# 2017 in New Zealand

The following lists events that happened during 2017 in New Zealand.

## Population
### National

Estimated populations as at 30 June.
* New Zealand total – 4,793,700
* North Island – 3,677,200
* South Island – 1,115,800

### Main urban areas

Estimated populations as at 30 June.
* Auckland – 1,534,700
* Blenheim – 31,300
* Christchurch – 396,700
* Dunedin – 120,200
* Gisborne – 36,600
* Hamilton – 235,900
* Invercargill – 50,800
* Kapiti – 42,300
* Napier-Hastings – 133,000
* Nelson – 66,700
* New Plymouth – 57,500
* Palmerston North – 85,300
* Rotorua – 58,800
* Tauranga – 137,900
* Wellington – 412,500
* Whanganui – 40,300
* Whangārei – 57,700

## Incumbents

* Regal and vice-regal
* Government
* Other party leaders
* Judiciary
* Main centre leaders

### Regal and vice-regal

* Head of State – Elizabeth II
* Governor-General – Patsy Reddy
* Elizabeth II
* Patsy Reddy

### Government

2017 is the third and final full year of the 51st Parliament, which first sat on 21 October 2014 and was dissolved on 17 August 2017. A general election was held on 23 September to elect the 52nd Parliament.
The Fifth National Government, first elected in 2008, ends. The Sixth Labour Government begins.
* Speaker of the House – David Carter, then Trevor Mallard from 8 November
* Prime Minister – Bill English until 26 October, then Jacinda Ardern
* Deputy Prime Minister – Paula Bennett until 26 October, then Winston Peters
* Leader of the House – Gerry Brownlee until 2 May, then Simon Bridges until 26 October, then Chris Hipkins
* Minister of Finance – Steven Joyce until 26 October, then Grant Robertson
* Minister of Foreign Affairs – Murray McCully until 2 May, then Gerry Brownlee until 26 October, then Winston Peters
* David Carter
* Trevor Mallard
* Bill English
* Jacinda Ardern
* Paula Bennett
* Winston Peters
* Gerry Brownlee
* Chris Hipkins
* Steven Joyce
* Grant Robertson
* Murray McCully

### Other party leaders

* Labour – Andrew Little until 1 August, then Jacinda Ardern (Leader of the Opposition until 26 October)
* Green – James Shaw and, until 9 August, Metiria Turei
* New Zealand First – Winston Peters
* Māori Party – Te Ururoa Flavell and Marama Fox
* ACT New Zealand – David Seymour
* United Future – Peter Dunne until 23 August, then Damian Light until 14 November (party disbanded)
* Andrew Little
* Jacinda Ardern
* James Shaw
* Metiria Turei
* Winston Peters
* Te Ururoa Flavell
* Marama Fox
* David Seymour
* Peter Dunne

### Judiciary

* Chief Justice – Sian Elias
* President of the Court of Appeal – Stephen Kós
* Chief High Court judge – Geoffrey Venning
* Chief District Court judge – Jan-Marie Doogue
* Sian Elias
* Stephen Kós

### Main centre leaders

* Mayor of Auckland – Phil Goff
* Mayor of Tauranga – Greg Brownless
* Mayor of Hamilton – Andrew King
* Mayor of Wellington – Justin Lester
* Mayor of Christchurch – Lianne Dalziel
* Mayor of Dunedin – Dave Cull
* Phil Goff
* Greg Brownless
* Andrew King
* Justin Lester
* Lianne Dalziell
* Dave Cull

## Events

* January
* February
* March
* April
* May
* June
* July
* August
* September
* October
* November
* December

### February

* 6 February – Sapphire Jubilee of Elizabeth II's accession as Queen of New Zealand
* 13 February – Fires in Hawke's Bay cause a state of emergency to be declared in Hastings.
* 13 February to 20 April – Wild fires burn on the Port Hills of Christchurch
* 22 February – The Canterbury Earthquake National Memorial opens on the sixth anniversary of the 2011 Christchurch earthquake
* 25 February – Mount Albert by-election takes place

### March

* 7 March – Jacinda Ardern is elected deputy leader of the Labour Party
* March – Pumpkin Patch is put into liquidation

### April

* 6 April – A state of emergency is declared as the town of Edgecumbe is evacuated due to flooding caused by the remnants of Cyclone Debbie
* 13–14 April – Cyclone Cook, now an extratropical cyclone, moves across the North Island
* 24 April – Gerry Brownlee resigns from his portfolio of Minister for Supporting Greater Christchurch Regeneration.

