Jo Luxton | |
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![]() Luxton in 2023 | |
66th Minister of Customs | |
In office 8 May 2023 – 27 November 2023 | |
Prime Minister | Chris Hipkins |
Preceded by | Damien O'Connor (acting) |
Succeeded by | Casey Costello |
Member of the New Zealand Parliament for Rangitata | |
In office 17 October 2020 – 14 October 2023 | |
Preceded by | Andrew Falloon |
Succeeded by | James Meager |
Member of the New Zealand Parliament for Labour party list | |
In office 23 September 2017 – 17 October 2020 | |
Personal details | |
Born | 1973 (age 50–51) |
Political party | Labour (2013–present) |
Spouse | Matt |
Children | 3 |
Relatives | Norman Kirk (great-uncle) |
Jo-Anne Marie Luxton (born 1973)[1] is a New Zealand politician and a Member of Parliament in the House of Representatives for the Labour Party. From 8 May to 27 November 2023, she was Minister of Customs in the Sixth Labour Government.
Luxton owns and operates the Hinds Early Learning Centre, the first such business in New Zealand to be an accredited Living Wage Employer.[2] She is the great-niece of former Labour Prime Minister Norman Kirk.[1] She is of Māori descent.[3]
In October 2022 she admitted causing a three-car crash in Timaru.[4]
Years | Term | Electorate | List | Party | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2017–2020 | 52nd | List | 29 | Labour | |
2020–2023 | 53rd | Rangitata | 39 | Labour | |
2023–present | 54th | List | 19 | Labour |
Luxton stood for Labour in the Rangitata electorate in the 2017 election and was placed 29 on Labour's party list.[5] Luxton did not win the electorate, but entered parliament as a list MP.[6]
At the 2020 New Zealand general election Luxton again ran in Rangitata for the Labour party; and in a surprise victory, defeated National's Megan Hands by a final margin of 4,408 votes.[7] Rangitata had been traditionally regarded as a safe National seat.[8]
In a cabinet reshuffle by Prime Minister Chris Hipkins on 31 January 2023, Luxton was appointed a Parliamentary Under-secretary to the Ministers of Agriculture and Education.[9] In another cabinet reshuffle by Hipkins on 8 May 2023, caused by Meka Whaitiri resigning from the Labour Party, Luxton was appointed Minister of Customs and Associate Minister for Agriculture and Education.[10]
During the 2023 general election, Luxton was unseated by National MP James Meager by a margin of 10,846 votes.[11] She was however re-elected on the Labour party list.[12]
In late November, Luxton became the spokesperson for agriculture, biosecurity and rural communities in the Shadow Cabinet of Chris Hipkins.[13]
On 5 December 2023, Luxton was granted retention of the title The Honourable, in recognition of her term as a member of the Executive Council.[14]
In mid–September 2020, Luxton announced that she would not be voting in support of the Cannabis Legalisation and Control Bill referendum, citing her own personal experiences of being in relationship with a person who abused cannabis.[15]
Luxton has stated that she would be voting in favour of the End of Life Choice Act 2019 during the 2020 euthanasia referendum, citing her belief that people should be able to die with dignity and the experiences of her terminally ill mother.[15]