Bob Tizard | |
|---|---|
 Tizard in 1968 | |
| 6thDeputy Prime Minister of New Zealand | |
| In office 10 September 1974 – 12 December 1975 | |
| Prime Minister | Bill Rowling |
| Preceded by | Hugh Watt |
| Succeeded by | Brian Talboys |
| 29thMinister of Defence | |
| In office 24 July 1987 – 9 February 1990 | |
| Prime Minister | David Lange Geoffrey Palmer |
| Preceded by | Frank O'Flynn |
| Succeeded by | Peter Tapsell |
| 17thMinister of Science and Technology | |
| In office 26 July 1984 – 9 February 1990 | |
| Prime Minister | David Lange Geoffrey Palmer |
| Preceded by | Ian Shearer |
| Succeeded by | Margaret Austin |
| 5thMinister of Energy | |
| In office 26 July 1984 – 16 September 1987 | |
| Prime Minister | David Lange |
| Preceded by | Bill Birch |
| Succeeded by | David Butcher |
| 16thMinister of Statistics | |
| In office 26 July 1984 – 16 September 1987 | |
| Prime Minister | David Lange |
| Preceded by | John Falloon |
| Succeeded by | Margaret Shields |
| 34thMinister of Finance | |
| In office 6 September 1974 – 12 December 1975 | |
| Prime Minister | Bill Rowling |
| Preceded by | Bill Rowling |
| Succeeded by | Robert Muldoon |
| 22ndMinister of State Services | |
| In office 8 December 1972 – 10 September 1974 | |
| Prime Minister | Norman Kirk |
| Preceded by | Jack Marshall |
| Succeeded by | Arthur Faulkner |
| 3rdMinister of Health | |
| In office 8 December 1972 – 10 September 1974 | |
| Prime Minister | Norman Kirk |
| Preceded by | Lance Adams-Schneider |
| Succeeded by | Tom McGuigan |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Robert James Tizard (1924-06-07)7 June 1924 Auckland, New Zealand |
| Died | 28 January 2016(2016-01-28) (aged 91) Auckland, New Zealand |
| Political party | Labour |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 5; includingJudith |
| Military service | |
| Branch/service |  Royal New Zealand Air Force |
| Years of service | 1943–45 |
| Rank |  Flying Officer |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
Robert James TizardCNZM (7 June 1924 – 28 January 2016) was aLabour politician from New Zealand. He served as the sixthdeputy prime minister, theminister of Finance,minister of Health andminister of Defence.
Born inAuckland on 7 June 1924, Tizard was the son of Jessie May Tizard (née Phillips) and Henry James Tizard.[1][2] He was educated atMeadowbank School andAuckland Grammar School, and earned a university scholarship in 1940.[3] He was thedux of the school in 1941.[4] In March 1943 he joined theRoyal New Zealand Air Force. A navigator, he was commissioned as a pilot officer in February 1945,[3][5] and promoted to flying officer in August 1945.[6]
After the war, Tizard studied atAuckland University College, graduating with aBachelor of Arts in 1948 and aMaster of Arts in 1950.[7] Majoring in history, his MA thesis was entitledMr H.E. Holland's Blueprint for New Zealand and the World,Harry Holland having been a previous leader of the New Zealand Labour Party.[8] He was involved in student politics and unionism and was president of theAuckland University Students' Association in 1948.[4] He became a lecturer at Auckland University and was also a teacher atTamaki College andMount Albert Grammar School.[9] By 1957 he was Mount Albert Grammar School's assistant headmaster.[4]
Tizard made his first foray into national politics when he unsuccessfully ran for theRemuera electorate at the1951 general election and again at the1954 general election.[10] He was finally successful at the1957 election, winning in the electorate ofTamaki.[11]
| Years | Term | Electorate | Party | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1957–1960 | 32nd | Tamaki | Labour | ||
| 1963 | 33rd | Otahuhu | Labour | ||
| 1963–1966 | 34th | Pakuranga | Labour | ||
| 1966–1969 | 35th | Pakuranga | Labour | ||
| 1969–1972 | 36th | Pakuranga | Labour | ||
| 1972–1975 | 37th | Otahuhu | Labour | ||
| 1975–1978 | 38th | Otahuhu | Labour | ||
| 1978–1981 | 39th | Otahuhu | Labour | ||
| 1981–1984 | 40th | Otahuhu | Labour | ||
| 1984–1987 | 41st | Panmure | Labour | ||
| 1987–1990 | 42nd | Panmure | Labour | ||
Tizard was the Member of Parliament forTamaki for the next three years.[12] For the duration of theSecond Labour Government Tizard was abackbencher. In the dying days of the government, Prime MinisterWalter Nash overruled security services advice and approved the naturalization of a European emigrant living in Tizard's constituency who had in his youth been linked withMarxist circles, but had lived in New Zealand for many years and had a New Zealand wife and children. The police had not given him a clearance because, in their view, he had not accepted "New Zealand ideals". Nash minuted in 1960 that he should be allowed to naturalise. The file lay on his desk without action for many months however. Tizard found the file and took it to theMinister of Internal Affairs,Bill Anderton (who was the only minister in Wellington during the 1960 election period because he was not standing) and he signed the necessary approval.[13] At the1960 general election he was defeated by National'sRobert Muldoon. Thereafter Tizard and Muldoon developed an intense rivalry with each other, occasionally bitter.[14]
He returned to parliament in a1963 by-election in theOtahuhu electorate, but in the1963 general election was elected MP forPakuranga. When United StatesVice PresidentSpiro Agnew visitedWellington in mid-January 1970, Tizard along with several other Labour Members of Parliament includingArthur Faulkner,Jonathan Hunt, andMartyn Finlay boycotted the state dinner in protest at American policy in Vietnam. However, other Labour MPs including Opposition LeaderNorman Kirk attended the function which dealt with theNixon Doctrine.[15] In1972 he became MP forOtahuhu again. In1984 he became MP forPanmure, until he retired in 1990.
