2013 in New Zealand

Population

• New Zealand total – 4,442,100
• North Island – 3,398,700
• South Island – 1,042,800

• Auckland – 1,381,800
• Christchurch – 369,200
• Dunedin – 115,100
• Gisborne – 35,200
• Hamilton – 214,800
• Invercargill – 49,300
• Kapiti – 40,700
• Napier-Hastings – 127,600
• Nelson – 63,300
• New Plymouth – 54,800
• Palmerston North – 81,500
• Rotorua – 55,800
• Tauranga – 125,700
• Wellington – 389,600
• Whanganui – 39,300
• Whangarei – 53,600

  Incumbents

Regal and vice-regal

• Head of State – Elizabeth II
• Governor-General – Jerry Mateparae

  Government

• Speaker of the House – Lockwood Smith to 31 January, then David Carter
• Prime Minister – John Key
• Deputy Prime Minister – Bill English
• Leader of the House – Gerry Brownlee
• Minister of Finance – Bill English
• Minister of Foreign Affairs – Murray McCully

  Other Party leaders

• Labour – David Shearer to 15 September then David Cunliffe
• Green – Russel Norman and Metiria Turei
• New Zealand First – Winston Peters
• Māori Party – Pita Sharples to 13 July then Te Ururoa Flavell, and Tariana Turia

  Judiciary

• Chief Justice – Sian Elias

  Main centre leaders

• Mayor of Auckland – Len Brown
• Mayor of Tauranga – Stuart Crosby
• Mayor of Hamilton – Julie Hardaker
• Mayor of Wellington – Celia Wade-Brown
• Mayor of Christchurch – Bob Parker to 12 October, then Lianne Dalziel
• Mayor of Dunedin – Dave Cull

  Arts and Literature

Performing Arts

Events

January

February

• 1 February – Callaghan Innovation, a new Crown entity, is launched to replace Industrial Research Limited and parts of the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment.

  March

• 5 March – The 2013 New Zealand census of Population and Dwellings is held, a replacement for the 2011 census that was cancelled after the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake.
• 20 March – Popular breakfast spread Marmite returns to supermarket shelves, albeit still in limited supply, ending "Marmageddon". The sole production line had stopped in November 2011 due to earthquake damage at the Christchurch factory, which resulted in stocks running out in March 2012.

  April

• Police celebrate the second-equal lowest Easter road toll on record – three – second only to 2012's zero.
• The Akaroa Marine Reserve is approved by the Minister of Conservation Nick Smith, 17 years after it was initially proposed.
• 17 April – The Marriage Amendment Bill passes its third reading, with New Zealand becoming the thirteenth country worldwide to pass laws legalising same-sex marriage.
• 28 April – The South Island completes digital television transition when analogue television signals are switched off at 2:00 am.

  May

• 20 May – A morning peak commuter train derails on the approach to Wellington railway station, puncturing a hole in a carriage's floor in the process. Four people are injured and thousands of commuters are stranded as the line into the city is blocked.

  June

• 20–21 June – Wellington is hit by a storm, described to be the worst since the 1968 Wahine storm, with winds reaching 200 km/h. Thousands of homes lose power and part of the Hutt Valley rail line is washed out, causing severe congestion on roads for a week while it is repaired.
• 29 June – Meka Whaitiri wins the Ikaroa-Rāwhiti by-election, replacing the late Parekura Horomia.

  July

• 21 July – A series of earthquakes in Cook Strait, the largest of them 6.5 M_W, affect Wellington and the upper South Island.

  August

• 16 August – A 6.6 M_W earthquake strikes under Lake Grassmere, Marlborough, affecting Wellington and the upper South Island.
• 19 August – The Marriage Amendment Bill came into force, same-sex couples were legally able to marry from this day.
• 22 August – David Shearer announces his resignation as leader of the Labour Party, fearing he no longer had the full confidence of his caucus.

  September

• 15 September – David Cunliffe is elected leader of the Labour Party.
• 29 September – The Lower North Island and East Cape complete digital television transition when analogue television signals are switched off at 3:00 am.

  October

• 7 October – After an appeal to the Privy Council, Mark Lundy's conviction for killing his wife and daughter in August 2000 is quashed and a retrial ordered.
• 12 October – Elections held for all local councils, regional councils and district health boards.

  November

• 30 November – Poto Williams wins the Christchurch East by-election, replacing Lianne Dalziel and retaining the seat for Labour.

  December

• 1 December – The Upper North Island becomes the last region to complete digital television transition bringing to an end 53 years of analogue television broadcasts in New Zealand.
• 11 December – New Zealand's population reaches the 4,500,000 mark, according to Statistics New Zealand estimates.

  Future and predicted events

• The Waitawa Regional Park is set to open.

