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David MacLeod

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For the American football player, see David McLeod.

David MacLeod
MacLeod in 2023
Member of the New Zealand Parliament
for New Plymouth
Incumbent
Assumed office
14 October 2023
Preceded byGlen Bennett
3rd Chair of Taranaki Regional Council
In office
2007–2022
Preceded byDavid Walter
Succeeded byCharlotte Littlewood
Personal details
Born1967 or 1968 (age 56–57)
Hāwera, New Zealand
Political partyNational
SpouseLeasa
Children3

David Nigel MacLeod[1] (born 1967 or 1968)[2] is a New Zealand businessman and politician. Since 2023, he is the Member of Parliament in the House of Representatives for New Plymouth, representing the National Party. He previously served as chair of the Taranaki Regional Council from 2007 to 2022.

Early life and career

[edit]

MacLeod, of Ngāti Mutunga, Ngāi Tahu, and Ngāti Porou descent, was born in Hāwera and raised on his family's farm in Manaia. He is the seventh of eight children born to Joy Rangimarie TePoi MacLeod and Thomas Nigel MacLeod.[3][4]

His maternal grandfather was Ned Ellison, a doctor and health administrator.[5] The National Party Member of Parliament for Egmont and Waitotara Venn Young was his godfather.[6] MacLeod is married to Leasa; they share three children.[2]

MacLeod attended Hawera High School and then completed an electrician apprenticeship with Greaves Electrical. He became a partner in the firm in 1991 and became managing director in 1999.[2][7][8] Under his leadership, MacLeod expanded the business to include a lines company. He stepped down from management in 2012 and sold the business in 2023.[9][10]

Local government and governance career

[edit]

In 2000, MacLeod was elected to the South Taranaki constituency of the Taranaki Regional Council in a by-election following the death of councillor Ralph Latta.[11] He was re-elected in 2001, 2004, and 2007. After the 2007 election, he was unanimously elected as council chair.[12] MacLeod was returned unopposed at the 2010 election and also reappointed as chair.[13][14]

As a Taranaki district councillor, MacLeod voted against the creation of a Taranaki Māori constituency in 2011, saying it was his preference to foster relationships between the council and local iwi.[15] As chair, MacLeod led on regional co-governance measures including the appointment of iwi representatives to council committees.[16] He changed his mind to support the creation of a Māori constituency in 2021, when the proposal was supported by all eight Taranaki iwi, despite holding a personal view that the Māori constituency system is "flawed".[17]

MacLeod continued on the council, and as chair, until 2022, when he did not run for re-election.[18] After his re-election in 2019, a rival candidate complained to the Auditor-General that council advertising featuring MacLeod's image had given him an unfair advantage.[19] The Auditor-General advised the council that it may wish to reconsider its policy on pre-election advertising.[20]

While holding local government office, MacLeod served as a director of the council-owned Port Taranaki from 2001 to 2023.[21][22] He was also elected as a member of the Fonterra board in 2011. He was the first Māori director of the co-operative.[23] He stepped down from the board in 2017, after completing two terms.[24][25] MacLeod's election to the board was controversial because although he occupied a farmer-representative position he was not a farmer, and because the Taranaki Regional Council he chaired had recently invested in Fonterra bonds.[23][26] He was appointed to the board of Predator Free 2050 in 2016 and became acting chair in 2021, stepping down in 2022 to run for parliament.[27][28]

Member of Parliament

[edit]
New Zealand Parliament
Years Term Electorate List Party
2023–present 54th New Plymouth 67 National

On 31 October 2022, MacLeod was selected as National's candidate for New Plymouth at the 2023 New Zealand general election.[2] When his campaign was announced, MacLeod identified Taranaki roads, increasing the number of immigrants available to the workforce, and the oil and gas industry as areas he was keen to work on when in parliament.[6] During the campaign he ran afoul of signage rules by placing his signs outside the designated timeframe and using incorrect font sizes.[29]

MacLeod was listed low on the party list at 67 out of 74, due to the expectation he would win his electorate; it was a placement that former MP and political editor Claudette Hauiti said should have McLeod "fuming", but which he said was "irrelevant" as it showed the party was confident he would win the electoral seat.[30][31] On election night MacLeod beat incumbent Labour MP Glen Bennett by a margin of 6,991 votes.[32][33]

MacLeod was appointed the chair of the environment committee and a member of the finance and expenditure committee.[34] He was stood down from his committee roles on 21 May 2024 after failing to declare 19 donations totalling $178,394.[35][36] On 7 June 2024, the Electoral Commission referred MacLeod to the Police over the undeclared donations. MacLeod maintained that his failure to declare the donations was a genuine mistake and stated that he hope the investigation would make it clear that he did not intend to deceive anyone.[37] On 29 August 2024, the Police concluded their investigation into MacLeod's donations and declined to take further action.[38] Following the Police decision, MacLeod was appointed as a member of the regulations review and Māori affairs committees.[34]

