List of high commissioners of New Zealand to the United Kingdom

The high commissioner of New Zealand to the United Kingdom is New Zealand's foremost diplomatic representative in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and in charge of New Zealand's diplomatic mission in the United Kingdom.

The Honourable Phil Goff,
the high commissioner

History

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The High Commission of New Zealand is located in London, the United Kingdom's capital city. New Zealand has maintained a resident high commissioner in the United Kingdom since 1905, and a resident Agent-General since 1871. The high commissioner to the United Kingdom is concurrently accredited as high commissioner to Nigeria.

The high commissioner was formerly accredited as ambassador of New Zealand to Ireland, which is now a resident mission in Dublin since 2018.

As New Zealand was created as a part of the British Empire, its diplomatic relationship with the United Kingdom is its longest-standing; the position of high commissioner in London pre-dates New Zealand's Dominion status by two years, the Balfour Declaration of 1926 by 21 years, and the adoption of the Statute of Westminster of 1931 by 42 years. New Zealand appointed a high commissioner to Canada in 1942, and a high commissioner to Australia in 1943.

As fellow members of the Commonwealth of Nations, diplomatic relations between New Zealand and the United Kingdom are at governmental level, rather than between heads of state, with member countries exchanging high commissioners, rather than ambassadors.

List of heads of mission

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The following individuals have held the office:[1]

No.NamePortraitTerm of officeMonarch
1Isaac Featherston[nb 1] March 1871September 1876Victoria
2Julius Vogel September 1876December 1880
3Dillon Bell December 1880September 1891
4Westby Perceval September 1891December 1895
5William Pember Reeves[nb 2] December 1895December 1908
Edward VII
6William Hall-Jones December 1908August 1912
George V
7Thomas Mackenzie August 191219 June 1920
8James Allen 19 June 19201 July 1926
9James Parr 1 July 19269 January 1930
10Thomas Wilford 9 January 193025 January 1934
(9)James Parr 25 January 19343 September 1936
Edward VIII
11Bill Jordan 3 September 193617 September 1951
George VI
12Frederick Doidge 17 September 195126 May 1954†
Elizabeth II
13Clifton Webb 4 January 195531 March 1958
-Dick Campbell
(acting)
1 April 195830 September 1958
-George Laking
(acting)
30 September 195820 March 1961
14Thomas Macdonald 20 March 196131 March 1968
-Hunter Wade
(acting)
31 March 196811 May 1968
15Denis Blundell 11 May 196822 August 1972
-Merv Norrish
(acting)
22 August 197215 March 1973
16Terry McCombs 15 March 197322 March 1975
17Hugh Watt 22 March 197521 June 1976
18Douglas Carter 21 June 197616 July 1979
19Les Gandar 16 July 197927 September 1982
20Bill Young 27 September 198221 February 1985
21Joe Walding 21 February 19855 June 1985†
22Bryce Harland 15 October 19853 June 1991
23George Gair 3 June 1991April 1994
24John Collinge April 19941 May 1997
25Richard Grant 1 May 19974 January 1999
26Paul East 4 January 19994 January 2002
27Russell Marshall 4 January 20024 January 2005
28Jonathan Hunt April 2005March 2008
29Derek Leask March 2008February 2013
30Lockwood Smith 25 March 201324 March 2017
31Jerry Mateparae 24 March 2017April 2020
32Bede Corry April 20208 September 2022
-Shannon Austin
(acting)
8 September 2022January 2023
Charles III
33Phil Goff[2] January 2023Present

Table footnotes:

  1. ^ the first Agent-General for the Colony of New Zealand
  2. ^ the last Agent-General and the first High Commissioner for the Dominion of New Zealand

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Heads of Missions List: U". New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade. 8 July 2006. Archived from the original on 30 September 2006.
  2. ^ Mahuta, Nanaia. "Next High Commissioner to the United Kingdom". Beehive.govt.nz. New Zealand Government. Retrieved 21 January 2023.