  Holidays and observances

• 6 February – Waitangi Day
• 25 April – Anzac Day
• 3 June – Queen's Birthday Monday
• 28 October – Labour Day

  Sport

Awards

• Halberg Awards
• * Supreme Award – Lydia Ko
• * Sportsman – Scott Dixon
• * Sportswoman – Lydia Ko
• * Team – All Blacks

  Shooting

• Ballinger Belt – John Snowden

  Births

• 10 May – Taufaʻahau Manumataongo, son of Crown Prince Tupoutoʻa ʻUlukalala and Princess Sinaitakala Fakafanua of Tonga
• 2 October – Gingernuts, Thoroughbred racehorse

  Deaths

January

• 1 January – Lory Blanchard, rugby league player and coach
• 4 January – Guy Henderson, oboist
• 10 January – Bob Fenton, politician
• 25 January – Lloyd Phillips, film producer

  February

• 1 February – Paul Holmes, radio and television broadcaster
• 5 February – Tom McGuigan, politician
• 10 February – Baron Fielakepa, Tongan noble, politician
• 11 February – Tom Aspell, television news producer, foreign correspondent and cameraman
• 16 February – Les McNichol, rugby league player
• 18 February
• * Kevin Black, broadcaster
• * Shayle R. Searle, statistician
• 24 February – Ralph Hotere, artist
• 25 February – Phillip Leishman, broadcaster
• 28 February – Mosese Fotuaika, rugby league player

  March

• 1 March – Sammy Guillen, cricketer
• 2 March – Bryce Rope, rugby union coach
• 3 March – Johnny Hanks, boxer
• 9 March –
• * Geoff Braybrooke, politician
• * Anthony Farrant, cricketer
• 15 March – Joe Schneider, rower
• 18 March – Robin Williams, mathematician
• 20 March
• * George Lowe, mountaineer, last surviving member of 1953 Everest expedition
• * Leslie Milnes, cricketer
• 21 March – Sir Ewan Jamieson, armed forces chief
• 23 March – Peter Sutton, Anglican clergyman, Bishop of Nelson
• 24 March – Barbara Anderson, author
• 29 March – Warren Freer, politician
• 30 March – Eric Hertz, businessman

  April

• 15 April – Dave McArtney, rock guitarist
• 25 April – Eion Scarrow, gardening expert, television presenter, author
• 26 April
• * Joseph Churchward, typeface designer
• * Farrell Temata, rugby union player and coach
• * Tui Uru, broadcaster, singer
• 27 April – Rodney Wilson, art historian, museum director
• 28 April – Bernie Wood, sports historian, rugby league administrator
• 29 April
• * Alex Elisala, rugby league player
• * Pablo Etchegoin, physicist
• * Parekura Horomia, politician, MP for Ikaroa-Rāwhiti
• 30 April – Rata Harrison, rugby league player

  May

• 15 May – Darrell Tryon, linguist
• 16 May – Maurice Marshall, athlete
• 19 May – Mirek Smíšek, potter
• 21 May – Sir Robert Chambers, jurist
• 22 May – Wayne Cottrell, rugby union player
• 29 May – Dame Margaret Shields, politician

  June

• 2 June – Bruce Cathie, UFO author and theorist
• 4 June – Samani Pulepule, Samoan religious leader
• 7 June – Lesley Cantwell, racewalker
• 9 June – Noel McMahon, cricketer
• 13 June – Maxwell Sparks, air force pilot
• 17 June – Michael Baigent, author
• 18 June – Hugh Burry, rugby union player, doctor
• 20 June – Peter Dignan, rower
• 21 June – Dame Barbara Goodman, politician
• 27 June – Ian Scott, painter
• 28 June – Kenneth Minogue, political theorist

  July

• 1 July – Maureen Waaka, politician, beauty pageant contestant
• 2 July – Richard Campion, theatre director
• 11 July – Robin Ferrier, organic chemist
• 23 July – Mike Morwood, archaeologist
• 24 July – John Morrissey, rugby union player, businessman, philanthropist
• 25 July – Barnaby Jack, computer security expert
• 27 July – Marty Schmidt, mountaineer

  August

• 1 August – John Blumsky, broadcaster and journalist
• 2 August – Pixie Williams, singer
• 5 August – Leonard Watson, cricketer
• 7 August – Pat Sheahan, rugby union player, publican
• 9 August – John Oakley, cricketer
• 17 August – Gus Winckel, World War II pilot
• 18 August – Bill Tolhurst, politician
• 20 August – Wayne Hodgson, cricketer
• 23 August – Henry Maxwell, rugby league player
• 27 August – David Stenhouse, evolutionary biologist

  September

• 8 September – Loo-Chi Hu, marine equipment designer, t'ai chi teacher
• 10 September – Mel Cooke, rugby league player
• 11 September
• * Dave Batten, athlete
• * Albert Jones, amateur astronomer
• 18 September – Roy McLennan, politician, mayor of Nelson
• 19 September – Bob Wallace, test driver, automotive engineer
• 27 September – Larry Savage, rugby union player

  October

• 3 October – Charlie McBride, rugby league player
• 15 October – Pat Ryan, boxer
• 21 October – Karl Sim, artist and art forger
• 23 October – Ted Thorne, naval officer
• 25 October
• * Ron Ackland, rugby league player and coach
• * Paddy McFarlane, association footballer
• * Sir William Tyree, electrical engineer, businessman
• 27 October – Fred Creba, Paralympic athlete
• 31 October – Walter Brown, actor

  November

• 5 November – Ian Irvine, rugby union player, disability rights advocate
• 6 November – Peter Fatialofa, rugby union player and coach
• 11 November – William Fyfe, geologist
• 15 November – Keith Cumberpatch, field hockey player

  December

• 2 December – Manny Santos, boxer
• 12 December – Agnes Wood, artist, writer
• 18 December – Onno Boelee, actor, stuntman, professional wrestler
• 19 December – Olive Smuts-Kennedy, politician
• 20 December – Barbara Heslop, immunologist
• 27 December – Alan Richards, cricketer