The 49th New Zealand Parliament was elected at the 2008 election. It comprised 122 members, including an overhang of two seats (an increase of one from the 48th Parliament) caused by the Māori Party having won two more electorate seats than its share of the party vote would otherwise have given it. The Parliament served from December 2008 until the November 2011 election.

New Zealand uses the mixed-member proportional (MMP) system to elect its parliaments. Seventy of the members of the 49th Parliament represented geographical electorates: sixteen in the South Island, 47 in the North Island (one more than for the 48th Parliament) and seven Māori electorates. The remaining 52 (increased from fifty by the overhang) were elected from nationwide party vote candidate lists to realise proportionality.

There were 10 resignations leading to Electoral Commission replacement selections for new list candidates from four parliamentary parties. Lockwood Smith was the Speaker in the 49th Parliament.

Electorate boundaries for 49th Parliament

The Representation Commission altered many of the boundaries of New Zealand's parliamentary electorates following the 2006 census; the large growth in population between censuses lead to significant boundary changes, particularly in Auckland, the area around Christchurch and the central North Island. In May 2007, the Representation Commission announced the boundary changes^[1] to take effect for the next general election, with the boundaries finalised in September 2007.

The Commission announced the formation of a new electorate in Greater Auckland, bringing the number of geographical constituencies to 70. The new electorate, originally dubbed "Howick" (after the Auckland suburb), would have included parts of the existing Pakuranga, Manukau East and Clevedon electorates.^[1] After Pakuranga electors strongly objected to the proposed changes (which would have seen the inclusion of the population centres Panmure, Point England and Glen Innes into the electorate) the Commission largely reverted proposed changes to the boundaries of the Pakuranga electorate. The Commission opted to alleviate population pressures by moving the Auckland City suburb of Otahuhu into Manukau East. The revised new electorate received the name Botany to reflect its focus on the growing population-centres of Botany Downs–Dannemora. On paper, Botany counts as a safe National seat.

Even though the number of South Island electorates remains fixed, the decline in the population of electorates south of Christchurch resulted in the boundaries of electorates from Invercargill north to Rakaia shifting northwards. The electorates of Aoraki, Otago, Rakaia and Banks Peninsula all gravitated towards Christchurch. In the process:

Aoraki received the new name of Rangitata
Otago received the new name of Waitaki
Rakaia received the new name of Selwyn
Banks Peninsula received the new name of Port Hills

Other electorates in the lower South Island increased substantially in size.

2008 election results

The figures below are based on official results^[2] A decrease of 7 MPs is shown for "Other Parties" because the New Zealand First party of Winston Peters did not win an electorate seat or 5% of the party vote, and hence was not allocated any seats in the new Parliament.

Party		Party vote			Electorate vote			Seats

Party		Votes	%	Change (pp)	Votes	%	Change (pp)	List	Electorate	Total	+/-
	National	1,053,398	44.93	5.83	1,072,024	46.60	6.22	17	41	58	10
	Labour	796,880	33.99	7.11	810,238	35.22	5.13	22	21	43	7
	Green	157,613	6.72	1.42	129,584	5.63	1.51	9	0	9	3
	ACT	85,496	3.65	2.14	68,852	2.99	1.02	4	1	5	3
	Māori Party	55,980	2.39	0.27	76,836	3.34	0.02	0	5	5	1
	Progressive	21,241	0.91	0.25	25,981	1.13	0.51	0	1	1
	United Future	20,497	0.87	1.80	25,955	1.13	1.71	0	1	1	2
	NZ First	95,356	4.07	1.65	38,813	1.69	1.80	0	0	0	7
	Bill and Ben	13,016	0.56	new	—	—	—	0	0	0	new
	Kiwi	12,755	0.54	new	15,528	0.68	new	0	0	0	new
	Legalise Cannabis	9,515	0.41	0.16	3,884	0.17	0.05		0	0
	Pacific	8,640	0.37	new	9,714	0.42	new	0	0	0	new
	Family Party	8,176	0.35	new	9,214	0.40	new	0	0	0	new
	Alliance	1,909	0.08	0.01	1,885	0.08	0.01	0	0	0
	Democrats	1,208	0.05		1,758	0.08	0.05	0	0	0
	Libertarianz	1,176	0.05	0.01	1,739	0.08	0.05	0	0	0
	Workers Party	932	0.04	new	480	0.02	new	0	0	0	new
	RAM	465	0.02	new	1,213	0.05	new		0	0	new
	RONZ	313	0.01	new	192	0.01	new		0	0	new
	Unregistered parties	—	—	—	1,363	0.06	0.01		0	0
	Independent	—	—	—	5,013	0.53	0.31	0	–	0
Valid votes		2,344,566	98.66	0.11	2,300,266	96.79	0.2
Informal vote		11,970	0.50	0.04	25,332	1.07	0.01
Disallowed votes		19,944	0.84	0.07	50,882	2.14	0.26
Below electoral threshold		153,461	6.46		—	—	—
Total		2,376,480	100		2,376,480	100		52	70	122	1
Eligible voters and Turnout		2,990,759	79.46	1.46	2,990,759	79.46	1.46

