The following lists events that happened during 2014 in New Zealand.
Population National Estimated populations as at 30 June: Also New Zealand total – 4,509,900 North Island – 3,450,800 South Island – 1,058,500
Main urban areas Following the 2013 census, Statistics New Zealand added Blenheim to the list of main urban areas, increasing the total number to 17.
Estimated populations as at 30 June:
Auckland – 1,413,500 Blenheim – 30,200 Christchurch – 375,200 Dunedin – 116,200 Gisborne – 35,400 Hamilton – 218,800 Invercargill – 49,800 Kapiti – 41,000 Napier-Hastings – 128,800 Nelson – 64,100 New Plymouth – 55,600 Palmerston North – 82,400 Rotorua – 56,200 Tauranga – 127,700 Wellington – 393,600 Whanganui – 39,200 Whangārei – 54,400
Incumbents
Regal and vice-regal Head of State – Elizabeth II Governor-General – Jerry Mateparae
Government Legislative term: 50th New Zealand Parliament until 14 August, then 51st New Zealand Parliament from 20 October.
The Fifth National Government, first elected in 2008, continues.
Speaker of the House – David Carter Prime Minister – John Key Deputy Prime Minister – Bill English Leader of the House – Gerry Brownlee Minister of Finance – Bill English Minister of Foreign Affairs – Murray McCully
Other party leaders in parliament Labour – David Cunliffe until 27 September, then Andrew Little from 18 November Green – Russel Norman and Metiria Turei New Zealand First – Winston Peters Māori Party – Tariana Turia until 20 September then Marama Fox from 3 November, and Te Ururoa Flavell United Future – Peter Dunne Mana Party – Hone Harawira until 20 September ACT – David Seymour from 3 October
Judiciary Chief Justice – Sian Elias President of the Court of Appeal – Mark O'Regan until 1 September, and then Ellen France Chief High Court judge – Helen Winkelmann Chief District Court judge – Jan-Marie Doogue
Main centre leaders Mayor of Auckland – Len Brown Mayor of Tauranga – Stuart Crosby Mayor of Hamilton – Julie Hardaker Mayor of Wellington – Celia Wade-Brown Mayor of Christchurch – Lianne Dalziel Mayor of Dunedin – Dave Cull
Arts and literature
Performing arts
Benny Award presented by the Variety Artists Club of New Zealand to Tina Cross.
Events
January 20 January – A 6.2 magnitude earthquake occurs near Eketāhuna in the Manawatu-Wanganui region, causing moderate damage in Masterton and Palmerston North.
February
March 8 March – Waitawa Regional Park opens. March – Over 100 homes are flooded in Christchurch.
April 7–16 April – Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge and Prince George of Cambridge visit New Zealand on an official tour. It is Catherine and George's first visit to New Zealand.
May
June
23 June – The 2014 New Zealand bravery awards are announced to honour acts of bravery after the 2011 Christchurch earthquake.
July 11–21 July – Severe flooding damages thousands of properties in the Northland and Auckland regions.
August 13 August – Nicky Hager's book Dirty Politics: How attack politics is poisoning New Zealand’s political environment is published. 28 August – Spark New Zealand launches its Lightbox streaming service.
September 1 September – A gunman shoots dead two people and injures a third at the Work and Income office in Ashburton. The town is locked down for seven hours while police search for and apprehend the suspected gunman. 20 September – The 2014 general election is held.
October 16 October – New Zealand is elected to the United Nations Security Council for two years (2015–16) on the first ballot. October – Demand for Lewis Road Creamery chocolate milk is so high that it is often sold out in supermarkets within hours of opening. The demand saw the placement of security guards to monitor fridges, the implementation of rationing and purchase limits, and the creation of black markets.
