Incumbents
Regal and Vice Regal
Government
The 48th New Zealand Parliament continued. Government was a coalition between Labour and the Progressives, with United Future and New Zealand First supporting supply votes. The leaders of the two support parties are ministers outside Cabinet.
Non-Labour Ministers
Parliamentary Leaders
Main centre leaders
Events
January
February
- 1 February: Don Brash, the leader of the New Zealand National Party gave his third state of the nation speech to the Orewa Rotary Club where he focused on the economy. Wikinews
- 4 February:Two Fairfax-owned newspapers, The Dominion Post and The Christchurch Press, controversially published all 12 cartoons in the Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons controversy, which have triggered international outrage.
- 5 February: Hundreds of NZ Muslims march in downtown Auckland in protest to the publication of the Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons controversy. Wikinews
- 5 February: NZ film director Lee Tamahori is arrested and formally charged with soliciting and unlawfully loitering on Hollywood's Santa Monica Boulevard, while dressed in drag.
- 5 February: An earthquake measuring 4.4 on the Richter scale hit Hawke's Bay at 1.29pm, originating 30 km southeast of Dannevirke. There was no reported damage.
- 6 February: The 166th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi, New Zealand's founding document, in 1840. This year the celebrations were peaceful, in contrast to other years where the day was the focus of protest by Māori activists. Wikinews
- 11 February: Tokelau began voting in a referendum to determine whether it remains a New Zealand territory, or becomes a state in free association with New Zealand. (NZ Herald)
- 12 February: The Royal New Zealand Navy's new 9000-tonne Multi-Role Vessel was launched in Rotterdam. The MRV is the largest of seven new ships ordered as part of "Project Protector". [1]
- 14 February: Fisheries Minister Jim Anderton announced that a draft agreement had been reached with fishing companies to ban bottom trawling in 30 percent of New Zealand's exclusive economic zone. Anderton promised to support a global ban on bottom trawling if that appeared a practical option. (NZ Herald)
- 16 February: New Zealand all-rounder Chris Cairns, ONZM played his final international cricket match against the West Indies in a Twenty20 at Auckland's Eden Park. (Cricinfo)
- 16 February: Tokelau decides to remain a New Zealand territory after a referendum on independence. A 60 percent majority voted in favor of independence, but a two-thirds majority was required for the referendum to succeed. (NZ Government press release)
- 20 February: Air New Zealand is set to lay off another 507 workers as it outsources its wide-body aircraft maintenance. A union proposal to save some of the jobs failed to win a worker vote. (Radio NZ)
- 22 February: C4 aired the controversial South Park episode Bloody Mary, which portrays a statue of the Virgin Mary menstruating, despite protests from religious groups. (NZ Herald)
- 23 February: Air New Zealand workers accepted a new employment package in a new vote. About 300 wide-body aircraft maintenance jobs will be saved in Auckland, although 200 will still be made redundant. (NZ Herald)
- 24 February:Air New Zealand announced that 470 corporate jobs, mostly in Auckland are to be axed over the next year. (News Talk ZB)
March
April
May
- 1 May: Troubles continue at TVNZ, with leaked emails from Craig Boyce to Ian Fraser, referring to the Parliamentary select committee as "the bastards are our enemy".
- 3 May: The New Zealand Government announces that it will require Telecom to unbundle the local loop to provide "access to fast, competitively priced broadband internet".
- 13 May: A trawler sinks in Foveaux Strait on the way back from muttonbirding. Of the nine people on board, including three generations of one family, only three survive.
- 15 May: After 40 days of climbing, New Zealander Mark Inglis became the first double amputee to reach the summit of Mount Everest, the tallest mountain in the world.
- 16 May: Michael Ryan, a messenger for the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet is named as the government employee who leaked the information to Telecom that the government is planning to "unbundle the local loop".
- 17 May: An attempt by the Green Party to repeal part of a controversial dog microchipping law was voted down 61-60.
- 18 May: Finance Minister Michael Cullen delivers the 2006 Budget.
- 24 May: The week-long festivities celebrating the 40th anniversary of the Māori Queen's coronation have ended.
- 25 Mar: The three men acquitted of rape in the Louise Nicholas trial now face a new trial for alleged sexual offences against another woman in the mid 1980s. (NZ Herald)
June
- 8 June: Tim Selwyn is found guilty of sedition.
- 8 June: New Zealand has won hosting rights for the 2010 World Rowing Championships, which will be held at Lake Karapiro.
- 10 June: The family of Richard Seddon remember his death 100 years ago.