	Name	Electorate	Term in office	Portfolios & Responsibilities
	Lockwood Smith	Rodney	1984 –	Speaker of the House Chair of the Business select committee Chair of the Officers of Parliament select committee Chair of the Standing Orders select committee
	Lindsay Tisch	Waikato	1999 –	Deputy Speaker Deputy chair of the Officers of Parliament select committee
	Eric Roy	Invercargill	1993–2002; 2005 –	Assistant Speaker
Ministers in Cabinet
	John Key	Helensville	2002 –	Prime Minister Minister of Tourism Minister in Charge of Ministerial Services Minister in Charge of the NZ Security Intelligence Service Minister Responsible for the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB) Leader of the National Party
	Bill English	Clutha-Southland	1990 –	Deputy Prime Minister Minister of Finance Minister for Infrastructure Deputy Leader of the National Party
	Gerry Brownlee	Ilam	1996 –	Leader of the House Minister for Economic Development Minister of Energy and Resources Minister of Earthquake Recovery Associate Minister for the Rugby World Cup Deputy Chair of the Privileges Committee
	Simon Power	Rangitīkei	1999 –	Minister of Justice Minister for State Owned Enterprises Minister of Commerce Minister Responsible for the Law Commission Minister of Consumer Affairs Associate Minister of Finance Deputy Leader of the House
	Tony Ryall	Bay of Plenty	1990 –	Minister of Health Minister of State Services
	Nick Smith	Nelson	1990 –	Minister for the Environment Minister for Climate Change Issues Minister for ACC
	Judith Collins	Papakura	2002 –	Minister of Police Minister of Corrections Minister of Veterans’ Affairs
	Anne Tolley	East Coast	1999–2002; 2005 –	Minister of Education Minister Responsible for the Education Review Office
	Chris Finlayson		2005 –	Attorney-General Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage
	David Carter		1994 byelection –	Minister of Agriculture Minister for Biosecurity Minister of Forestry
	Murray McCully	East Coast Bays	1987 –	Minister of Foreign Affairs Minister for Sport and Recreation Minister for the Rugby World Cup
	Tim Groser		2005 –	Minister of Trade Associate Minister of Foreign Affairs Associate Minister for Climate Change Issues (International Negotiations)
	Wayne Mapp	North Shore	1996 –	Minister of Defence Minister of Research, Science and Technology Associate Minister for Economic Development Associate Minister for Tertiary Education
	Steven Joyce		2008 –	Minister of Transport Minister for Communications and Information Technology Minister for Tertiary Education Associate Minister of Finance Associate Minister for Infrastructure
	Georgina te Heuheu		1996 –	Minister for Courts Minister of Pacific Island Affairs Minister for Disarmament and Arms Control Associate Minister of Maori Affairs
	Paula Bennett	Waitakere	2005 –	Minister for Social Development and Employment Minister of Youth Affairs
	Phil Heatley	Whangarei	1999 –	Minister of Fisheries Minister of Housing
	Jonathan Coleman	Northcote	2005 –	Minister of Immigration Minister of Broadcasting Associate Minister of Tourism Associate Minister of Health
	Kate Wilkinson		2005 –	Minister of Conservation Minister of Labour Minister for Food Safety Associate Minister of Immigration
	Hekia Parata		2008 –	Minister of Ethnic Affairs Minister of Women's Affairs Associate Minister of Energy Associate Minister of Community and Voluntary Sector Associate Minister of ACC
