Peter Colin Hodgson (born 13 June 1950) is a former New Zealand politician of the Labour Party and Member of Parliament for

Dunedin North Dunedin North, also known as North Dunedin, is a major inner suburb of the New Zealand city of Dunedin, located northeast of the city centre. It contains many of the city's major institutions, including the city's university, polytechnic, ...

from 1990 to 2011.

Early life

Hodgson was born in

Whangārei Whangārei () is the northernmost city in New Zealand and the largest settlement of the Northland Region. It is part of the Whangarei District, created in 1989 from the former Whangarei City, Whangarei County and Hikurangi Town councils to admi ...

, and received a

Bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...

veterinary science Veterinary medicine is the branch of medicine that deals with the prevention, management, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, disorder, and injury in non-human animals. The scope of veterinary medicine is wide, covering all animal species, both ...

from

Massey University Massey University () is a Public university, public research university in New Zealand that provides internal and distance education. The university has campuses in Auckland, Palmerston North, and Wellington. Data from Universities New Zealand ...

. He has worked as a veterinarian, a high school teacher, and a fruit and vegetable retailer.

Member of Parliament

Hodgson joined the Labour Party in 1976, and shortly afterwards became the manager for Stan Rodger's successful campaign in the

seat. After holding a number of other Labour Party roles, including that of

marginal seat A marginal seat or swing seat is a constituency held with a small majority in a legislative election, generally one conducted under a single-winner voting system. In Canada, they may be known as target ridings. The opposite is a safe seat. T ...

s organiser, he was himself nominated to replace Rodger in the 1990 election. He was successful, and became the MP for Dunedin North. In November 1990 he was appointed as Labour's spokesperson for Science & Technology and Planning by Labour leader

Mike Moore Michael Moore is an American filmmaker and author. Michael Moore may also refer to: Academia * Michael G. Moore (fl. 1970s–2020s), professor of education * Michael S. Moore (academic) (fl. 1960s–2020s), American law professor * Michael Mo ...

. When the Labour Party formed a government after the 1999 election, Hodgson was appointed to Cabinet. During Labour's nine years in power, Hodgson's portfolios included Economic Development; Tertiary Education; Research, Science and Technology;

Health Health has a variety of definitions, which have been used for different purposes over time. In general, it refers to physical and emotional well-being, especially that associated with normal functioning of the human body, absent of disease, p ...

;

Transport Transport (in British English) or transportation (in American English) is the intentional Motion, movement of humans, animals, and cargo, goods from one location to another. Mode of transport, Modes of transport include aviation, air, land tr ...

; Commerce; Land Information; Statistics; Energy (1999–2004); and Fisheries and Forestry. He was also Associate Minister of Health; Industry and Regional Development; and Foreign Affairs. In 2001, during the filming of ''

The Lord of the Rings ''The Lord of the Rings'' is an Epic (genre), epic high fantasy novel written by English author and scholar J. R. R. Tolkien. Set in Middle-earth, the story began as a sequel to Tolkien's 1937 children's book ''The Hobbit'' but eventually d ...

'' movie trilogy in New Zealand, Hodgson was given the title Minister of the Rings, responsible for investigating methods of capitalising on the boom in tourism to New Zealand that followed the release of the films. In May 2007, Hodgson briefed the

Welsh Labour Party Welsh Labour (), formerly known as the Labour Party in Wales (), is an autonomous section of the United Kingdom Labour Party in Wales and the largest party in modern Welsh politics. Welsh Labour and its forebears have won a plurality of the W ...

's executive on the practicalities of co-operation between Welsh parties outside a formal coalition, after the 2007 Welsh Assembly elections led to a Labour minority government looking likely. Labour was defeated in the 2008 general election. Hodgson retained his seat with a majority of 7,155. In opposition, Hodgson was Labour's "chief dirt-digger and mudslinger". The scandals he exposed caused two government ministers to resign. Hodgson retired from politics at the end of the 49th Parliament in 2011, after 21 years as the MP for Dunedin North. He was succeeded by Labour's David Clark.

Life after Parliament

In 2013, Hodgson was appointed a member of the Representation Commission to determine New Zealand electoral boundaries.

References

External links

*
Pete Hodgson
at the New Zealand Parliament website , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Hodgson, Pete 1950 births Members of the Cabinet of New Zealand New Zealand Labour Party MPs People from Whangārei New Zealand veterinarians Massey University alumni New Zealand MPs for Dunedin electorates Living people Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives 21st-century New Zealand politicians Ministers of health of New Zealand