Sir Douglas Lorimer Kidd (born 12 September 1941) is a former New Zealand politician. He was an MP from 1978 to 2002, representing the
National Party. He served for three years as
Speaker of the House of Representatives.
Early life
Kidd was born in
Levin. From 1960 to 1964, he served in the
New Zealand Army Territorial Force as a
bombardier gunlayer. He later obtained a
LLB 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 ...
, and worked as a
lawyer
A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters.
The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...
. He also had business interests in
aquaculture
Aquaculture (less commonly spelled aquiculture), also known as aquafarming, is the controlled cultivation ("farming") of aquatic organisms such as fish, crustaceans, mollusks, algae and other organisms of value such as aquatic plants (e.g. Nelu ...
,
forestry
Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests and woodlands for associated resources for human and Natural environment, environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and ...
, and
wine making
Winemaking, wine-making, or vinification is the production of wine, starting with the selection of the fruit, its fermentation into alcohol, and the bottling of the finished liquid. The history of wine-making stretches over millennia. There is ...
.
Member of Parliament
Kidd was first elected to Parliament in the
1978 election, becoming MP for . In the government of
Jim Bolger, Kidd held a number of minor ministerial portfolios, including Fisheries, Energy and Labour. He held his Marlborough electorate until the
1996 election, when the electorate was abolished and most of its area incorporated into the new and larger electorate. Kidd came first in Kaikoura in 1996. In
the following election he sought election as a
list MP only. He was succeeded in Kaikoura by
Lynda Scott and retired from Parliament at the
2002 election.
Status of the Unborn Child Bill
In 1983 Kidd's
anti-abortion
Anti-abortion movements, also self-styled as pro-life movements, are involved in the abortion debate advocating against the practice of abortion and its Abortion by country, legality. Many anti-abortion movements began as countermovements in r ...
Status of the
Unborn Child Bill (a
private members bill
A private member's bill is a bill (proposed law) introduced into a legislature by a legislator who is not acting on behalf of the executive branch. The designation "private member's bill" is used in most Westminster system jurisdictions, in whi ...
) was drawn from the lot. The bill was prompted by Wall v Livingston
982 which clarified that embryos and foetuses had no legal status in New Zealand and that third parties could not appeal to the courts on their behalf. The bill was supported by groups such as Society for the Protection of the Unborn Child (now
Voice for Life and
Right to Life New Zealand) but defeated by pro-choice groups led by
Marilyn Waring.
Speaker of the House
After the 1996 election, Kidd was elected
Speaker of the House of Representatives;
Derek Quigley also contested the position. He replaced
Peter Tapsell, a
Labour Party MP who had held the speakership because National, which had won the election by a single seat, did not want to lose a vote by appointing a Speaker from its own ranks. Kidd lost the speakership when the National Party lost the
1999 election, being replaced by
Jonathan Hunt of the Labour Party. After serving a term in
Opposition, he chose to retire from politics at the
2002 election.
After Parliament
In the
2000 Queen's Birthday Honours, Kidd was appointed a
Distinguished Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services as Speaker of the House of Representatives between 1996 and 1999, and he accepted redesignation as a
Knight Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in
August 2009 following the restoration of titular honours by the New Zealand government.
Kidd was appointed to the
Waitangi Tribunal in 2004.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kidd, Doug
1941 births
Knights Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit
Living people
Members of the Cabinet of New Zealand
20th-century New Zealand lawyers
New Zealand National Party MPs
Speakers of the New Zealand House of Representatives
Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives
Victoria University of Wellington alumni
People from Levin, New Zealand
People from the Marlborough District
New Zealand list MPs
21st-century New Zealand politicians
Members of the Waitangi Tribunal