- 10 June: A Yemeni man, linked to the September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States, has been deported from New Zealand. It is only the second time that section 72 of the Immigration Act has been used to deport someone. Its use requires the consent of the Governor-General, and there is no right of appeal.
- 12 June: A blackout hits Auckland, lasting for several hours and affecting an estimated 700,000 people. The cause was found to be an earth wire which snapped off in high winds and fell across high-voltage transmission lines at a substation.
- A severe storm lashed the country, bringing heavy snow to Otago and Canterbury Some small communities lose power for up to 12 days after the storm.
- 15 June: A free-to-air digital television service called Freeview will be launched in 2007. All viewers will require a set-top box, and some will need a satellite dish.
- 15 June: Junior doctors begin a five-day strike over working hours and conditions. Hospitals defer non-urgent surgery and outpatient treatments.
- 16 June: The Varroa bee mite has been found near Stoke. The mite arrived in New Zealand in 2000 and has been confined to the North Island until now.
- 18 June: The deaths of three month old twins Chris and Cru Kahui as a result of abuse injuries shocks the nation and dominates headlines for months.
- 21 June: Working dogs have been exempted from the dog microchipping legislation currently before Parliament.
- 27 June: Telecom announces it will voluntarily separate its business into two operating entities - Wholesale and Retail.
- 29 June: Development of the Kupe gas and oil field off the Taranaki coast will go ahead, with production beginning in 2009.
- 30 June: Tame Iti is sentenced to pay $300 and court costs for shooting the New Zealand Flag.
July
- 2 July: The Intellectual Property Office has turned down an application by Ngāti Toa to trademark Ka Mate, the haka used by the All Blacks.
- 3 July: Police Minister Annette King and Police Commissioner Howard Broad both deny that New Zealand Police have quotas for speeding tickets after a memo about such quotas is leaked.
- 4 July:An Italian Fiat advert draws criticism from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade for having women perform the haka.
- 10 July: Labour List MP Jim Sutton announces he is leaving politics on 1 August 2006. He will be replaced by the next member of the Labour Party list, Charles Chauvel.
- 11 July: Te Atairangi Kaahu, the Māori Queen, is taken to Waikato Hospital's intensive care unit after a possible heart attack and kidney failure.
- 18 July: Tim Selwyn is sentenced to 2 months imprisonment for sedition in Auckland. He is also sentenced to a further 15 months for other offenses.
- 18 July: Former Cabinet Minister Taito Phillip Field is cleared of any conflict of interest by an inquiry into allegations he had used his position for material gain, but his judgement was criticised.
- 25 July: The Overlander rail passenger service will be withdrawn at the end of September, thus ending the last passenger service operating between Auckland and Wellington.
- 31 July: New Zealand silver coins are changed to become smaller and lighter
August
September
- 2 September: Natural gas supplies were cut to about 1000 central Wellington businesses for four days, after water entered Powerco's gas mains.
- 7 September: Four mayors in the Auckland Region meet with Helen Clark to discuss the possibility of amalgamating their city councils to a single body.
- 10 September: Tonga's King Taufa'ahau Tupou IV dies in Auckland.
- 13 September: Don Brash takes leave to sort out marital problems amidst rumours he had an affair.
- 14 September: Stephen Tindall announces his intention of buying out the other shareholders in the retail chain he founded, The Warehouse. Tindall currently has a controlling share in the company.
- 18 September: The Prime Minister's husband Peter Davis is accused of being gay, after a picture is published of him kissing another man. Both Davis and Clark deny the claim; the picture later turns out to be a still from election night coverage.(news.com.au)
- 21 September: The dispute between supermarket company Progressive Enterprises and over 500 employees is resolved after 28 days.
- 25 September: Shares in carpet maker Feltex are suspended on the New Zealand Exchange after the company is placed in receivership on 22 September.
- 26 September: Brian Connell is suspended from the National Party caucus.
- 27 September: Bacardi offers NZ$138 million to buy the New Zealand alcoholic drink company 42 Below.
- 28 September: Dunedin's Logan Park High School is threatened by a large forest fire in a plantation bordering the school.
- 28 September: The Overlander train between Auckland and Wellington, due to be withdrawn at the end of the month, is to continue, but on a reduced schedule.
- 29 September: The Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa New Zealand votes to confirm a ban on people in de facto or gay relationships from becoming leaders in the Church.
- 30 September: The New Zealand Government apologises to the Te Arawa iwi over Treaty of Waitangi grievances, and returns 500 square kilometres of Crown land and 19 areas of special significance to it.
