The Honourable Phil Goff,
the high commissioner

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.

History

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

The following individuals have held the office:[1]

No. Name Portrait Term of office Monarch
1 Isaac Featherston[nb 1] March 1871 September 1876 Victoria
2 Julius Vogel September 1876 December 1880
3 Dillon Bell December 1880 September 1891
4 Westby Perceval September 1891 December 1895
5 William Pember Reeves[nb 2] December 1895 December 1908
Edward VII
6 William Hall-Jones December 1908 August 1912
George V
7 Thomas Mackenzie August 1912 19 June 1920
8 James Allen 19 June 1920 1 July 1926
9 James Parr 1 July 1926 9 January 1930
10 Thomas Wilford 9 January 1930 25 January 1934
(9) James Parr 25 January 1934 3 September 1936
Edward VIII
11 Bill Jordan 3 September 1936 17 September 1951
George VI
12 Frederick Doidge 17 September 1951 26 May 1954†
Elizabeth II
13 Clifton Webb 4 January 1955 31 March 1958
- Dick Campbell
(acting)		 1 April 1958 30 September 1958
- George Laking
(acting)		 30 September 1958 20 March 1961
14 Thomas Macdonald 20 March 1961 31 March 1968
- Hunter Wade
(acting)		 31 March 1968 11 May 1968
15 Denis Blundell 11 May 1968 22 August 1972
- Merv Norrish
(acting)		 22 August 1972 15 March 1973
16 Terry McCombs 15 March 1973 22 March 1975
17 Hugh Watt 22 March 1975 21 June 1976
18 Douglas Carter 21 June 1976 16 July 1979
19 Les Gandar 16 July 1979 27 September 1982
20 Bill Young 27 September 1982 21 February 1985
21 Joe Walding 21 February 1985 5 June 1985†
22 Bryce Harland 15 October 1985 3 June 1991
23 George Gair 3 June 1991 April 1994
24 John Collinge April 1994 1 May 1997
25 Richard Grant 1 May 1997 4 January 1999
26 Paul East 4 January 1999 4 January 2002
27 Russell Marshall 4 January 2002 4 January 2005
28 Jonathan Hunt April 2005 March 2008
29 Derek Leask March 2008 February 2013
30 Lockwood Smith 25 March 2013 24 March 2017
31 Jerry Mateparae 24 March 2017 April 2020
32 Bede Corry April 2020 8 September 2022
- Shannon Austin
(acting)		 8 September 2022 January 2023
Charles III
33 Phil Goff[2] January 2023 Present

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

References

  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.
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