For the first time in Queenstown’s history, there’ll be two voices advocating for us in Parliament for the next three years. While recent resort arrival Todd Stephenson leap-frogged a host of sitting MPs to end up fourth on Act New Zealand’s list, incumbent Southland MP Joseph Mooney enjoyed a landslide victory last Saturday night. Tracey Roxburgh and Philip Chandler talk to our two pollies about the challenges and opportunities ahead
Ready to roll his sleeves up
You can bet Joseph Mooney had one wish when he blew out the candles on his birthday cake last Monday.
It came true last Saturday night.
The 45-year-old enjoyed a landslide victory in the Southland electorate, with 19,981 votes, well clear of Labour’s Simon McCallum (5008) and Greens’ Dave Kennedy (2875).
Southland also voted blue — National won the party vote with 16,204 to Labour’s 5510 and Act New Zealand’s 4624.
Mooney, who unlike his two predecessors survived his first term, says he and the party are amping to roll up their sleeves and get to work.
While his constituency, advocacy and travel around the region won’t change, there’s one critical difference this time around.
‘‘We’re actually going to be able to get stuff done.’’
Mooney notes his electorate is ‘‘quite literally’’ bigger than Belgium — with a total land area of 31,313.05sqkm, it’s the second-biggest in New Zealand, second behind West Coast-Tasman (32,758sq km), and is ‘‘hugely diverse’’.
While there are some commonalities — the cost of living, housing and workforce shortages, for example — all parts of the region have different major and pressing issues.
Given everything’s a priority, Mooney says he and the party are keen to hit the ground running to help find solutions.
The former criminal defence lawyer has long been vocal about his desire to see a base hospital established in Queenstown, and promises to ‘‘keep working away on the broader health picture, taking a regional look at it’’.
‘‘There’s a lot more work I’m going to be doing on that.
‘‘I recognise we don’t have a lot of money right now, and there are a lot of urgent priorities all around the country in terms of the health system.
‘‘But I’m going to be strongly advocating for our health needs.’’
He’ll be backed up by fellow Queenstowner, Act’s Todd Stephenson, who’s guaranteed a seat around NZ’s biggest table following his party’s result last Saturday night.
While Mooney says the two have only recently got to know each other, ‘‘we’re getting on well and I’m looking forward to working with him to get things across the line for our region’’.
‘‘I see it as an opportunity — the more voices we’ve got in Parliament to advocate for our region, the better.’’
Coming fourth and conquering
Highly ranked: New Queenstown-based Act MP Todd Stephenson, left, showing his leader David Seymour around while campaigning in the resort
Almost no one had heard of him in Queenstown until recently, but now he’s our second MP.
We’re talking about Todd Stephenson, 49, who, in July, waltzed into number 4 on Act New Zealand’s list.
Then, following the party’s strong showing on Saturday, he easily made it into Parliament where Act will be the National-led government’s coalition partner.
Stephenson stunned observers with his list placing — heading off high-profile former Federated Farmers president Andrew Hoggard, five sitting Act MPs and an ex-National MP.
However, back in the ’90s he was a founding member of the party, worked for it as a field officer and had campaign roles for four elections until moving to Aussie in 2006.
There, he enjoyed a stellar career as a pharmaceutical executive/consultant until getting on Act’s list.
‘‘I had a conversation with [leader] David [Seymour] earlier in the year and some other people from the party and then I kind of put myself in the process.
‘‘I was very honoured and humbled to be given the number 4 position, but what Act’s tried to do, we are not fixated on our position, but we’re trying to deliver a really strong, high-quality team.’’
He’d also made it clear he’d move to Queenstown, part of NZ where Act’s strong, which he concedes might have helped his placing.
He and partner Alex — ‘‘I’m happy to be part of the rainbow community’’ — had built a home at Hanley’s Farm two years ago, and he says he moved in just eight weeks ago after taking five weeks to ‘‘pack up my life’’.
Stephenson, who gelled with returning National MP Joseph Mooney on the campaign trail, says he’s looking forward to working with him to advance Queenstown and the Southland electorate.
He believes the resort’s biggest issue, like the rest of NZ, is the high cost of living — ‘‘it’s putting pressure on all families across the country, and you particularly see that in Queenstown’’.
Stephenson says it’s ‘‘just too early’’ to speculate on whether he’ll make a Cabinet role, and whether he’ll open an electorate office in Queenstown.