October
November
December
- 4 December: The Copyright (New Technologies and Performers' Rights) Amendment Bill, is introduced to update copyright laws due to the development and adoption of new technologies.
- 16 December: Three children are killed when a cliff collapses on them at a riverside picnic ground in the Manawatu region.
- 16 December: Nine experienced New Zealand firefighters are injured, one seriously, as they fought Bushfires in Victoria, Australia.
- 22 December: The Government announces changes to the regulations governing the sale of consumer fireworks. Sales will now be restricted to 3 (previously 10) days of the yeear - November 3-5 and the age limit for purchase has been raised from 16 to 18.
- 28 December - The contentious Wellington Inner city bypass opens
- 31 December: The 2006 road toll provisionally stands at 387, the lowest figure since 1963
Arts and literature
New Books
Awards
Music
- New Zealand Music Awards Winners
- Album Of The Year: Bic Runga - Birds
- Single Of The Year: Pluto – Long White Cross
- Best Group: Elemeno P – Trouble In Paradise
- Best Male Solo Artist: Dave Dobbyn – Available Light
- Best Female Solo Artist: Bic Runga - Birds
- Breakthrough Artist Of The Year: Bleeders – As Sweet As Sin
- Highest Selling Nz Album: Fat Freddy’s Drop – Based On A True Story
- Highest Selling Nz Single: Rosita Vai – All I Ask
- Radio Airplay Record Of The Year: The Feelers – Stand Up
- Best Rock Album: Bleeders – As Sweet As Sin
- Best Urban / Hip Hop Album: Frontline – Borrowed Time
- Best Dance / Electronica Album: Concord Dawn – Chaos By Design
- Best Aotearoa Roots Album: Fly My Pretties – The Return Of Fly My Pretties
- Best Music Video: Mark Williams – Wandering Eye (Fat Freddy’S Drop)
- Peoples Choice Award: Fat Freddy’s Drop
- Best Producer: Bic Runga - Birds
- Best Engineer: Andre Upston – Birds (Bic Runga)
- Best Album Cover: Chris Knox – As Sweet As Sin (Bleeders)
- Best Classical Album: Tower Voices New Zealand – Spirit Of The Land
- Best Maori Album: Te Reotakiwa Dunn – Te Reotakiwa Dunn
- Best Gospel / Christian Album: Juliagrace - Juliagrace
- Best Country Music Album: Shane Warner - Absolutely
- Best Pacific Music Album: Mt Vaea Band - Mama
- Best Folk Album: Lorina Harding - Clean Break
- Outstanding Contribution To The Growth Of NZ Music On Radio: David Innes
- Best Jazz Album: The Vaughn Roberts Big Band – Grrreat Stufff!
Television
Film
Internet
Sport
Athletics
- Dale Warrender wins his second national title in the men's marathon, clocking 2:17:43 on 29 October in Auckland, while Tracey Clissold claims her second as well in the women's championship (2:50:47).
- The largest New Zealand team ever sent to a Commonwealth Games went to the 2006 Games at Melbourne, but did not do as well as expected, recording the worst result since 1982. See New Zealand at the 2006 Commonwealth Games.
Rugby league
Rugby union
- New Zealand(All Blacks) retained the Tri Nations and Bledisloe Cup. Only losing one match to South Africa.
- North Harbour wins the Ranfurly Shield from Canterbury 21-17 at Jade Stadium
- The All Blacks convincingly won all four tests in their end-of-season tour of England, France and Wales.
- Mahe Drysdale defends his gold medal at the World Championships in August
Births
Deaths
- 4 January: Robert Howard White, politician.
- 19 January: Geoff Rabone, cricketer.
- 1 February: Bryce Harland, diplomat.
- 2 March: Peter Snow, doctor who discovered "Tapanui flu".
- 8 March: Sir Brian Barratt-Boyes, pioneering heart surgeon.
- 23 April: Johnny Checketts, WWII flying ace.
- 30 May: David Lloyd, botanist.
- 11 June: Neroli Fairhall, Olympic archer.
- 7 July: John Money, psychologist and sexologist.
- 15 August: Te Atairangi Kaahu, the Māori Queen.
- 30 August: Lord Cooke of Thorndon, jurist.
- 19 September: Hugh Kawharu, Māori academic and Ngāti Whātua leader.
- 29 September: Walter Hadlee, cricketer.
- 8 October: Mark Porter, V8 Supercar driver.
- 6 December: John Feeney, documentary film director.
See also
For world events and topics in 2006 not specifically related to New Zealand see: 2006
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2006 in New Zealand: