Jamie Arthur Arbuckle (born ) is a New Zealand politician. He is currently a Member of Parliament in the

New Zealand House of Representatives The House of Representatives () is the Unicameral, sole chamber of the New Zealand Parliament. The House passes Law of New Zealand, laws, provides Ministers in the New Zealand Government, ministers to form the Cabinet of New Zealand, Cabinet, ...

for the

New Zealand First New Zealand First (), commonly abbreviated to NZ First or NZF, is a political party in New Zealand, founded and led by Winston Peters, who has served three times as Deputy Prime Minister of New Zealand, deputy prime minister. The party has form ...

party. Arbuckle was a Marlborough district councillor following the 2010 local elections. In the

2023 New Zealand general election The 2023 New Zealand general election was held on 14 October 2023 to determine the composition of the 54th New Zealand Parliament, 54th Parliament of New Zealand. Voters elected 122 members to the unicameral New Zealand House of Representatives ...

, he was also elected to Parliament, and held both roles for a year. In October 2024 he resigned from his position as a district councillor.

Early life and family

Born in , Arbuckle grew up in Rapaura on an apple and cherry orchard. He did not know his father. Despite "not eingacademic" at school, Arbuckle went on to earn a diploma in management from Nelson Polytechnic (now the

Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology (NMIT) is a public tertiary education institution at the top of the South Island in New Zealand. NMIT's main campus is in Nelson with other campuses in Blenheim, Marlborough, Woodbourne and Richmond. ...

). In 2009 Arbuckle applied to the Marlborough Farmers' Market to set up a stall selling asparagus, but questions were raised about whether he grew it himself, and his application was subsequently turned down. Arbuckle then led a group of stallholders to set up a competing market in Redwoodtown. He is married to Sally, and they have four children. He trains racehorses as a hobby.

Political career

At the 2010 local elections, Arbuckle was elected to the

Marlborough District Council Marlborough District Council () is the unitary local authority for the Marlborough District of New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island ( ...

. He was re-elected in the 2013 elections and again in the

2016 elections Africa Benin Republic *2016 Beninese presidential election 6 March 2016 Cape Verde * 2016 Cape Verdean presidential election 2 October 2016 Chad * 2016 Chadian presidential election 10 April 2016 Djibouti * 2016 Djiboutian presidential ...

where he won the highest number of votes in the Blenheim Ward each time. At the 2010, 2013 and

2019 elections The following elections were scheduled to occur in 2019. The International Foundation for Electoral Systems has a calendar of upcoming elections around the world, and the National Democratic Institute also maintains a calendar of elections in cou ...

he also ran for mayor as well as the council but was defeated, placing second on each occasion. His wife Sally also stood for Marlborough District Council in 2019 but was unsuccessful. Both of them were elected in the 2022 local elections. He served as chair of the economic, finance and community committee at the council. Arbuckle entered national politics when he was selected by the

party to contest the electorate at the where he finished third. He stood again in the seat at the , finishing fourth. After this loss he joined the New Zealand First board. Selected to run a third time in Kaikōura at the 2023 general election, he was ranked 6th on the 2023 party list. Arbuckle finished in third place in the Kaikōura electorate, with 4,347 votes, but entered Parliament as one of eight New Zealand First list MPs. Arbuckle sits on the

finance and expenditure committee The Finance and Expenditure Committee (known as the Public Accounts Committee until 1962, and as the Public Expenditure Committee, from 1962) is a select committee of the House of Representatives, the unicameral chamber of the New Zealand Parliame ...

and is deputy chair of the justice committee. He is also the New Zealand First

whip A whip is a blunt weapon or implement used in a striking motion to create sound or pain. Whips can be used for flagellation against humans or animals to exert control through pain compliance or fear of pain, or be used as an audible cue thro ...

. Arbuckle refused to resign his position as councillor in order to avoid causing a by-election; he intends to remain on council until October 2024 when a by-election would not longer be necessary to fill any vacancy he creates. When he was elected to parliament, he said he would return his council remuneration until his eventual resignation, but later changed his mind and on 6 May 2024 said he would keep it. The next day he changed his mind after being criticised for "double dipping" and said he would donate the council salary to charity.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Arbuckle, Jamie 1970s births Living people Local politicians in New Zealand Unsuccessful candidates in the 2017 New Zealand general election Unsuccessful candidates in the 2020 New Zealand general election Candidates in the 2023 New Zealand general election New Zealand list MPs New Zealand First MPs Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives People from the Marlborough District