### May

* 4 May – State of emergencies are declares in the Whanganui and Rangitikei districts in anticipation of ex tropical Cyclone Debbie.
* 25 May – The 2017 New Zealand budget is presented to Parliament by the Minister of Finance, Steven Joyce

### June

* 5 June – The 2017 Queen's Birthday Honours are announced

### July

* 19–21 July – Severe flooding hits the east coast of the South Island between Christchurch and Balclutha
* 21 July – Mycoplasma bovis disease is found in a South Island herd of cows

### August

* 1 August – Jacinda Ardern elected leader of the Labour Party after Andrew Little resigns

### September

* 23 September – The 2017 general election is held

### October

* 26 October – Jacinda Ardern is sworn in as the 40th Prime Minister of New Zealand
* 31 October – Trolleybuses are withdrawn from service in Wellington

### December

* 4 December – The Healthy Homes Guarantee Act 2017 receives royal assent, having passed its third reading in Parliament on 29 November
* 30 December – The 2018 New Year Honours are announced

## Sport

* Rugby union
* Shooting

### Rugby union

* 2017 British & Irish Lions tour to New Zealand, 3 June – 8 July

### Shooting

* Ballinger Belt –
** Jim Bailey (Australia)
** Brian Carter (Te Puke), third, top New Zealander

## Births

* 9 November – Johnny Get Angry, Thoroughbred racehorse
* 20 November – Mo'unga, Thoroughbred racehorse

## Deaths

Deaths
January · February · March · April · May · June · July · August · September · October · November · December :

### January

* 7 January
** Nick Calavrias, businessman (born 1949)
** Sir Bruce Slane, public servant (born 1931)
* 8 January – Elspeth Kennedy, sharebroker, community leader (born 1931)
* 9 January
** Michael Chamberlain, pastor, exonerated in the death of Azaria Chamberlain (born 1944)
** Brown Turei, Anglican archbishop (born 1924)
* 10 January – Heather McPherson, poet (born 1942)
* 11 January – Newman Hoar, cricketer (born 1920)
* 23 January – Pat Downey, barrister and solicitor, Human Rights Commissioner, legal editor (born 1927)
* 24 January – Manu Maniapoto, rugby union player (born 1935)
* 26 January – Dame Laurie Salas, women's rights and peace activist (born 1922)
* Elspeth Kennedy
* Brown Turei

### February

* 1 February – Bernie Portenski, athlete (born 1949)
* 4 February – John Dickson, poet (born 1944)
* 8 February – Steve Sumner, association footballer (born 1955)
* 12 February – Sione Lauaki, rugby union player (born 1981)
* 13 February – Jim Watson, biotechnologist and entrepreneur (born 1943)
* 14 February – John Watkinson, soil chemist (born 1932)
* 19 February – Halaevalu Mataʻaho ʻAhomeʻe, Tongan royal (born 1926)
* 27 February – Lyn Barnett, singer (born 1945) (body discovered on this date)
* Sione Lauaki

### March

* 1 March – Tania Dalton, netball player (born 1971)
* 3 March – Bramwell Cook, gastroenterologist (born 1936)
* 6 March – Dudley Storey, rower (born 1939)
* 12 March
** Murray Ball, cartoonist (born 1939)
** Eunice Eichler, midwife, open adoption advocate (born 1932)
* 15 March – Phil Garland, folk musician (born 1942)
* 23 March – Nigel Hutchinson, film producer and commercial director (born 1941)
* 24 March – Roger Bradley, cricketer (born 1962)
* 25 March – Eric Watson, rugby union player and coach, cricketer (born 1925)
* 27 March
** Shirley Annan, netball player (born 1940)
** Sean Roberts, cricket (born 1968)
* Dudley Storey
* Phil Garland

### April

* 3 April
** Tomairangi Paki, Tainui kuia, kapa haka exponent (born c.1953)
** Bruce Palmer, lawyer, judge (born 1935)
** Bill Tinnock, rower (born 1930)
* 6 April – John Anslow, field hockey player (born 1935)
* 7 April – Robin Kay, artist, historian (born 1919)
* 8 April – Sir Douglas Myers, businessman (born 1938)
* 9 April – John Clarke, satirist (born 1948)
* 18 April – Digby Taylor, sailor (born 1941)
* 19 April – Jill Amos, politician, activist (born 1927)
* 20 April
** David Dougherty, wrongly convicted of rape and abduction (born 1967)
** Sandy McNicol, rugby union player (born 1944)
* 27 April
** Danny O'Connor, lawn bowls player
** Alexia Pickering, disabilities rights campaigner (born 1930)
* Robin Kay

### May

* 2 May – Hugo Judd, diplomat (born 1939)
* 3 May – Doug Rollerson, rugby union and rugby league player (born 1953)
* 4 May
** Rosie Scott, author (born 1948)
** Beryl Te Wiata, actor, author, scriptwriter (born 1925)
* 6 May – Lyn McLean, lawn bowls player (born c. 1945)
* 13 May – Nicholas Tarling, historian, academic, author (born 1931)
* 15 May – Graeme Barrow, author (born 1936)
* 17 May – Kevin Stanton, musician (born c.1956)
* 18 May – George Martin, rugby league player, field athlete (born 1931)
* 25 May – Earl Hagaman, hotel operator (born 1925)
* Hugo Judd
* Doug Rollerson
* Rosie Scott
* Earl Hagaman

