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Debbie Ngarewa-Packer

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Debbie Ngarewa-Packer
MP
Member of the New Zealand Parliament
for Māori Party list
Incumbent
Assumed office
17 October 2020
Co-leader of the Māori Party
Incumbent
Assumed office
15 April 2020
Co-leader with John Tamihere (April-October 2020) and Rawiri Waititi (October 2020-present)
Preceded byMarama Fox
Personal details
Born1966 or 1967 (age 56–57)[1]
South Taranaki, New Zealand
Political partyMāori Party (2020–present)
RelationsMarried
Children3
OccupationBusiness consultant, business director

Debbie Ngarewa-Packer is a New Zealand politician. She is a Member of Parliament and co-leader of the Māori Party,[2][3] and is the leader and chief executive of the Ngāti Ruanui iwi.[2][4][5] She stood for the Māori Party during the 2020 election in the seat of Te Tai Hauāuru. While she failed to win the electorate, she was placed #1 on the Māori Party list, where she won a list seat once the special votes were counted.

Early life

Ngarewa-Packer grew up in Pātea and attended New Plymouth Girls' High School.[6]

Local government

Ngarewa-Packer is a former deputy mayor of South Taranaki.[7][8] She was first elected to the South Taranaki District Council in the 2007 local elections, representing the Pātea ward, having also unsuccessfully contested the mayoralty.[9][10] However, new mayor Ross Dunlop named her as his deputy mayor.[11] She held that role until 2010, when she did not seek re-election and was replaced by Alex Ballantyne.[12]

Māori Party

New Zealand Parliament
Years Term Electorate List Party
2020–present 53rd List 1 Māori Party

Ngarewa-Packer was elected co-leader of the Māori Party in April 2020, along with John Tamihere. Both ran uncontested.[2][3][13] She had previously been selected to be the Māori Party's candidate for the Te Tai Hauāuru electorate for the 2020 election in October 2019, and was the first electoral candidate announced by the party for that election.[4] Ngarewa-Packer and Tamihere were the first party leaders elected since the Māori Party lost its parliament seats in the 2017 election, after which its previous leaders stepped down.[13] Ngarewa-Packer had the party's number one list position for the 2020 election.[14]

Ngarewa-Packer was generally considered to be the Māori Party's best chance at returning to Parliament; with polls showing the party below the 5 percent threshold, it would need to win at least one electorate seat to enter. However, a poll released in late September 2020 showed that Labour's candidate for Te Tai Hauāuru, Adrian Rurawhe, as having greater support than Ngarewa-Packer, though there was a large number of undecided voters in the poll. In response to the poll, Ngarewa-Packer said she was buoyed by the number of undecided voters and called the electorate “winnable”.[15][16]

At the 2020 election, she was elected as a Member of Parliament. Preliminary results showed that while she had come second in the electorate of Te Tai Hauāuru,[17] fellow Māori Party candidate Rawiri Waititi had unseated Labour MP Tamati Coffey in the Waiariki Māori electorate, allowing the Māori Party to enter Parliament, and the Māori Party itself received 1.0% of the vote. With those results, the Māori Party would be entitled to enter Parliament, but have just one seat, filled by Waititi. However, the final count confirmed Waititi's electorate win, and showed the party had received 1.2% of the party vote, making it entitled to two seats and allowing Ngarewa-Packer to join Waititi in Parliament.[18][19]

Based on Waititi's entry to Parliament and John Tamihere's failure to win a seat, Waititi replaced Tamihere as the male co-leader, making Ngarewa-Packer and Waititi co-leaders.[20]

Ngāti Ruanui and local activism

Ngarewa-Packer is chief executive of the Ngāti Ruanui iwi.[2] She is also kaiarataki of Te Rūnanga o Ngāti Ruanui, which runs healthcare centres in Hāwera and Pātea.[21]

Ngarewa-Packer has been advocating for Māori health and the environment at a grassroots level for many years.[13] She has campaigned against iron sands mining off the Taranaki coast.[4] In April 2020, the Court of Appeal found that the Environmental Protection Authority's decision in 2017 to grant a marine discharge consent to a mining company was not consistent with the law to protect the environment from harmful substances.[22] However, the company behind the plan is seeking leave from the Supreme Court to appeal.[23] On the appeal, Ngarewa-Packer said "We’re annoyed that we may have to go to court for a fourth time as right now our efforts are focused on protecting our community from Covid-19. But we are undeterred in our resolve and we will oppose TTR’s application for yet another appeal."[13]

In 2004, she rallied more than 250 Taranaki people to join with the foreshore and seabed hikoi on its way to Wellington.[4]

