Father of the House (New Zealand)

Father or Mother of the House is an unofficial title applied to the longest-serving member of Parliament (MP) sitting in the New Zealand House of Representatives. In New Zealand, no duties or special distinctions are associated with the position. The current Father of the House is Gerry Brownlee, List MP and formerly member for Ilam. He has served continuously in the House of Representatives since 12 October 1996. The current Mother of the House, as the longest continuously serving female MP, is Judith Collins. She was first elected in 2002.^[1]

The position is usually determined by continuous service, not aggregate time in parliament or the earliest year of entry. For example, Damien O'Connor has served as long as Brownlee, and entered parliament a term earlier (in 1993), but since he lost his seat in 2008 he is not considered a joint Father of the House. When more than one MP have served equally long periods, the title is usually assigned to whoever was sworn in first, a process which happens alphabetically by surname.

In New Zealand's first general election of 1853, the Bay of Islands electorate was the first to declare the election of a successful candidate, Hugh Carleton, who was returned unopposed. In the subsequent General Assembly of 1854, Carleton liked to be known as the Father of the House.^[2]

In March 2005 then Prime Minister Helen Clark became the first to be dubbed Mother of the House.^[3]

List of Fathers and Mothers of the House

Key

Independent	Liberal	Reform	United
Labour	National	Progressive	United Future

	Name	Image	First elected	Became Father/Mother	Left Parliament	Time in Parliament	Time as Father/Mother	Notes	References
	Hugh Carleton		14 July 1853		30 December 1870[nb 1]	17 years, 5 months and 16 days		Defeated in 1871 election	[2][4]
	Alfred Brandon		29 July 1858	30 December 1870	8 November 1881[nb 2]	23 years, 3 months and 10 days	10 years, 10 months, 10 days	Retired in 1881	[5]
	Sir Maurice O'Rorke		18 January 1861	8 November 1881	3 October 1890[nb 3]	29 years, 8 months and 15 days	8 years, 10 months, 26 days	Defeated in 1890 election, re-elected in 1893	[6]
	Harry Atkinson		3 October 1872[nb 4]	3 October 1890	22 January 1891	18 years, 3 months and 19 days	3 months, 20 days	Premier 1876–1877, 1883–1884, 1884, 1887–1891; resigned in 1891[nb 5]	[7]
	Ebenezer Hamlin		18 January 1876	22 January 1891	8 November 1893[nb 6]	17 years, 9 months and 21 days	2 years, 9 months, 18 days	Retired in 1893	[8]
	Richard Seddon		5 September 1879	8 November 1893	10 June 1906	26 years, 9 months and 5 days	12 years, 7 months, 3 days	Prime Minister 1893–1906; died in office	[9]
	Sir William Steward		9 December 1881[nb 7]	10 June 1906	20 November 1911[nb 8]	29 years, 11 months and 11 days	5 years, 5 months, 11 days	Retired in 1911	[10][11][12]
	Sir Arthur Guinness		22 July 1884	20 November 1911	10 June 1913	28 years, 10 months and 19 days	1 year, 6 months, 21 days	Died in office	[11][13]
	Sir James Carroll		7 September 1887	10 June 1913	27 November 1919[nb 9]	32 years, 2 months and 20 days	6 years, 5 months, 18 days	Defeated in 1919 election	[14]
	Sir James Allen		4 May 1892[nb 10]	27 November 1919	22 March 1920	37 years, 10 months and 18 days	3 months, 25 days	Resigned in 1920	[15]
	William Massey		9 April 1894	22 March 1920	10 May 1925	31 years, 1 month and 1 day	5 years, 1 month, 20 days	Prime Minister 1912–1925; died in office	[16]
	Sir Thomas Wilford		4 December 1896	10 May 1925	18 November 1929	32 years, 11 months and 14 days	4 years, 6 months, 8 days	Resigned in 1929[nb 11]	[17][18]
	Sir Āpirana Ngata		20 December 1905	18 November 1929	30 August 1943[nb 12]	37 years, 8 months and 10 days	13 years, 9 months, 12 days	Defeated in 1943 election	[19]
	Peter Fraser		3 October 1918	30 August 1943	12 December 1950	32 years, 2 months and 9 days	7 years, 3 months, 13 days	Prime Minister 1940–1949; died in office	[20]
	Bill Parry		17 December 1919	12 December 1950	27 July 1951[nb 13]	31 years, 7 months and 10 days	7 months, 16 days	Retired in 1951	[21]
	Robert McKeen		7 December 1922	27 July 1951	5 October 1954[nb 14]	31 years, 9 months and 28 days	3 years, 2 months, 8 days	Retired in 1954	[22]
	Rex Mason		15 April 1926	5 October 1954	25 October 1966[nb 15]	40 years, 6 months and 10 days	12 years, 20 days	Retired in 1966	[23]
	Sir Walter Nash		18 December 1929	25 October 1966	4 June 1968	38 years, 7 months and 17 days	1 year, 7 months, 10 days	Prime Minister 1957–1960; died in office	[24]
	Robert Macfarlane		3 June 1939	4 June 1968	24 October 1969[nb 16]	30 years, 4 months and 21 days	1 year, 4 months, 20 days	Retired in 1969
	Sir Keith Holyoake		25 September 1943[nb 17]	24 October 1969	10 March 1977	33 years, 5 months and 13 days	7 years, 4 months, 14 days	Prime Minister 1957, 1960–1972; resigned in 1977[nb 18]	[25]
	Warren Freer		24 September 1947	10 March 1977	29 October 1981[nb 19]	34 years, 1 month and 5 days	4 years, 7 months, 19 days	Retired in 1981	[26]
	Mick Connelly		27 October 1956	29 October 1981	14 June 1984[nb 20]	27 years, 7 months and 18 days	2 years, 7 months, 16 days	Retired in 1984
	Sir Robert Muldoon		26 November 1960	14 June 1984	17 December 1991	31 years and 21 days	7 years, 6 months, 3 days	Prime Minister 1975–1984; resigned in 1991	[27]
	Jonathan Hunt		26 November 1966	17 December 1991	30 March 2005	38 years, 4 months and 4 days	13 years, 4 months, 13 days	Resigned in 2005[nb 21]	[28]
	Helen Clark		28 November 1981	30 March 2005	18 April 2009	27 years, 4 months and 21 days	4 years, 19 days	Prime Minister 1999–2008; resigned in 2009 Deemed to hold the post ahead of Michael Cullen due to the alphabetical order in which they were sworn in.	[3][29]
	Michael Cullen		28 November 1981	18 April 2009	29 April 2009	27 years, 5 months and 1 day	12 days	Resigned in 2009	[30]
	Jim Anderton		14 July 1984	29 April 2009	26 November 2011	27 years, 4 months and 12 days	2 years, 6 months, 3 days	Retired in 2011 Deemed to hold the post ahead of Peter Dunne due to the alphabetical order in which they were sworn in.	[31]
	Peter Dunne		14 July 1984	26 November 2011	23 September 2017	33 years, 2 months and 9 days	5 years, 9 months, 28 days	Retired at the 2017 election.	[32][33][34]
	Bill English		27 October 1990	23 September 2017	13 March 2018	27 years, 4 months and 14 days	5 months, 18 days	Prime Minister 2016–2017; resigned in 2018 Deemed to be the Father ahead of Nick Smith due to the alphabetical order in which they were sworn in.
	Nick Smith		27 October 1990	13 March 2018	10 June 2021[35]	30 years, 7 months and 14 days	3 years, 2 months, 28 days	Resigned in 2021
	Trevor Mallard		6 November 1993[nb 22]	10 June 2021	20 October 2022	28 years, 11 months and 14 days	1 year, 4 months and 11 days	Resigned in 2022	[36][37]
	Nanaia Mahuta[nb 23]		12 October 1996	21 October 2022	14 October 2023	26 years, 11 months and 23 days	11 months and 24 days	Defeated in the 2023 election	[38][39]
	Gerry Brownlee[nb 23]		12 October 1996	21 October 2022	Incumbent	28 years, 6 months and 28 days	2 years, 6 months and 28 days		[38][40]
	Judith Collins[nb 24]		27 July 2002	14 October 2023		22 years, 9 months and 22 days	1 year, 7 months and 5 days		[41]