	Maurice Williamson	Pakuranga	1987 –	Minister for Building and Construction Minister of Customs Minister of Statistics Minister for Small Business Minister for Land Information
	Nathan Guy	Ōtaki	2005 –	Minister of Internal Affairs Minister Responsible for Archives New Zealand Minister Responsible for the National Library Associate Minister of Justice Associate Minister of Transport
	Craig Foss	Tukituki	2005 –	Minister of Civil Defence Minister of Senior Citizens Minister of Racing Associate Minister for Local Government Associate Minister of Commerce
Members of Parliament
	Chris Tremain	Napier	2005 –	Senior Government Whip Deputy Chair of the Finance and Expenditure select committee
	Jo Goodhew	Rangitata	2005 –	Junior Government Whip Former Chair of the Social Services select committee
	Amy Adams	Selwyn	2008 –	Chairperson, Electoral Legislation Committee Chair of the Finance and Expenditure Select Committee
	Shane Ardern	Taranaki-King Country	1998 byelection –	Chair of the Primary Production select committee
	Paul Hutchison	Hunua	1999 –	Chair of the Health select committee
	Tau Henare		1993–1999; 2005 –	Chair of the Māori Affairs select committee Deputy Chair Auckland Governance Select Committee
	Sandra Goudie	Coromandel	2002 –	Chair of the Law and Order select committee
	Chris Auchinvole	West Coast-Tasman	2005 –	Chair of the Local Government and Environment select committee
	David Bennett	Hamilton East	2005 –	Chair of the Transport and Industrial Relations select committee
	Chester Borrows	Whanganui	2005 –	Chair of the Justice and Electoral select committee
	John Hayes	Wairarapa	2005 –	Chair of the Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade select committee
	Katrina Shanks		2007 –	Chair of the Social Services select committee
	Jackie Blue		2005 –	Deputy chair of the Transport and Industrial Relations select committee
	Jacqui Dean	Waitaki	2005 –	Deputy Chair of the Government Administration select committee Deputy Chair of the Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade select committee
	Colin King	Kaikōura	2005 –	Deputy Chair of the Primary Production select committee
	Nicky Wagner		2005 –	Deputy Chair of the Local Government and Environment select committee
	Simon Bridges	Tauranga	2008 –	Deputy Chair of the Justice and Electoral select committee
	Peseta Sam Lotu-Iiga	Maungakiekie	2008 –	Deputy Chair of the Commerce select committee
	Todd McClay	Rotorua	2008 –	Deputy Chair of Social Services Select Committee
	Nikki Kaye	Auckland Central	2008 –	Deputy Chair Government Administration Select Committee
	Melissa Lee		2008 –
	Tim Macindoe	Hamilton West	2008 –
	Paul Quinn		2008 –
	Kanwal Singh Bakshi		2008 –
	Louise Upston	Taupō	2008 –
	Michael Woodhouse		2008 –
	Jonathan Young	New Plymouth	2008 –
	Aaron Gilmore		2008 –
	Cam Calder		June 2009–
	Jami-Lee Ross	Botany	February 2011–
members of the National caucus who resigned, retired or died during the term of the 49th Parliament
	Richard Worth		1999 – June 2009 (resigned)	succeeded by Cam Calder
	Pansy Wong	Botany	1996 – 2011 (resigned)	succeeded by Jami-Lee Ross
	John Carter	Northland	1987 – June 2011 (resigned)	Became High Commissioner to Cook Islands
	Allan Peachey	Tāmaki	2005 – 6 November 2011 (died)	Chair of the Education and Science select committee