November
17 November – A magnitude 6.5 earthquake strikes 150km east of Te Araroa, Gisborne.
18 November – Andrew Little replaces David Cunliffe as leader of the Labour Party in the 2014 leadership election.
December
Holidays and observances National public holidays Public holidays in New Zealand in 2014 are as follows:
1 January – New Year's Day 2 January – Day after New Year's Day 6 February – Waitangi Day 18 April – Good Friday 21 April – Easter Monday 25 April – Anzac Day 2 June – Queen's Birthday 27 October – Labour Day 25 December – Christmas Day 26 December – Boxing Day
Provincial anniversaries Provincial anniversary days in New Zealand in 2014 are as follows: 20 January – Wellington 27 January – Auckland 3 February – Nelson 10 March – Taranaki 24 March – Otago 22 April – Southland 22 September – South Canterbury 24 October – Hawke’s Bay 3 November – Marlborough 14 November – Canterbury 1 December – Westland and Chatham Islands
Sport
Basketball New Zealand's men's basketball team finished 15th at the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup
Commonwealth Games
Total 14 14 17 45
Olympic Games
New Zealand sends a team of 15 competitors in five sports. Total 0 0 0 0
Paralympic Games
New Zealand sends a team of three competitors in one sport. Total 0 1 0 1
Rowing New Zealand Secondary School Championships (Maadi Cup) Maadi Cup (boys U18 eight) – Hamilton Boys' High School Levin 75th Jubilee Cup (girls U18 eight) – Waikato Diocesan School Star Trophy (overall points) – Hamilton Boys' High School
Rugby Ranfurly Shield – Hawke's Bay defeat Counties Manukau 27–21 to become the new holders of the shield.
Shooting Ballinger Belt – Diane Collings (Te Puke)
Births 13 September – Vin De Dance, Thoroughbred racehorse 26 September – Melody Belle, Thoroughbred racehorse 12 November – Grunt, Thoroughbred racehorse
Deaths
January 2 January – Terry Magaoa Chapman, Niuean public servant (born 1944) 15 January – Joyce Fenton, fencer (born 1927) 16 January – John G. Cleary, computer science academic, promoter of Transcendental Meditation (born 1950) 20 January Graeme Dallow, police officer (born 1930) John Mackey, Roman Catholic Bishop of Auckland (1974–83) (born 1918) 29 January – George Griffiths, historian (born 1933) 30 January John Branthwaite, Anglican priest (born 1927) Mr Tiz, Thoroughbred racehorse (foaled 1984)
February 3 February – Alister Leat, judoka (born 1985) 5 February – Gary Giles, cricketer (born 1940) 7 February – Tim Dalton, rugby union player (born 1940) 11 February – Olga Jekyll, fencer (born 1918) 19 February – Graeme Lowans, cricketer (born 1934) 20 February Ian McKay, Judge of the Court of Appeal (1991–97) (born 1929) Anthony Whitaker, herpetologist (born 1944) 22 February – Charlotte Dawson, television personality (born 1966) 24 February – Alexis Hunter, artist (born 1948) 25 February – David McKinney, author and journalist (born 1945) 28 February – Donald Murdoch, cricketer (born 1923)
March 5 March – Little Bridge, Thoroughbred racehorse (foaled 2006) 10 March – John Pring, rugby union referee (born 1927) 13 March – Vince McGlone, seaman and television personality (born 1916) 16 March – Frank Oliver, rugby union player and coach, All Blacks captain (born 1948) 19 March – Gordon Patrick, cyclist (born 1914) 20 March – Bill Toomath, architect (born 1925) 21 March – David Beaglehole, physicist (born 1938) 23 March – David Henshaw, cartoonist (born 1939) 24 March – Margaret di Menna, microbiologist (born 1923) 31 March – David Hannay, film producer (born 1939)
April 1 April – Merimeri Penfold, Māori language academic (born 1920) 3 April – Dame Dorothy Winstone, educationalist and academic (born 1919) 6 April – Charles Farthing, doctor specialising in the treatment of HIV/AIDS (born 1953) 8 April – Ivan Mercep, architect (born 1930) 15 April Jim Sprott, analytical chemist, forensic scientist (born 1924) Sir Owen Woodhouse, naval officer, jurist, President of the Court of Appeal (1981–86) (born 1916) 21 April – Maria Olsen, painter and sculptor (born 1947) 26 April David Brokenshire, architect, potter (born 1925) Patrick Hanan, Sinology academic (born 1927)
