Fourth Labour Government of New Zealand


The Fourth Labour Government of New Zealand governed New Zealand from 26 July 1984 to 2 November 1990. It was the first Labour government to win a second consecutive term since the First Labour Government of 1935 to 1949. The policy agenda of the Fourth Labour Government differed significantly from that of previous Labour governments: it enacted major social reforms and economic reforms.
The economic reforms became known as "Rogernomics", after Finance Minister Roger Douglas. According to one political scientist:
The Labour government also enacted nuclear-free legislation, which led to the United States suspending its treaty obligations to New Zealand under the ANZUS alliance. David Lange led the government for most of its two three-year terms in office. Lange and Douglas had a falling out that divided the party. The government suffered a defeat at the 1990 general election, but the incoming National government retained most of the reforms.

Significant policies

Economic

The government's most notable foreign policy initiative concerned nuclear weapons and the ANZUS alliance. Many New Zealanders wanted to make New Zealand a nuclear-free zone. An opinion poll conducted by the Defence Committee showed that 92% of the population opposed the presence of nuclear weapons entering New Zealand. However this would ultimately require the banning of all American warships from entering New Zealand waters as it was US policy to 'neither confirm nor deny' whether individual ships were nuclear armed. The warships had been visiting New Zealand as part of the ANZUS alliance, and most people hoped that the alliance could be preserved even if the nuclear ban took effect. The issue came to a head shortly after the 1984 election, as a proposed visit by the USS Buchanan was on the cards. Lange announced that the Buchanan would not be welcome, and the US suspended its treaty obligations to New Zealand under the ANZUS alliance. The issue became a cause célèbre in New Zealand, perhaps primarily because small countries rarely stand up to larger and more powerful countries in such a way. In America, those on the right called for trade sanctions against New Zealand while those on the left idealised the country. New Zealand's diplomatic relations with America have never returned to their pre-1984 status, although the nuclear issue is becoming less important. The government also reinstated a diplomatic representative resident in India and appointed Edmund Hillary to the post.

Defence

The government's constitutional reforms were primarily the work of Geoffrey Palmer, a constitutional lawyer who for many years had been concerned about New Zealand's lack of a written constitution and the 'unbridled power' of the executive. These concerns came to the fore when the Government was elected to office, and led to the Official Committee on Constitutional Reform, which reported back to Parliament in February 1986 and led to the 1986 Constitution Act. Ironically, Palmer's government would provide a key example of the executive abusing its power, as one faction in cabinet exerted power disproportionate to its numbers. Palmer's plan for a written constitution and entrenched Bill of Rights was derailed partly by public indifference but mostly by opposition from Māori who believed that the Treaty of Waitangi would be sidelined in the process.

Social policy

Justice

The Fourth Labour Government made significant reforms to resource management, conservation, planning and mining legislation and local government as well as the state sector. Significant new legislation included:
Geoffrey Palmer initiated the Resource Management Law Reform process which later resulted in the enactment of the Resource Management Act 1991 and the Crown Minerals Act 1991, after Labour lost office in the 1990 election.
In 1988, the Fourth Labour Government initiated the first work programme for developing policy for climate change. This was in response to the establishment of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The policy programme was coordinated between agencies by the Ministry of the Environment.

Formation

The fourth Labour government was brought into office by a landslide victory in the 1984 election. This was a snap election called by Prime Minister Robert Muldoon after he lost confidence in his ability to command a majority of Parliament. The very short lead-up time to the election meant that Labour had no time to put together a formal manifesto, and this gave it licence to enact many policies which it had not told voters about before the election. Muldoon was extremely unpopular by this time, and most voters had become disillusioned with his economic policies, so it is entirely likely that Labour would have won this election even if they had announced their programme in advance. There was also a major run on the New Zealand Dollar caused by the constitutional crisis following the election, when outgoing Prime Minister Robert Muldoon refused to devalue the New Zealand dollar.

The 1987 election

Although the government gained one seat, two extra seats had been created since the previous election and its majority remained unchanged at 17. Its share of the vote rose from 43% in 1984 to 48%, although voter turnout was down slightly. It had lost votes from traditional strongholds but gained them in formerly National-leaning seats. According to Lange, this alerted him to the fact that the Labour Party was drifting away from its traditional support base. He was particularly alarmed that Labour had nearly won the wealthy seat of Remuera, traditionally a National stronghold. Public support of the government's stand on the ANZUS issue probably also won it votes.
Despite internal divisions, the government managed to maintain a united front before and during the 1987 election. On election night, Lange raised Douglas' hand in a boxing-style victory pose, to convey unity.
However divisions had already emerged in January and February 1987 over the Māori loan affair, with only two other ministers supporting the proposal of Lange and Palmer that Koro Wētere should resign as Minister of Maori Affairs and from his seat in Parliament, with a consequent election-year by-election.

