Nathan Guy | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 2ndMinister for Primary Industries | |
| In office 28 January 2013 – 26 October 2017 | |
| Prime Minister | John Key Bill English |
| Preceded by | David Carter |
| Succeeded by | Portfolio disestablished |
| 54thMinister of Immigration | |
| In office 14 December 2011 – 31 January 2013 | |
| Prime Minister | John Key |
| Preceded by | Jonathan Coleman |
| Succeeded by | Michael Woodhouse |
| Member of theNew Zealand Parliament forŌtaki | |
| In office 8 November 2008 – 17 October 2020 | |
| Preceded by | Darren Hughes |
| Succeeded by | Terisa Ngobi |
| Majority | 6,156 |
| Member of theNew Zealand Parliament for National Party List | |
| In office 17 September 2005 – 8 November 2008 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1970 (age 54–55) |
| Nationality | New Zealander |
| Political party | National |
| Relations | Malcolm Guy (father) |
Allen Nathan Guy (born 1970)[1] is a New Zealand farmer and former politician. He was elected to Parliament in 2005 as alist MP for theNational Party and held theŌtaki electorate from 2008 until 2020, when he retired. Guy wasMinister of Immigration from 2011 to 2013 andMinister for Primary Industries from 2013 to 2017. He now serves as the chair of the Meat Industry Association.[2]
Guy is a farmer from nearLevin. He has been involved in various agricultural sector trusts and councils, and studied farming atMassey University. In 1999, he was the regional winner of the Kiwi dairy farmer of the year.[3] In 2000, he travelled to the United States to study ways of increasing the value of New Zealand beef exports.[4] By 2003, he had taken over his father's dairy farm.[3]
Guy served eight years on theHorowhenua District Council from 1998 to 2005.[5][6] His father, grandfather, and great-great-grandfather all had political careers. Guy's great-great-grandfather, Duncan Guy, was a member of the Napier Borough Council; his grandfather (also named Duncan Guy) was chairman of the Horowhenua County Council; his father,Malcolm Guy, also served as chairman of the Horowhenua County Council and was the first mayor of theHorowhenua District from 1989 to 1995.[7][8] His maternal great-grandfather, Fred Nathan, wasMayor of Palmerston North from 1923 to 1927.[7][9]
Guy's great-grandfather was chairman of theWellington and Manawatu Railway Company when the last spike was driven on the company's line atOtaihanga, an event re-created on 19 February 2011 when Guy drove the last spike at the newWaikanae Railway Station opening ceremony.[10]
| Years | Term | Electorate | List | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005–2008 | 48th | List | 39 | National | |
| 2008–2011 | 49th | Ōtaki | 18 | National | |
| 2011–2014 | 50th | Ōtaki | 20 | National | |
| 2014–2017 | 51st | Ōtaki | 16 | National | |
| 2017–2020 | 52nd | Ōtaki | 12 | National | |
In the2005 election, Guy was a candidate for theNational Party, standing in theŌtaki electorate and being ranked 39th on the party list. He narrowly lost the election to Labour'sDarren Hughes, by a margin of 1.00% or 382 votes[11] but entered Parliament as alist MP.
Guy's first three years in Parliament were in Opposition. He was a member of thePrimary Production select committee for much of this term, and was a member of the Privileges and Standing Orders committees for about seven months until the 2008 election.[12] WhenJohn Key became National leader in 2006, Guy became the party's juniorwhip and an associate spokesperson for agriculture.[13] In February 2008, he was promoted tosenior whip and continued in that position until June 2009.[14]
In the2008 election he was again the candidate forŌtaki, this time defeating Hughes by 1,354 votes.[15] Guy held the electorate three subsequent times, with his greatest majority being 7,782 votes over the Labour candidate in 2014.[16][17][18]
On 15 June 2009 Guy was selected as the newMinister of Internal Affairs, a position outside of the Cabinet, to replaceRichard Worth after the latter resigned following allegations ofsexual harassment.[14] At the same time, Guy became an associate minister in the justice and transport portfolios. As internal affairs minister, Guy oversaw the merger of theNational Library of New Zealand andArchives New Zealand into theDepartment of Internal Affairs.[19][20]
Guy was involved in a controversy that was revealed in 2017. It emerged that, in 2011 as the Minister of Internal Affairs, he had granted New Zealand citizenship to US billionairePeter Thiel after only 12 days residence (split over 4 trips in 5 years) in New Zealand.[21] The normal residency requirement for a permanent resident to gain citizenship is 1350 days over 5 years. Thiel was granted citizenship by Guy under "exceptional circumstances" despite Thiel not having lived in the country previously and not intending to do so in the future. Thiel was the first adult to be granted New Zealand citizenship without meeting residency requirements.[22]
On 14 December 2011, following the2011 New Zealand general election, Guy was sworn in as theMinister of Immigration,Minister for Racing,Minister for Veterans' Affairs and Associate Minister for Primary Industries. Later that term, in January 2013, he was promoted to the role ofMinister for Primary Industries, while continuing as the Minister for Racing. During his period as minister the2013 Fonterra botulism scare and recall occurred.
Guy lost his ministerial roles when the National Party was not returned to government at the2017 general election. In opposition, he was initially the party's spokesperson for primary industries and sat on Parliament's primary production committee.[23] From March 2018 until his announcement on 30 July 2019 that he would not seek re-electionin 2020, he was the spokesman for agriculture, biosecurity and food safety.[24] From August 2019 until his retirement, he sat on the environment committee.[23]
Guy typically voted conservatively on social policy. He opposedsame-sex marriage in 2005, by voting for theMarriage (Gender Clarification) Amendment Bill, which would have amended the Marriage Act to define marriage as only between a man and a woman,[25] and in 2014, by voting against theMarriage (Definition of Marriage) Amendment Bill, a bill allowing same-sex couples to marry in New Zealand.[26]
Guy also opposed theEnd of Life Choice Bill in 2019, which regulated assisted suicide in New Zealand, and theAbortion Legislation Bill in 2020, which decriminalised abortion.[27][28]
In November 2020, Guy contested but failed to win a seat on the board of New Zealand dairy co-operativeFonterra.[29] He was appointed chair of Apiculture New Zealand in July 2022 and chair of the Meat Industry Association in August 2022.[30][31]
| New Zealand Parliament | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of Parliament for Ōtaki 2008–2020 | Succeeded by |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Minister of Internal Affairs 2009–2011 | Succeeded by |
| Minister Responsible for the National Library 2009–2011 | ||
| Minister Responsible for Archives New Zealand 2009–2011 | ||
| Preceded by | Minister of Immigration 2011–2013 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Minister for Primary Industries 2013–2017 | Succeeded by Portfolio Disestablished |