May 8 May – Allan Potts, athlete, athletics coach and administrator (born 1934) 10 May – Lane Penn, rugby union player, coach and administrator (born 1938) 11 May – Yvonne Cartier, ballet dancer and instructor, mime (born 1928) 14 May Morvin Simon, composer, kapa haka leader, academic, historian (born 1944) Warren Sinclair, radiation physicist (born 1924) 20 May – Ross Brown, rugby union player (born 1934) 21 May Duncan Cole, association football player (born 1958) Mack Herewini, rugby union player (born 1939) 22 May – Pani Stirling, educationalist (born 1937) 23 May – Sam Harvey, cartoonist (born 1922) 28 May – Ethel Divers, netball player (born 1915) 30 May – Peter Hall, cricketer (born 1927)
June 9 June – William Bradfield, amateur astronomer (born 1927) 12 June – Pat Rosier, writer, editor, feminist activist (born 1942) 18 June – Ces Renwick, cricketer (born 1924) 21 June – John Heslop, surgeon, cricket administrator (born 1925) 30 June – Rik Tau, Ngāi Tahu kaumātua (born 1941)
July 2 July – Dave Feickert, mining safety expert (born 1946) 3 July Peter Dawkins, musician and record producer (born 1946) Ramai Hayward, actor and filmmaker (born 1916) 5 July – Gugi Waaka, entertainer (born 1937) 10 July – Douglas Goodfellow, businessman and philanthropist (born 1917) 13 July Con Devitt, trade union leader (born 1928) Josh Liava'a, rugby league player (born 1948) 17 July – Ross Burden, model and celebrity chef (born 1968) 20 July – Lynda Patterson, Anglican priest (born 1974) 21 July – Kevin Skinner, rugby union player (born 1927) 22 July – Glenn Jowitt, photographer (born 1955) 25 July – Kenneth Ferries, cricketer (born 1936) 27 July Eric Anderson, rugby union player and coach (born 1931) Sir Richard Bolt, air force officer (born 1923) Warren Dibble, poet and playwright (born 1931) 29 July – Ron Johnston, speedway rider (born 1930)
August 5 August Dave Hereora, politician and trade unionist (born 1956) Joe McManemin, athletics coach, sports administrator, Freemason (born 1923) 10 August – Graham Gedye, cricketer (born 1929) 13 August – Jack Shallcrass, author, educator, humanist (born 1922) 16 August – Kevin Barry, rugby union player (born 1936) 19 August – Bob Glading, golfer (born 1920) 20 August – Margaret Marks, cricketer (born 1918) 22 August – Helen Mason, potter (born 1915) 27 August – Frank Corner, diplomat and public servant (born 1920)
September 3 September Dorothy Braxton, journalist (born 1927) Johnny Cooper, rock and roll musician (born 1929) Mark Otway, tennis player (born 1931) (death announced on this date) 5 September – Eoin Young, motoring journalist (born 1939) 8 September – Errol Clince, hunter, engineer (born 1953) 14 September – Peter Gutteridge, musician (born 1961) Charles Littlejohn, parliamentary official (born 1923) 22 September – Ben Webb, artist (born 1976) 29 September – John Ritchie, composer, music academic (born 1921)
October 3 October – Ewen Gilmour, comedian (born 1963) 6 October – Peg Griffin, supercentenarian, oldest person in New Zealand (born 1904) 9 October – Connell Thode, naval officer, yachtsman (born 1911) 10 October Ivan Armstrong, field hockey player and coach, tennis umpire, educator (born 1928) Jonathan Mane-Wheoki, art historian, academic and curator (born 1943) Ernie Wiggs, rugby league player and coach (born 1941) 13 October – Yvette Bromley, stage actor and theatre director (born 1913) 14 October – Bob Neilson, rugby league player (born 1923) 18 October – Veandercross, Thoroughbred racehorse (foaled 1988) 21 October – Tuna Scanlan, boxer (born 1934) 26 October – Sir Tay Wilson, sports administrator (born 1925) 27 October – Ian Monro, naval officer (born 1927)
November 2 November – Robert Tripe, actor (born 1973)