The Minister for Tourism and Hospitality is a minister in the New Zealand Government appointed by the Prime Minister to be in charge of supporting and promoting tourism and hospitality. The current Minister for Tourism and Hospitality is Louise Upston.
Background The office was established in 1906 as the Minister for the Tourist and Health Resort Department. Later, it was known more simply as the Minister for Tourist and Health Resorts. From 1963 to 2023 the portfolio had the single title of Minister of Tourism. A related portfolio, sometimes held alongside the tourism portfolio, was Minister in charge of Publicity.
Historically, the Minister of Tourism held the lowest-ranking position in the cabinet during the 1960s and 1970s, although it was held by senior minister Mike Moore in the mid-1980s, prime minister John Key from 2008 to 2016, and senior ministers Paula Bennett and Kelvin Davis from 2016 to 2020.
Since 2023, the portfolio title has been Minister for Tourism and Hospitality.
Responsibilities Historically, the Minister was responsible for overseeing the Department of Tourist and Health Resorts which was a separate government department during three distinct periods: 1901 to 1909, 1912 to 1930, and 1945 to 1991. From 1954 the department's name was the Tourist and Publicity Department. Its responsibilities included running government-owned hotels and managing publicly owned scenic assets. Under the now repealed Tourist and Publicity Department Act 1963, the Minister of Tourism had authority to establish and operate travel agencies, arrange and operate group coach tours, and establish and operate tourist services, attractions, amenities, and facilities, although these functions could be delegated to the general manager of the department.
Today, the Minister continues to be responsible for supporting and promoting tourism and hospitality in New Zealand. They are responsible for Tourism New Zealand, which is the Crown entity responsible for marketing New Zealand as a tourist destination. They are the responsible minister for the Freedom Camping Act 2011, which enables local government to regulate freedom camping. The Minister receives administrative and policy support from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment.
List of ministers The following ministers have held the office of Minister of Tourism.
Key
No.NamePortraitTerm of OfficePrime MinisterAs Minister for Tourist and Health Resorts 1 Joseph Ward 6 August 1906 6 January 1909Ward 2 Thomas Mackenzie 6 January 1909 10 July 1912 Mackenzie 3 Heaton Rhodes 10 July 1912 12 August 1915Massey 4 Robert McNab 12 August 1915 3 February 1917 5 William MacDonald 17 February 1917 22 August 19196William Nosworthy 4 September 191910 December 1928 Bell Coates (1) Joseph Ward 10 December 1928 28 May 1930 Ward 7 Philip De La Perrelle 28 May 1930 22 September 1931 Forbes 8 Adam Hamilton 22 September 1931 6 December 19359Frank Langstone6 December 193521 December 1942 SavageFraser 10 Bill Parry 18 October 1943 13 December 1949 11 Frederick Doidge 13 December 1949 13 September 1951 Holland 12 William Bodkin 13 September 1951 26 November 1954 13 Eric Halstead 26 November 1954 23 March 1956 14 Dean Eyre 23 March 1956 12 December 1957 Holyoake 15 John Mathison 12 December 1957 12 December 1960 NashAs Minister of Tourism 16 Tom Shand 12 December 1960 15 May 1961 Holyoake (14) Dean Eyre 15 May 1961 12 December 1966 17 Robert Muldoon 15 February 1967 4 March 1967 18 David Thomson 4 March 1967 12 December 1969 19 Bert Walker 12 December 1969 8 December 1972 Marshall20Whetu Tirikatene-Sullivan8 December 197212 December 1975 Kirk Rowling 21 Harry Lapwood 12 December 1975 13 December 1978 Muldoon 22 Warren Cooper 13 December 1978 12 February 1981 23 Derek Quigley 12 February 1981 11 December 1981 24 Rob Talbot 11 December 1981 26 July 1984 25 Mike Moore 26 July 1984 24 August 1987Lange 26 Phil Goff 24 August 1987 10 January 1988 27 Jonathan Hunt 10 January 1988 8 August 198928Fran Wilde 8 August 19892 November 1990 Palmer Moore 29 John Banks 2 November 1990 1 November 1996 Bolger 30 Murray McCully 1 November 1996 27 April 1999 Shipley 31 Lockwood Smith 27 April 1999 10 December 1999 32 Mark Burton 10 December 1999 19 October 2005 Clark 33 Damien O'Connor 19 October 2005 19 November 2008 34 John Key 19 November 2008 12 December 2016 Key 35 Paula Bennett 12 December 2016 26 October 2017 English 36 Kelvin Davis 26 October 2017 6 November 2020Ardern37Stuart Nash6 November 20201 February 2023Hipkins 38 Peeni Henare 1 February 2023 27 November 2023As Minister of Tourism and Hospitality 39 Matt Doocey 27 November 2023 24 January 2025 Luxon 40 Louise Upston 24 January 2025 present
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