In 2011, she joined a 10-member independent panel set up by the Government to identify ways to raise the rate of return on Maori-owned assets, and grow Maori contribution to New Zealand's economy.[8]

Regarding the Covid-19 response, The Spinoff described Ngarewa-Packer as "a key voice in the Covid-19 iwi response, not only in analysing and mitigating risks in her own rohe, but in keeping applied pressure on local and central government to include Māori in their risk assessment."[13]

Personal

Ngarewa-Packer is of Ngāti Ruahine, Ngāruahine, and Ngā Rauru iwi.[13] She is a descendant of Tutange Waionui of Ngati Ruanui, who fought alongside Titokowaru during the New Zealand Land Wars and claimed credit for killing Austrian mercenary Gustavus von Tempsky.[24] Ngarewa-Packer was a nominee for the Taranaki Daily News person of the year in 2018.[4][25]

References

  1. ^ https://policy.nz/candidates/M4#Debbie-Ngarewa-Packer
  2. ^ a b c d Forbes, Stephen (15 April 2020). "John Tamihere and Debbie Ngarewa-Packer selected as new Māori Party co-leaders". Stuff. Retrieved 26 April 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  3. ^ a b "Tamihere and Ngarewa-Packer new Māori Party leaders". RNZ. 16 April 2020. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  4. ^ a b c d e Keith, Leighton (13 October 2019). "Debbie Ngarewa-Packer selected to represent the Māori Party in 2020 general election". Stuff. Retrieved 25 April 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  5. ^ "Covid-19: More iwi checkpoints to be set up in Taranaki for alert level 3". RNZ. 24 April 2020. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  6. ^ Morton, Jamie (22 July 2020). "Taking a spin with the Māori Party's Debbie Ngarewa-Packer". NZ Herald. ISSN 1170-0777. Retrieved 28 July 2020.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  7. ^ "Whale bone sculpture not wanted". RNZ. 12 March 2009. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  8. ^ a b "Ngarewa-Packer to help shape Maori economics". Stuff. Retrieved 26 April 2020.
  9. ^ "Your Vote 07 - The results". NZ Herald. 13 October 2007. ISSN 1170-0777. Retrieved 28 July 2020.
  10. ^ "South Taranaki District Council election results". Taranaki Daily News. 15 October 2007. p. 2.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  11. ^ Woodd, Richard (25 October 2007). "New councillor makes deputy". www.pressreader.com. Retrieved 28 July 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  12. ^ "Eltham deputy upbeat on choice". Stuff. 26 October 2010. Retrieved 28 July 2020.
  13. ^ a b c d e f Hayden, Leonie (24 April 2020). "Debbie Ngarewa-Packer on attack politics, Covid-19 and her new Māori Party co-leader". The Spinoff. Retrieved 6 June 2020.
  14. ^ "Māori Party announces candidate list with co-leaders ranked 1st and 7th". RNZ. 28 August 2020. Retrieved 28 August 2020.
  15. ^ "Election 2020: Poll of Te Tai Hauāuru brings bad news for Māori Party". Stuff. 28 September 2020. Retrieved 28 September 2020.
  16. ^ Hayden, Leonie (17 October 2020). "Pōtitanga predictions: What to watch out for in the Māori electorates". The Spinoff. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
  17. ^ "Te Tai Hauāuru - Preliminary Count". Electoral Commission. Retrieved 26 October 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  18. ^ https://electionresults.govt.nz/electionresults_2020/. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  19. ^ "Special votes: National loses two seats, one each to Labour, Māori Party". RNZ. 6 November 2020. Retrieved 6 November 2020.
  20. ^ "NZ Election 2020: Waiariki's Rawiri Waititi will become Māori Party co-leader". Newshub. 19 October 2020. Retrieved 21 October 2020.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  21. ^ Shaskey, Tara (17 March 2020). "Coronavirus: Taranaki's medical centres won't cope, owners of Māori GP services say". Stuff. Retrieved 26 April 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  22. ^ Coster, Deena (15 April 2020). "Taranaki iwi boss Debbie Ngarewa-Packer announced as new Māori Party co-leader". Stuff. Retrieved 26 April 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  23. ^ "Taranaki seabed mining opponents ready to stop 'risky extractive practice' again". RNZ. 23 April 2020. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  24. ^ "Memorial to warrior to be unveiled". RNZ. 4 September 2009. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  25. ^ Harvey, Helen (26 December 2018). "Person of the Year nominee: Debbie Ngarewa-Packer leads seabed mining fight". Stuff. Retrieved 25 April 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
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