Tizard was Shadow Minister of Finance under leaderNorman Kirk. Contrary to expectation, Tizard was instead appointed asMinister of Health andMinister of State Services when theThird Labour Government was elected in 1972.Bill Rowling was madeMinister of Finance. Tizard was unhappy when informed of the decision but vowed he would put his all in to the job he was given. When exiting Kirk's office he said to colleagueWarren Freer "I'll show the bastard what can be done with health".[16] Tizard and Muldoon (the outgoing finance minister) believed Kirk withheld the finance portfolio for personal reasons and that Kirk's ill health made him impatient to achieve his objectives and wanted to eliminate the possibility of progress being hampered by a potentially reluctant minister.[17] Both Freer and Deputy Prime MinisterHugh Watt had favoured Tizard for Finance, but Kirk thought he was not steady enough for the role and was suspicious of him as an "intellectual". Regardless, he soon proved one of Kirk's most effective ministers.[18] As health minister he established a new practice nurse scheme, instigated changes to group practices and amalgamated several hospitals. At his retirement in 1990 Tizard said he was still then complimented on his work in the health portfolio.[17]
Following the death of Kirk in 1974, Tizard was elected the Labour Party's deputy leader and consequently becameDeputy Prime Minister of New Zealand. He was elected in an exhaustive caucus ballot, in the final iteration he defeated the Minister of DefenceArthur Faulkner 28 votes to 26.[19] Kirk's replacement as Prime Minister,Bill Rowling, appointed Tizard to the portfolio that he had wanted all along –Minister of Finance. As Minister of Finance, Tizard's 1975 budget introduced a number of progressive measures, such as an expansion of spending on education which provided a standard bursary for all students in tertiary studies.[20] He devalued theNew Zealand Dollar by 15% to help local manufacturers and exporters.[21] Overall his period in the finance portfolio was overshadowed by the impacts of the1973 oil crisis which constrained what he could do.[17]
After the surprise defeat of the Third Labour Government in1975 Tizard remained on the front bench as both Deputy Leader of the Opposition and Shadow Minister of Finance.[22] On 1 November 1979 he was challenged for the deputy leadership byDavid Lange the new MP forMangere. Lange succeeded in the challenge, narrowly defeating Tizard 20 votes to 18.[23] Tizard did not take the defeat graciously, repeatedly referring in the caucus meeting to colleagues who voted against him as 'bastards'. Tizard even went as far as to tell Lange "I will never vote for you while your arsehole points to the ground".[14]
In 1983 when Lange became leader Tizard was dropped from the finance portfolio and made Shadow Minister of Energy instead.[24] Tizard made no secret of his displeasure in the demotion stating "If he [Lange] wants to give jobs for the boys that is his business."[25]
In theFourth Labour Government he was elected to the cabinet, due to being one of the few MPs with previous ministerial experience.[26] Initially he held the roles ofMinister of Energy,Minister of Statistics andMinister of Science and Technology during the governments first term from 1984 to 1987.[27] After attaining cabinet rank again he found himself amongst colleagues belonging to a younger generation of thought different from his own leading him to once again be blocked from an economic portfolio. He turned his attention instead to safeguarding his portfolios from the privatisation agenda of finance ministerRoger Douglas and his backers (the "Rogernomes"), fighting against energy corporatisation wherever he could.[17] He was confronted with nearly all of the country's energy resources having been committed to theThink Big policies of the previous government which hampered his plans to convert New Zealand vehicles to alternative fuels. He suspended use of the controversialNational Development Act and assisted with being rescinded with theNational Development Act Repeal Act. Likewise he decided to reinstate control over the construction of hydo-electric dams to theMinistry of Works and Development.[26] Due to his refusal to sellPetrocorp he was removed from the energy portfolio at the end of the term.[17]
As Minister of Science and Technology he established a review into government funding of scientific research.[28] Despite their differences in the past, Tizard increasingly found himself on side with Lange who also came to oppose much of Douglas' agenda. He retracted his previous grudge against Lange and supported him when Douglaschallenged for the leadership. Linking back to his earlier pledge to never vote for him, Tizard told Lange "I don't expect you to lie horizontally on the table so I can vote for you".[14]
During the government's second term Tizard retained only the Science and Technology portfolio, but was also appointedMinister of Defence from 1987 to 1990. During this term he celebrated the milestone30 years as a Member of Parliament.[29] As Minister of Defence he pushed for the approval of purchasing four newAnzac-class frigates which was contentious due to significant opposition to the idea from the Labour Party membership.[14] In 1989 he caused controversy when he said the recently deceased Japanese EmperorHirohito was awar criminal who should have been "shot or publicly chopped up" at the end ofWorld War II.[17] Tizard also garnered public attention when he walked out of a live television interview with journalistLindsay Perigo after Perigo persistently asked, despite warnings from Tizard, questions outside the intended topic of the interview. He briefly returned to the picture after realising he was still wearing the stage microphone.[30]