	Name	Electorate	term in office	responsibilities
	Phil Goff	Mount Roskill	1981–1990; 1993 –	Leader of the Opposition Leader of the Labour Party Shadow Minister in Charge of the NZ Security Intelligence Service
	Annette King	Rongotai	1984–1990; 1993 –	Deputy Leader of the Opposition Deputy Leader of the Labour Party
	David Cunliffe	New Lynn	1999 –	Shadow Minister of Finance
	Ruth Dyson	Port Hills	1993 –	Shadow Minister of Health Deputy Chair of the Health select committee
	Parekura Horomia	Ikaroa-Rāwhiti	1999 –	Shadow Minister of Maori Affairs Shadow Minister of Fisheries
	Clayton Cosgrove	Waimakariri	1999 –	Shadow Minister of Police Shadow Minister of Corrections Shadow Minister for State-Owned Enterprises Associate Shadow Minister of Finance Deputy chair of the Law and Order select committee
	Chris Carter	Te Atatu	1993 –	Shadow Minister for Education Shadow Minister of Ethnic Affairs
	Maryan Street		2005 –	Shadow Minister of Trade Shadow Minister for Tertiary Education
	Nanaia Mahuta	Hauraki-Waikato	1996 –	Shadow Minister for the Environment Shadow Minister of Tourism Associate Shadow Minister of Maori Affairs
	David Parker		2002 –	Shadow Attorney-General Shadow Minister for Electoral Reform Shadow Minister of ACC Associate Shadow Minister of Finance Chair of the Government Administration select committee
	Shane Jones		2005 –	Shadow Minister of Local Government Shadow Minister of Building and Construction Shadow Minister for Infrastructure
	Trevor Mallard	Hutt South	1984–1990; 1993 –	Shadow Minister of Labour Shadow Minister for Economic Development and Employment Shadow Minister for Sport and Recreation
	Lianne Dalziel	Christchurch East	1990 –	Shadow Minister of Justice Shadow Minister of Commerce Chair of the Commerce select committee
	Charles Chauvel		2006 –	Shadow Minister for Climate Change Shadow Minister of Energy Associate Shadow Minister of Commerce Chair of the Regulations Review select committee Chair of the Privileges Committee
	Pete Hodgson	Dunedin North	1990 –	Shadow Minister of Immigration Shadow Minister of Defence
	Moana Mackey		2003 –	Shadow Minister for Rural Affairs Shadow Minister for Research and Development Shadow Minister for Science and Technology
	Steve Chadwick		1999 –	Junior Whip Shadow Minister for Conservation
	Sue Moroney		2005 –	Shadow Minister for Women's Affairs Shadow Minister for Early Childhood Education
	Rick Barker		1993 –	Senior Whip Shadow Minister for Courts Shadow Minister of Veterans' Affairs
	Ross Robertson	Manukau East	1987 –	Assistant Speaker Deputy Chair of the Officers of Parliament select committee Shadow Minister for Small Business Shadow Minister for Senior Citizens Shadow Minister for Racing Associate Shadow Minister for Disarmament and Arms Control
	George Hawkins	Manurewa	1990 –	Shadow Minister of Housing
	Damien O'Connor		1993–2008; May 2009 -	Shadow Minister of Agriculture Shadow Minister of Rural Affairs Shadow Minister of Biosecurity
	Mita Ririnui		1999 –	Shadow Minister of Forestry Associate Shadow Minister of Treaty Negotiations Associate Shadow Minister of Agriculture
	Lynne Pillay		1999 –	Shadow Minister for Disability Issues Associate Shadow Minister of Justice
	Ashraf Choudhary		2002 –	Shadow Minister for Food Safety Shadow Minister for Agricultural Science Associate Shadow Minister for Ethnic Affairs
	Darien Fenton		2005 –	Shadow Minister for Transport Safety Associate Shadow Minister of Labour
	William Sio	Mangere	April 2008 –	Shadow Minister of Customs Associate Shadow Minister for Pacific Island Affairs Associate Shadow Minister of Local Government
	Jacinda Ardern		2008 –	Shadow Minister for Youth Affairs Associate Shadow Minister of Justice
	Carol Beaumont		2008 –	Shadow Minister for Consumer Affairs Associate Shadow Minister of Labour
	Brendon Burns	Christchurch Central	2008 –	Shadow Minister of Broadcasting Associate Shadow Minister for the Environment
	Clare Curran	Dunedin South	2008 –	Shadow Minister for Communication and IT
	Kelvin Davis		2008 –	Shadow Minister for Biosecurity Associate Shadow Minister of Education
	Chris Hipkins	Rimutaka	2008 –	Shadow Minister of Internal Affairs Associate Shadow Minister of Energy
	Raymond Huo		2008 –	Shadow Minister Responsible for the Law Commission Shadow Minister of Statistics Associate Shadow Minister for Ethnic Affairs
	Iain Lees-Galloway	Palmerston North	2008 –	Shadow Minister for Land Information Associate Shadow Minister of Defence Associate Shadow Minister of Health
	Stuart Nash		2008 –	Shadow Minister of Revenue Associate Shadow Minister of Trade Associate Shadow Minister of Forestry
	Rajen Prasad		2008 –	Shadow Minister for the Voluntary and Community Sector Associate Shadow Minister for Ethnic Affairs Associate Shadow Minister for Social Development and Employment
	Grant Robertson	Wellington Central	2008 –	Shadow Minister of State Services Associate Shadow Minister for Arts, Culture, and Heritage Associate Shadow Minister of Foreign Affairs
	Carmel Sepuloni		2008 –	Shadow Minister of Civil Defence Associate Shadow Minister for Tertiary Education Associate Shadow Minister for Social Development and Employment
	Phil Twyford		2008 –	Shadow Minister for Disarmament and Arms Control Shadow Minister for Auckland Issues Associate Shadow Minister of Foreign Affairs
	David Shearer	Mount Albert	June 2009 –
	Kris Faafoi	Mana	November 2010 –
	Louisa Wall		April 2011 –
members of the Labour caucus who resigned or retired during the term of the 49th Parliament
	Helen Clark	Mount Albert	1981 – 17 April 2009	resigned to become head of the United Nations Development Program; replaced by David Shearer
	Michael Cullen		1981 – May 2009	replaced by Damien O'Connor
	Winnie Laban	Mana	1999– October 2010	replaced by Kris Faafoi
	Darren Hughes		2002 – April 2011	replaced by Louisa Wall