Division over Rogernomics

The Labour Party was founded on socialist principles and traditionally favoured state regulation of the economy and strong support for disadvantaged members of society. The First Labour Government made major Keynesian reforms along these lines, and subsequent governments continued this system. By the 1970s, the system of regulation, protectionism and high taxes was no longer functioning properly, and required ever more regulation to stabilise it. Meanwhile, the Labour Party, once dominated by working-class and trade unionists, had attracted many middle-class people with its liberal social and independent foreign policies. These new members were interested in international issues such as the apartheid system in South Africa and nuclear weapons, and domestic 'identity politics' issues such as the Treaty of Waitangi and feminism. This group held a very wide range of economic views, but the majority had little interest in or knowledge of economics.
When the Fourth Labour government took office, most members accepted the need for some economic reform. Finance Minister Roger Douglas and his supporters felt that a complete overhaul of the New Zealand economic system was required. Initially most of the government supported this, although a number of traditionalists were already suspicious of Douglas. Gradually more and more MPs, including Prime Minister David Lange became alarmed at the extent and speed of the reforms. Those in the government who wanted to slow or stop the reforms found it difficult to do so. This is partially because few of them knew much about economics, and were thus unable to convincingly rebut the "Douglas" proposals. In 1984, David Caygill and Richard Prebble had been made associate ministers to Douglas, with Douglas, Caygill and Prebble, known as the "Troika" or the "Treasury Troika", becoming the most powerful group in Cabinet.
The "Douglas" faction, which supported the reforms, dominated Cabinet. The doctrine of Cabinet collective responsibility under the "Westminister system" requires all Cabinet members to support Cabinet policy, even if they do not agree with it. Since the Cabinet had a slight majority in the Labour caucus, the Douglas faction was able to dominate caucus even though they were a minority. It was later alleged that Douglas and his supporters had used underhand tactics such as introducing important motions at the last minute, preventing serious debate. David Lange also complained in his autobiography about the "Backbone Club", a caucus group chaired by Ron Bailey which supported Douglas and Rogernomics.
The divisions within the government came to a head in 1988. Lange felt that New Zealand had experienced enough change in a short period, and that the country needed time to recover from the reforms and from the effects of the 1987 stock market crash and the resulting economic recession. Douglas wanted to press on with reforms, and put forward a proposal for a flat tax. Lange initially supported this, but then realised it would inevitably lead to cuts in social services. Without informing his colleagues, he held a press conference announcing that the flat tax scheme would not go ahead. Douglas released a letter and press statement stating a lack of confidence in Lange, and Lange treated it as a resignation. He was replaced as Minister of Finance by David Caygill, who said in an Eyewitness special that he stood for a continuation of Rogernomics.
The next year saw even greater fracturing. After being defeated in his bid for the party presidency, Jim Anderton quit the party to form NewLabour; which stood for Labour's traditional socialist values. Douglas was re-elected to Cabinet, leading to Lange's resignation. He was replaced with Geoffrey Palmer, a Lange supporter and constitutional lawyer. However he lacked the charisma to attract voters, and shortly before the 1990 election he was replaced by Mike Moore.
The Labour Party took several years to recover from the damage of these years and to regain the trust of their former supporters. In the 1990 election, Labour lost many votes to NewLabour, the Greens, and in 1993 to the Alliance Party, which had been formed by NewLabour, the Greens and several other small left-wing political parties.
Douglas did not stand at the 1990 election, and several of his supporters were defeated. He went on to form the ACT Party, which aimed to continue his reforms. He was later joined by Richard Prebble, who became leader.

Defeat and legacy

By the time of the 1990 general election the government was in chaos. Lange had resigned and Mike Moore had taken over from Lange's successor Geoffrey Palmer just eight weeks before the election. Jim Anderton had quit the party to form NewLabour, which represented the Labour Party's traditional values.
The election was a disaster for Labour. The party lost nearly half its seats, including one to Anderton. Anderton's NewLabour Party and the Greens took many votes from Labour, although the first-past-the-post electoral system meant that their share of the vote was not reflected in the division of seats. Michael Bassett commented that the government "whimpered away unlamented, a victim of low commodity prices that delayed economic recovery, but more particularly of catastrophically poor leadership in its second term".
The National Party won the election, forming the Fourth National Government. Labour would not regain power until 1999. Jim Bolger said after inheriting two financial crisis from Labour that Labour had lied during the campaign: he was still angry because the lie was so big. Despite campaigning on the promise of delivering a "Decent Society" following Rogernomics, Bolger's Fourth National Government essentially advanced the free-market reforms of the Fourth Labour Government—this continuation of Rogernomics was called Ruthanasia. The economic structure introduced by Roger Douglas has remained essentially unchanged since the 1980s.
The disillusionment of the electorate was also reflected in referendums in 1992 and 1993 which resulted in electoral reform in the form of a change from first-past-the-post to mixed-member proportional, a form of proportional representation.
The Fourth Labour Government's nuclear-free zone policy is still occasionally debated and has been a subject of controversy in New Zealand. Don Brash talked about repealing the anti-nuclear Act to two visiting United States senators in May 2004, even going so far as to say the ban on nuclear-ship visits would be "gone, by lunchtime even".
He and his party received much criticism for promising foreign politicians to ban something so ingrained in New Zealand political culture.

