Source: Radio New Zealand
Michael Wood lost the Mt Roskill seat in 2023. RNZ / Samuel Rillstone
Former Labour cabinet minister Michael Wood has confirmed his re-entry into politics, announcing he will stand again in the Mt Roskill seat at the next election.
In 2023, Wood lost the electorate to National’s Carlos Cheung, the first time Labour had lost since the seat was created in 1999.
In a video posted to his Facebook page, Wood said 2023 was a “difficult” year for him, and he made some “real mistakes”.
Those mistakes ended his ministerial career.
Three years ago, Wood was stood down as transport minister for failing to disclose shares in Auckland Airport.
He then resigned from his remaining portfolios, including immigration, after it was discovered he had shares in Chorus, Spark, and National Australia Bank through a trust.
The incidents saw him referred to Parliament’s privileges committee, and he was ordered to apologise to Parliament.
“I own my mistakes from that period. The approach I take is that if you mess something up you don’t shift the blame to others, you own it, you take responsibility, you try and improve yourself and then come back and keep contributing,” Wood said in his video.
In a statement posted alongside the video, Wood said he understood people would have had concerns about his resignation, which he understood.
“I made an error and there are no excuses. I apologised, accepted the consequences, and I’ve taken that lesson seriously.”
Wood first won the seat in a 2016 by-election, defeating National list MP Parmjeet Parmar by 6852 votes.
He increased his margins in 2017 and 2020, with Parmar not placed high enough on National’s list to return in 2020.
Parmar returned to Parliament in 2023 with the ACT Party.
Wood said he was standing again because he felt many people in the electorate were feeling “forgotten and neglected,” and needed someone “experienced and hardened enough” to fight for them.
The Mt Roskill boundaries have been redrawn ahead of the 2026 election, with parts of Wesley and Balmoral going to Mt Albert, while it gains Blockhouse Bay from the New Lynn seat (which is set to be disestablished for the election).
Wood is currently a director at union E tū.
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