In August 1989 Tizard announced he would retire from politics at the next general election. When Lange's replacement as Prime MinisterGeoffrey Palmer held a complete reelection of cabinet in early 1990 Tizard was dropped from the cabinet due to his impending retirement. This went against a promise made to him by Lange that he could stay on as a minister until the end of the term. Angry with the outcome Tizard threatened to resign and force a by-election unless he could come to an agreement with the government over a car and housing arrangements for himself and his wife.[31]
His daughter Judith replaced him as MP for Panmure in 1990. She was a member of theAuckland Regional Council (ARC) and resigned after entering parliament. Tizard stood as the Labour candidate to fill the vacancy on the ARC. In a surprise result he was defeated in the by-election byBruce Jesson of the incipientAlliance party.[32] Tizard was annoyed but not surprised with the loss saying "It's no skin off my nose if the public want to be misguided and vote for a bunch of splinters."[33] At the 1992 local-body elections he stood as a candidate for the newly created Auckland Regional Services Trust, but was unsuccessful.[34]
In 2007 Tizard announced his candidacy for theAuckland District Health Board.[35] He was elected to the board, at the age of 83.[36]
In 2009, at the age of 85, Bob Tizard was asked to speak, as a historian, on aspects ofWorld War II at a dinner held to honour CaptainJack Lyon, a New Zealand war hero and former Labour Party Member of Parliament. An mp3 recording of the 25-minute speech is available.[37][38]
Tizard died in Auckland on 28 January 2016, aged 91.[39]
Tizard was appointed a member ofHer Majesty's Privy Council in 1985.[40] In the2000 Queen's Birthday Honours, Tizard was appointed aCompanion of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for public services.[41]
While at university, Tizard metCatherine Maclean, while he was president of theAuckland University Students Association. On their second date Tizard told Maclean he was "going into politics. And I'm going to marry you."[11] They married in 1951. The couple moved to Avondale and started a family, having four children in six years starting with Anne, followed by Linda,Judith and Nigel. They moved in 1957 toGlendowie in the Tamaki electorate. She then returned to university to complete her degree in zoology,[11] and later began teaching at Auckland University before the couple divorced in 1980.[11] Catherine was laterMayor of Auckland from 1983 to 1990 andGovernor-General of New Zealand from 1990 to 1996. He is the father of former Consumer Affairs ministerJudith Tizard, who succeeded her father as the Member of Parliament forPanmure in 1990.[42]
Tizard later met Mary Nacey, with whom he had a son, Joe, in 1982.[43] They married in 1983 with fellow Labour MPRussell Marshall (a Methodist minister) performing the ceremony and another MP, SirBasil Arthur, was the best man.[44] They subsequently divorced.[45]
He then married Beryl Vignale of Canada in 1989. The couple had previously been engaged in 1944 duringWorld War II.[46] While Minister of Defence, following his second divorce, Tizard advertised in a Canadian Air Force magazine to find Beryl. He received ten replies, eight giving information on her whereabouts and two saying 'If you find her please tell me where she is'. While visiting Canada en route to attend the 50th anniversary of theCommonwealth Air Training Plan he visited Beryl for the first time since the war. Also having been married twice, she later repaid the visit before moving to New Zealand permanently to marry Tizard.[47]
Tizard was interested in sport, particularly cricket, squash and golf. He was a member and administrator of the Auckland University Cricket Club. He was a captain at the Remuera Golf Club and represented it in several inter-club competitions.[45] He also possessed an extensive stamp collection which in 1990 was valued at $500,000.[17]
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
| New Zealand Parliament | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament for Tamaki 1957–1960 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament for Otahuhu 1963 1972–1984 | Vacant Constituency abolished, recreated in 1972 Title next held by himself |
| Vacant Constituency recreated after abolition in 1963 Title last held by himself | Constituency abolished | |
| New constituency | Member of Parliament for Pakuranga 1963–1972 | Succeeded by |
| Member of Parliament for Panmure 1984–1990 | Succeeded by | |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Minister of Health 1972–1974 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Minister of State Services 1972–1974 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Minister of Finance 1974–1975 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Deputy Prime Minister of New Zealand 1974–1975 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Minister of Statistics 1984–1987 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Minister of Energy 1984–1987 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Minister of Science and Technology 1984–1990 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Minister of Defence 1987–1990 | Succeeded by |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Deputy-Leader of the Labour Party 1974–1979 | Succeeded by |
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| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