Election results

ElectionParliamentSeatsTotal votesPercentageGain Seats wonChangeMajority
198441st95829,15442.98%+3.97%56+1317
198742nd97878,44847.96%+4.98%57+117
199043rd97640,91535.14%-12.82%29-28

Prime ministers

was Prime Minister for most of this Government's term. In 1989 he resigned and Geoffrey Palmer replaced him. A little over a year later, Mike Moore replaced Palmer, only eight weeks before the 1990 election:

Cabinet ministers

PortfolioMinisterStartEnd
Prime Minister8 August 1989
Prime Minister4 September 1990
Prime Minister2 November 1990
Deputy Prime Minister8 August 1989
Deputy Prime Minister2 November 1990
Minister of Agriculture9 February 1990
Minister of Agriculture2 November 1990
Attorney-General8 August 1989
Attorney-General2 November 1990
Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage24 August 1987
Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage9 February 1990
Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage2 November 1990
Minister of Broadcasting24 August 1987
Minister of Broadcasting5 November 1988
Minister of Broadcasting2 November 1990
Minister of Civil Defence24 August 1987
Minister of Civil Defence9 February 1990
Minister of Civil Defence2 November 1990
Minister of Commerce2 November 1990
Minister of Conservation24 August 1987
Minister of Conservation30 January 1989
Minister of Conservation2 November 1990
Minister of Customs24 August 1987
Minister of Customs14 December 1988
Minister of Customs8 August 1989
Minister of Customs2 November 1990
Minister of Defence24 July 1987
Minister of Defence9 February 1990
Minister of Defence2 November 1990
Minister of Education24 August 1987
Minister of Education8 August 1989
Minister of Education14 August 1989
Minister of Education2 November 1990
Minister of Employment6 April 1987
Minister of Employment14 August 1989
Minister of Employment2 November 1990
Minister of Energy16 September 1987
Minister of Energy2 November 1990
Minister for the Environment17 February 1986
Minister for the Environment24 August 1987
Minister for the Environment2 November 1990
Minister of Finance14 December 1988
Minister of Finance2 November 1990
Minister of Fisheries9 February 1990
Minister of Fisheries2 November 1990
Minister of Foreign Affairs24 August 1987
Minister of Foreign Affairs9 February 1990
Minister of Foreign Affairs2 November 1990
Minister of Forestry24 July 1987
Minister of Forestry9 February 1990
Minister of Forestry2 November 1990
Minister of Health24 August 1987
Minister of Health30 January 1989
Minister of Health2 November 1990
Minister of Housing24 August 1987
Minister of Housing14 August 1989
Minister of Housing2 November 1990
Minister of Immigration24 August 1987
Minister of Immigration14 August 1989
Minister of Immigration9 February 1990
Minister of Immigration2 November 1990
Minister of Internal Affairs24 August 1987
Minister of Internal Affairs9 February 1990
Minister of Internal Affairs2 November 1990
Minister of Justice8 August 1989
Minister of Justice2 November 1990
Minister of Labour8 August 1989
Minister of Labour2 November 1990
Leader of the House24 August 1987
Leader of the House2 November 1990
Minister of Local Government9 February 1990
Minister of Local Government2 November 1990
Minister of Maori Affairs2 November 1990
Minister of Police16 September 1987
Minister of Police8 August 1989
Minister of Police10 July 1990
Minister of Police2 November 1990
Postmaster-General24 August 1987
Postmaster-General5 November 1988
Postmaster-General14 August 1989
Minister of Railways4 November 1988
Minister of Railways9 February 1990
Minister of Railways2 November 1990
Minister of Revenue24 August 1987
Minister of Revenue15 December 1988
Minister of Revenue9 February 1990
Minister of Revenue2 November 1990
Minister for Social Welfare24 August 1987
Minister for Social Welfare2 November 1990
Minister for Sport and Recreation24 July 1987
Minister for Sport and Recreation10 July 1990
Minister for Sport and Recreation2 November 1990
Minister for State Owned Enterprises4 November 1988
Minister for State Owned Enterprises8 November 1988
Minister for State Owned Enterprises9 February 1990
Minister for State Owned Enterprises2 November 1990
Minister for State Services9 February 1990
Minister for State Services2 November 1990
Minister of Statistics24 August 1987
Minister of Statistics2 November 1990
Minister of Tourism24 August 1987
Minister of Tourism10 January 1988
Minister of Tourism24 August 1989
Minister of Tourism2 November 1990
Minister of Trade2 November 1990
Minister of Trade and Industry10 October 1988
Minister of Trade and Industry11 July 1989
Minister of Transport24 August 1987
Minister of Transport2 November 1990
Minister of Works15 August 1987
Minister of Works8 November 1988
Minister of Works9 February 1990
Minister of Works2 November 1990
Minister for Women24 August 1987
Minister for Women2 November 1990