Parliament.
It is the second time he has
left but this time the 73-year-old, who first entered Parliament in
1969, says he is off for good.
Douglas changed the face of
the New Zealand economy as the Finance Minister under David Lange's
Labour Government in the 1980s. His brand of economic management
became known as Rogernomics, and opponents blame him for increasing
the gap between rich and poor. Douglas was responsible for
deregulating New Zealand's economy, floating the dollar and
introducing GST.
His second term in office was marked by
conflict with Lange, and he was dramatically sacked in 1988.
In 1990 Douglas left politics, but his liberal economic policies
continued under the subsequent National Government.
Douglas
co-founded the Act Party in 1993 and came back as a backbench MP in
2008.
This time, Douglas says he is definitely not coming
back.
"I'm going to watch cricket."
Any contributions will be
gratefully accepted
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