### June

* 11 June – Lois McIvor, artist (born 1930)
* 15 June – Dame Ngāneko Minhinnick, Ngāti Te Ata leader (born 1939)
* 21 June – Oliver Jessel, businessman (born 1929)
* 24 June – Nick Kirk, Anglican cleric (born c.1958)
* 25 June – David Goldsmith, field hockey player (born 1931)
* 26 June
** Sir Duncan McMullin, jurist (born 1927)
** Guy Ngan, artist (born 1926)
* 27 June – Jacinta Gray, cyclist (born 1974)
* 28 June – Bruce Stewart, author, playwright, marae founder (born 1936)
* 29 June – Marrion Roe, Olympic swimmer (born 1935)
* Ngāneko Minhinnick
* Marrion Roe

### July

* 3 July – Rolf Prince, chemical engineering academic (born 1928)
* 5 July
** Chris de Freitas, climatologist (born 1948)
** John Karlsen, actor (born 1919)
* 7 July – Frank Ryan, local-body politician (born 1932)
* 8 July – Gay Eaton, textile artist (born 1933)
* 10 July – Marama Martin, radio and television personality (born 1930)
* 12 July – Allan Hunter, rugby union player, teacher, historian (born 1922)
* 15 July – Michael Cooper, economist (born 1938)
* 16 July – Cliff Whiting, artist, master carver, heritage advocate (born 1936)
* 17 July – George Hill, agronomist (born 1938)
* 18 July – Ian Mason, cricketer (born 1942)
* 23 July
** Wenceslaus Anthony, businessman (born 1957)
** Tom Lister, rugby union player (born 1943)
* Frank Ryan
* Cliff Whiting
* George Hill

### August

* 2 August
** Sir John Graham, rugby union player and administrator, educator (born 1935)
** Paul Renton, rugby union player, farmer (born 1962)
* 4 August – Trevor Martin, cricket umpire (born 1925)
* 6 August – Tim Homer, radio personality (born c.1973)
* 10 August
** Dorothy Fletcher, historian (born 1927)
** Sheila Natusch, naturalist, writer, illustrator (born 1926)
* 14 August – J. S. Parker, painter (born 1944)
* 15 August – Tui Flower, food writer (born 1925)
* 19 August – Alan Sayers, athlete, journalist, writer (born 1915)
* 20 August – Sir Colin Meads, rugby union player, coach and manager (born 1936)
* 22 August – Tom Pritchard, cricketer (born 1917)
* John Graham
* Alan Sayers
* Colin Meads

### September

* 5 September – Cedric Hassall, chemist, academic (born 1919)
* 9 September – Sir Pat Goodman, businessman, philanthropist (born 1929)
* 11 September – Malcolm Templeton, diplomat (born 1924)
* 15 September – Alma Evans-Freke, television presenter (born 1931)
* 16 September – Andrew Leachman, master mariner (born 1945)
* 18 September – Tony Laffey, association footballer (born 1925)
* 19 September – John Nicholson, motor racing driver and engine builder (born 1941)
* 21 September
** David Beatson, journalist, broadcaster (born 1944)
** Vera Burt, cricketer, hockey player, coach and administrator (born 1927)
* 26 September – Wanda Cowley, children's writer (born 1924)
* 29 September
** Annette Johnson, alpine skier (born 1928)
** Ian Smith, rugby union player (born 1941)
* Pat Goodman
* Andrew Leachman
* Ian Smith

### October

* 2 October – Peter Burke, rugby union player, coach and administrator (born 1927)
* 3 October – Norma Williams, swimmer, swimming administrator (born 1928)
* 12 October – Derek Steward, athlete (born 1928)
* 15 October – Francis Pound, art historian, curator and writer (born 1948)
* 19 October – Edmund Cotter, mountaineer (born 1927)
* 21 October – Dave Leech, hammer thrower (born 1927)
* 22 October – Sandy Thomas, military leader (born 1919)
* 23 October – Gordon Ogilvie, historian, biographer (born 1934)
* 29 October – Roly Green, rugby union player (born 1927)
* 30 October – James Beard, architect, town planner, landscape architect (born 1924)
* 31 October
** Norman Hardie, mountaineer (born 1924)
** Terry McCashin, rugby union player, brewer (born 1944)
* Norman Hardie

### November

* 5 November – Geoff Rothwell, World War II bomber pilot (born 1920)
* 6 November – Clem Parker, athlete (born 1926)
* 7 November – Paddles, cat owned by Jacinda Ardern
* 9 November – Tom Coughlan, rugby union player (born 1934)
* 15 November
** Dame Sister Pauline Engel, educator (born 1930)
** Moana Manley, swimmer, beauty pageant contestant (born 1935)
** Bert Ormond, association footballer (born 1931)

### December

* 7 December – Neil Ritchie, cyclist (born 1933)
* 12 December – Jane Galletly, television scriptwriter (born 1928)
* 13 December
** Simon Dickie, rowing coxswain (born 1951)
** Gerald O'Brien, MP for Island Bay from 1969 to 1978 (born 1924)
* 15 December – Michael Hartshorn, organic chemist (born 1936)
* 17 December – Castletown, Thoroughbred racehorse (foaled 1986)
* 21 December – John Vear, cricketer (born 1938)
* 30 December – Dame Cheryll Sotheran, museum executive (born 1945)
* Gerald O'Brien