Table footnotes:^[42]

1. date of dissolution of the 4th Parliament
2. date of dissolution of the 7th Parliament
3. date of dissolution of the 10th Parliament
4. Atkinson had previously been an MP (1861–66 and 1867–69)
5. Atkinson resigned upon being appointed to the Legislative Council
6. date of dissolution of the 11th Parliament
7. Steward had previously been an MP (1871–75)
8. date of dissolution of the 17th Parliament
9. date of dissolution of the 19th Parliament
10. Allen had previously been an MP (1887–90)
11. Wilford resigned to take up the post of High Commissioner to the United Kingdom
12. date of dissolution of the 26th Parliament
13. date of dissolution of the 29th Parliament
14. date of dissolution of the 30th Parliament
15. date of dissolution of the 34th Parliament
16. date of dissolution of the 39th Parliament
17. Holyoake had previously been an MP (1932–38)
18. Holyoake resigned to take up the post of Governor-General
19. date of dissolution of the 39th Parliament
20. date of dissolution of the 40th Parliament
21. Hunt resigned to take up the post of High Commissioner to the United Kingdom
22. Mallard had previously been an MP (1984–90)
23. Brownlee and Mahuta were considered Father and Mother concurrently between 21 October 2021 and 14 October 2023.
24. Brownlee and Collins are considered Father and Mother concurrently since 14 October 2023.

See also

• Baby of the House for youngest MPs when first elected.
• Father of the House, for similar traditions in other country's legislatures
• Winston Peters (1979-1981-1984-2008-2011-2020-2023-since) (36 years in parliament as of 2024)