The Minister of Disarmament and Arms Control was a
minister in the government of New Zealand.
History and responsibilities
The portfolio was established after the declaration of the
New Zealand nuclear-free zone
In 1984, Prime Minister David Lange banned nuclear-powered or nuclear-armed ships from using New Zealand ports or entering New Zealand waters. Under the New Zealand Nuclear Free Zone, Disarmament, and Arms Control Act 1987, territorial sea, ...
and passage of the
(the Act) on 8 June 1987. As of 2020, the
New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT; ) is the executive department of the Government of New Zealand charged with conducting the nation’s external relations, trade negotiations and international development programme. From its hea ...
believed that New Zealand was the only country to have a standalone disarmament portfolio. A briefing to the minister from that year stated that the purpose of the portfolio was to "provide leadership of New Zealand’s efforts to achieve progress on disarmament and non-proliferation, both in support of the global public good that these entail and as an important contribution to
ew Zealand'snational interest."
Under the Act, the Minister is the chair of the Public Advisory Committee on Disarmament and Arms Control. They led the New Zealand Government's engagement on the
New Agenda Coalition The New Agenda Coalition (NAC), composed of Brazil, Egypt, Ireland, Mexico, New Zealand and South Africa, is a geographically dispersed group of middle power countries seeking to build an international consensus to make progress on nuclear disarmame ...
and the
Stockholm Initiative for Nuclear Disarmament.
The portfolio was disestablished in 2011 following the report of the Public Advisory Committee on Disarmament and Arms Control. Responsibilities of the minister were incorporated into the
foreign affairs
''Foreign Affairs'' is an American magazine of international relations and foreign policy of the United States, U.S. foreign policy published by the Council on Foreign Relations, a nonprofit organization, nonprofit, nonpartisan, membership or ...
portfolio. A separate disarmament and arms control portfolio was re-established in 2018 but no further appointment was made after the
2023 general election.
From 2023, in lieu of the separate ministerial portfolio, government functions related to disarmament and arms control were delegated to the Associate Minister of Foreign Affairs,
Todd McClay
Todd Michael McClay (born 22 November 1968) is a New Zealand politician and former ambassador. He is the Member of Parliament for Rotorua. He was previously an ambassador for the Cook Islands and Niue to the European Union.
Early life
McClay ...
.
List of ministers
The following ministers have held the office of Minister for Disarmament and Arms Control.
;Key
See also
*
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (New Zealand)
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT; ) is the executive department of the Government of New Zealand charged with conducting the nation’s external relations, trade negotiations and international development programme. From its h ...
*
Arms control
Arms control is a term for international restrictions upon the development, production, stockpiling, proliferation and usage of small arms, conventional weapons, and weapons of mass destruction. Historically, arms control may apply to melee wea ...
*
Nuclear disarmament
Nuclear disarmament is the act of reducing or eliminating nuclear weapons. Its end state can also be a nuclear-weapons-free world, in which nuclear weapons are completely eliminated. The term ''denuclearization'' is also used to describe the pro ...
Notes
References
*
External links
New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade
{{DEFAULTSORT:Minister of Disarmament and Arms Control
Disarmament and Arms Control