page_title: Robert Muldoon
section_title: Minister of Finance
hierarchical_section_title: Robert Muldoon / Early career / Minister of Finance
caption_attribution_description: English: Minister of Finance, Mr Muldoon, (at centre) and the Member for Otaki, Mr A. McCready greet Mr A.J. Shaw, Before luncheon. Thurs. 26 June 1969.
context_page_description: Sir Robert David Muldoon GCMG CH PC was a New Zealand politician who served as the 31st Prime Minister of New Zealand, from 1975 to 1984, while Leader of the National Party.
  Serving as a corporal and sergeant in the army in the Second World War, Muldoon completed his training as an accountant and returned to New Zealand as its first fully qualified cost accountant. He was first elected to the House of Representatives at the 1960 general election as the Member of Parliament for Tamaki. Muldoon served successively as Minister of Tourism, Minister of Finance, and Deputy Prime Minister. He became Leader of the Opposition in 1974 and soon led the National Party to a decisive victory in the 1975 general election.
  Muldoon came to power promising to lead "a Government of the ordinary bloke." He appointed himself Minister of Finance. His tenure as Prime Minister was plagued by an economic pattern of stagnation, high inflation, growing unemployment, and high external debts and borrowing. Economic policies of the Muldoon Government included national superannuation, wage and price freezes, industrial incentives, and the Think Big industrial projects.
context_section_description: The Holyoake government was again re-elected at the 1966 general election. However, Muldoon was passed over as a new Cabinet minister following the election, with fellow Young Turks Duncan MacIntyre and Peter Gordon appointed ahead of him. Holyoake appointed Muldoon as Minister of Tourism and Associate Minister of Finance 12 months later.
  When Harry Lake died suddenly of a heart attack in February 1967, Prime Minister Keith Holyoake appointed Muldoon over Tom Shand (who himself died unexpectedly in December 1969) and Jack Marshall who had declined the post. Muldoon was to remain Minister of Finance for 14 of the next 17 years; at 45, he became the youngest Minister of Finance since the 1890s. At the time there was a serious economic crisis due to a down-turn in the price of wool.
  In response to this crisis, Muldoon introduced mini-budgets instead of annual budgets, the first being presented on 4 May 1967. He cut and held public expenditure and increased indirect taxes to reduce demand. As a result, Muldoon was credited with the better economic performance New Zealand enjoyed, raising his profile among the public.
  Muldoon established a considerable national profile rapidly; Holyoake would later credit his image, rather than that of his deputy, Jack Marshall, for the National Party's surprise victory in the 1969 election. He displayed a flair for the newly introduced medium of television (broadcasts began in New Zealand in 1960).
caption: Muldoon (centre) as Minister of Finance, 26 June 1969; with him are Allan McCready MP and A J Shaw
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