Bill English held public office at a time when the terms of that office were themselves being contested.
The record lists Bill English as Prime Minister of New Zealand from 2016 to 2017.
Bill English was born at Lumsden in 1961. His recorded nationality is New Zealand. He was educated at Victoria University of Wellington and University of Otago.
Modern political life is continuous and public: careers are made and unmade at a speed that leaves little room between decision and verdict.
The offices held were Deputy Prime Minister of New Zealand (2008–2016), Member of the New Zealand Parliament (1996–2014) and Minister of Finance (2008–2016).
His political affiliation is recorded as New Zealand National Party.
His name is attached above all to party to its worst defeat at the 2002 general election, and as a consequence, in October 2003 he was replaced as leader. Power is judged twice: once by contemporaries who felt it, and again by historians who did not.
Formal honours included the Knight Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit (2018).
That the career was made in New Zealand is not incidental: the institutions available, the franchise, and the constraints of the moment all shaped what could be attempted.
Bill English's career is not finished, and the historical verdict on it has not been reached.
Achievements
- Deputy Prime Minister of New Zealand (2008–2016)
- Member of the New Zealand Parliament (1996–2014)
- Minister of Finance (2008–2016)
- Leader of the Opposition (2001–2003)
- Knight Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit — 2018
- Educated at Victoria University of Wellington and University of Otago