References

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  1. ^ "Taranaki Regional Council candidate expense declarations" (PDF). Taranaki Regional Council.
  2. ^ a b c d "David MacLeod Selected As National's Candidate In New Plymouth". Scoop.co.nz. New Zealand National Party. 31 October 2022.
  3. ^ "Joy MACLEOD Obituary (2022)". Legacy.com. 14 June 2022. Retrieved 11 April 2024.
  4. ^ "Thomas MACLEOD Obituary (2016)". Legacy.com. 23 August 2016. Retrieved 11 April 2024.
  5. ^ "Address in Reply". New Zealand Parliament. 31 January 2024. Retrieved 11 April 2024.
  6. ^ a b McLean, Glenn (1 November 2022). "David MacLeod confirmed as National Party candidate for New Plymouth". Stuff. Retrieved 20 October 2023.
  7. ^ "Bright spark powers up electrical firm". Daily News. New Plymouth. 4 August 2003. p. 5.
  8. ^ McLeann, Glenn (28 January 2000). "Two candidates for vacant council spot". Daily News. New Plymouth. p. 4.
  9. ^ Anthony, John (19 November 2012). "All jobs retained in electrical firm merger". Taranaki Daily News. p. 14.
  10. ^ "Northpower acquires Linepower". Welcome to Northpower. 29 March 2023. Archived from the original on 1 June 2023. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
  11. ^ Paltridge, Antony (20 March 2000). "MacLeod wins poll for regional council seat". Daily News. New Plymouth. p. 4.
  12. ^ Maetzig, Rob (1 November 2007). "TRC chairmanship rivals now a team". Taranaki Daily News. p. 4.
  13. ^ Evans, Ryan (11 October 2010). "Williamson sole new face on TRC". Taranaki Daily News. p. 5.
  14. ^ "Easy start for TRC". Taranaki Daily News. 27 October 2010. p. 3.
  15. ^ Smith, Jared (10 August 2011). "Dedicated Maori wards rejected". Taranaki Daily News. p. 4.
  16. ^ Ashworth, Craig (8 October 2023). "National candidate says local co-governance not a target". NZ Herald. Retrieved 11 April 2024.
  17. ^ "Taranaki Regional Council votes to establish Māori ward". RNZ. 6 April 2021. Retrieved 11 April 2024.
  18. ^ McLean, Glenn (29 June 2022). "Taranaki Regional Council chairman and deputy stepping down". Taranaki Daily News. Stuff.
  19. ^ "Taranaki Regional Council chair David MacLeod under fire for 'unfair' ads". RNZ. 17 October 2019. Retrieved 20 October 2023.
  20. ^ Watson, Mike (21 January 2020). "Regional council told it 'may wish to reconsider' its approach to pre-election advertising after complaint". Stuff. Retrieved 20 October 2023.
  21. ^ "Councillor joins board". Taranaki Daily News. 14 December 2007. p. 3.
  22. ^ "Changes to Port Taranaki Board of Directors". Port Taranaki. Retrieved 11 April 2024.
  23. ^ a b O'Dowd, Sue (15 November 2011). "Taranaki man Fonterra's first Maori director". www.stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 11 April 2024.
  24. ^ "Fonterra directors retire". Fonterra. 11 September 2017. Retrieved 11 April 2024.
  25. ^ "MacLeod to step down from Fonterra board". Rural News Group. 11 September 2017. Retrieved 11 April 2024.
  26. ^ Stewart, Rachel (17 October 2011). "TRC: Is it gamekeeper and poacher?". Taranaki Daily News. p. 8.
  27. ^ "David MacLeod appointed Chair of Predator Free 2050 Ltd". Predator Free 2050 Limited. 17 March 2022. Retrieved 11 April 2024.
  28. ^ "David MacLeod steps down as Predator Free 2050 Limited Board chair". Predator Free 2050 Limited. 1 November 2022. Retrieved 11 April 2024.
  29. ^ McLean, Glenn (5 June 2023). "New Plymouth National candidate's tsunami of billboards must come down after falling foul of new council signage rules". Stuff. Retrieved 20 October 2023.
  30. ^ Joseph Los'e (20 October 2023). "Hauiti: If National were new and innovate about their candidates, those three would be listed higher". NZ Herald. Retrieved 20 October 2023.
  31. ^ McLean, Glenn (21 August 2023). "Near bottom party ranking 'irrelevant' for National's New Plymouth candidate". Stuff. Retrieved 20 October 2023.
  32. ^ Lana Andelane (15 October 2023). "NZ election 2023 live electorate results". Newshub. Retrieved 20 October 2023.
  33. ^ "New Plymouth – Official Result". Electoral Commission. 3 November 2023. Archived from the original on 10 December 2023. Retrieved 12 December 2023.
  34. ^ a b "MacLeod, David – New Zealand Parliament". www.parliament.nz. 18 September 2024. Retrieved 20 September 2024.
  35. ^ Swift, Molly (21 May 2024). "National MP David MacLeod stood down after failing to declare election donations". Newshub. Archived from the original on 21 May 2024.
  36. ^ "Politics live: National MP David MacLeod stood down after failing to declare donations". RNZ. 21 May 2024. Archived from the original on 21 May 2024. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
  37. ^ Whyte, Anna; McLean, Glenn (7 June 2024). "'Hasn't come as a surprise': National MP David MacLeod referred to police over donations". The Press. Archived from the original on 8 June 2024. Retrieved 8 June 2024.
  38. ^ Moir, Jo (29 August 2024). "Police drop investigation into National MP". RNZ. Archived from the original on 30 August 2024. Retrieved 1 September 2024.
New Zealand Parliament
Preceded by Member of Parliament for New Plymouth
2023–present 		Incumbent
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