	Name	term in office	responsibilities
	Metiria Turei	2002 –	Co-leader of the Green Party (May 2009–)
	Russel Norman	2008 –	Co-leader of the Green Party
	Kennedy Graham	2008 –	'Musterer' (party whip)
	Sue Kedgley	1999 –
	Keith Locke	1999 –
	Catherine Delahunty	2008 –
	Kevin Hague	2008 –
	David Clendon	2009 –
	Gareth Hughes	2010 –
members of the Greens caucus who retired during the term of the 49th Parliament
	Sue Bradford	1999–2009
	Jeanette Fitzsimons	1996–2010	Co-leader of the Green Party (1995–2009)

	Name	Electorate	term in office	responsibilities
	Rodney Hide	Epsom	1996 –	Minister of Local Government Minister for Regulatory Reform Associate Minister of Education
	John Boscawen		2008 –	Parliamentary Leader of the ACT Party
	Heather Roy		2002 –
	Roger Douglas		1969–1990; 2008 –
	Hilary Calvert		2010 –	Party Whip
members of the ACT caucus who resigned or retired during the term of the 49th Parliament
	David Garrett		2008–2010

	Name	Electorate	term in office	responsibilities
	Tariana Turia	Te Tai Hauāuru	1996–2014	Minister for the Community and Voluntary Sector Associate Minister of Health Associate Minister of Social Development and Employment Minister for Disability Issues Co-leader of the Māori Party
	Pita Sharples	Tāmaki Makaurau	2005–2011	Minister of Maori Affairs Associate Minister of Education Associate Minister of Corrections Co-leader of the Māori Party
	Te Ururoa Flavell	Waiāriki	2005–2017	Party whip
	Rahui Katene	Te Tai Tonga	2008–2011
members of the Māori Party caucus who resigned or retired during the term of the 49th Parliament
	Hone Harawira	Te Tai Tokerau	2008–2011

Electorate and by-election		Date		Cause
Mount Albert	2009	13 June	Helen Clark	Resignation; appointed to the UNDP	David Shearer
Mana	2010	20 November	Winnie Laban	Resignation	Kris Faafoi
Botany	2011	5 March	Pansy Wong	Resignation	Jami-Lee Ross
Te Tai Tokerau	2011	25 June	Hone Harawira	Resignation; established the Mana Movement	Hone Harawira

Electorate boundaries for 49th Parliament

2008 election results

Members of the 49th New Zealand Parliament

New Zealand National Party (58)

New Zealand Labour Party (42)

Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand (9)

ACT New Zealand (5)

Māori Party (4)

United Future New Zealand (1)

Jim Anderton's Progressive Party (1)

Mana Party (1)

Independent (1)

By-elections during 49th Parliament

Summary of changes during term

Seating plan

As on 5 May 2009

End of term

References