Sir Brian Joseph Roche (born ) is a New Zealand business executive and senior public servant. He has served as Public Service Commissioner since 4 November 2024.

Early life and education

Roche was born in

Hawke's Bay Hawke's Bay () is a region on the east coast of New Zealand's North Island. The region is named for Hawke Bay, which was named in honour of Edward Hawke. The region's main centres are the cities of Napier and Hastings, while the more rural ...

and has six sisters and one brother. He attended St John's College in

Hastings Hastings ( ) is a seaside town and Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in East Sussex on the south coast of England, east of Lewes and south east of London. The town gives its name to the Battle of Hastings, which took place to th ...

. He obtained a Bachelor of Commerce and Administration from

Victoria University of Wellington Victoria University of Wellington (), also known by its shorter names "VUW" or "Vic", is a public university, public research university in Wellington, New Zealand. It was established in 1897 by Act of New Zealand Parliament, Parliament, and w ...

. He is married with two children.

Career

Roche started his working career with Coopers and Lybrand in 1979 as an accountant. He stayed with the company, which later became

PricewaterhouseCoopers PricewaterhouseCoopers, also known as PwC, is a multinational professional services network based in London, United Kingdom. It is the second-largest professional services network in the world and is one of the Big Four accounting firms, alon ...

, for 20 years and became a senior partner. In the 1990s, he was chief Crown negotiator for

Treaty of Waitangi claims and settlements Claims and settlements under the Treaty of Waitangi () have been a significant feature of New Zealand politics since the Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975 and the Waitangi Tribunal that was established by that act to hear claims. Successive governme ...

; he had a major influence on the 1997

Ngāi Tahu Ngāi Tahu, or Kāi Tahu, is the principal Māori people, Māori (tribe) of the South Island. Its (tribal area) is the largest in New Zealand, and extends from the White Bluffs / Te Parinui o Whiti (southeast of Blenheim, New Zealand, Blenhe ...

settlement. In 2004, Roche became the inaugural chairman of the

Auckland Regional Transport Authority The Auckland Regional Transport Authority (ARTA) was the central co-ordinating agency for transport (especially but not only public transport) in the Auckland Region of New Zealand from 2004 to 2010. In this role, ARTA provided public transport s ...

. In 2008, he was appointed the inaugural chairman of the

NZ Transport Agency NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA), superseded by is a New Zealand Crown entity tasked with promoting safe and functional transport by land, including the responsibility for driver and vehicle licensing, and administering the New Zealand st ...

. In the same year, he was appointed deputy commissioner of the

Hawke's Bay District Health Board The Hawke's Bay District Health Board (Hawke's Bay DHB or HBDHB) was a district health board with the focus on providing healthcare to Hawke's Bay, New Zealand. In July 2022, it was merged into the national health service Te Whatu Ora (Health New ...

after the elected board was sacked by the then-

Minister of Health A health minister is the member of a country's government typically responsible for protecting and promoting public health and providing welfare spending and other social security services. Some governments have separate ministers for mental heal ...

David Cunliffe David Richard Cunliffe (born 30 April 1963) is a New Zealand management consultant and former politician who was Leader of the New Zealand Labour Party and Leader of the Opposition (New Zealand), Leader of the Opposition from September 2013 to ...

. From January 2010 until April 2017, Roche was chief executive of

New Zealand Post NZ Post (), shortened from New Zealand Post, is a state-owned enterprise responsible for providing most postal services in New Zealand. The New Zealand Post Office, a government agency, provided postal, banking, and telecommunications servi ...

. Since 2013, Roche was chairman of the

Hurricanes A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system with a low-pressure area, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depending on its locat ...

rugby union franchise. He led the team that gained the

2011 Rugby World Cup The 2011 Rugby World Cup, was the seventh Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition inaugurated in 1987. The World Rugby, International Rugby Board (IRB) selected New Zealand as the host country in preference to Japa ...

hosting rights for New Zealand and later chaired group that organised the championship, taking over from

Jock Hobbs Michael James Bowie Hobbs (15 February 1960 – 13 March 2012), known as Jock Hobbs, was a New Zealand rugby union player and administrator. A flanker, he played for Canterbury and won 21 caps for the New Zealand national team, the All ...

. He has been chairman of

Antarctica New Zealand Antarctica New Zealand is an agency set up by the Government of New Zealand to manage its interests in Antarctica and the Ross Sea. As well as providing logistics support to a large scientific programme, it also runs bases such as Scott Base. ...

, Tait Communications, and the Wellington Gateway Project. On 11 June 2019, Roche commenced his second term as chairman of the NZ Transport Agency. A condition of the appointment was Roche's resignation from the Wellington Gateway Project to avoid a conflict of interest. In August 2020, Roche and Heather Simpson were chosen to lead a new group to support the Ministry of Health in improving COVID-19 border security. From March 2023 to February 2024, Roche chaired the government's cyclone recovery taskforce, responding to the impact of

Cyclone Gabrielle Severe Tropical Cyclone Gabrielle was a powerful and destructive tropical cyclone that devastated parts of the North Island of New Zealand and affected parts of Vanuatu and Norfolk Island in February 2023. It is the costliest tropical cyclone ...

. In October 2024, Roche was appointed to the position of Public Service Commissioner, effective from 4 November 2024, for a term of two years and eight months through to June 2027.

Honours and awards

In 1990, Roche was awarded the New Zealand 1990 Commemoration Medal. In the 2017 New Year Honours, he was appointed a

Knight Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit The New Zealand Order of Merit () is an order of merit in the New Zealand royal honours system. It was established by royal warrant (document), royal warrant on 30 May 1996 by Elizabeth II, Monarchy of New Zealand, Queen of New Zealand, "for th ...

, for services to the State and business.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Roche, Brian Year of birth missing (living people) 1950s births Living people People from Hawke's Bay People educated at St John's College, Hastings Victoria University of Wellington alumni Knights Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit Businesspeople awarded knighthoods New Zealand sports executives and administrators Hawke's Bay District Health Board members 21st-century New Zealand public servants New Zealand chief executives