Bill Rowling

Sir Wallace Edward Rowling (15 November 1927 – 31 October 1995), commonly known as Bill Rowling, was a New Zealand politician who was the 30th prime minister of New Zealand from 1974 to 1975.

He held office as the leader of the Labour Party.

In 1958, Rowling left teaching and joined the New Zealand Army, becoming assistant director of Army Education.

He spent a short amount of time serving abroad in Malaysia and Singapore, a deployment connected with the Malayan Emergency.

In the 1960 election, Rowling was selected as the Labour Party's candidate for the Fendalton electorate in Christchurch.

Fendalton was regarded as a safe National seat, and Rowling was defeated by the National Party's Harry Lake (who was appointed Minister of Finance in the new National government).

Two years later, however, Rowling successfully contested the by-election for Buller, which had been caused by the death of prominent Labour MP Jerry Skinner.

Rowling, with a farming background, became Labour's spokesperson on Agriculture and Lands, portfolios previously held by Skinner.

Rowling was a lecturer in economics when he entered politics; he became a Member of Parliament (MP) in the 1962 Buller by-election.

At the 1966, 1967 and 1968 party conferences Rowling stood for the vice-presidency of the Labour Party, but was narrowly defeated by Henry May on each occasion, however he managed to defeat May in 1969.

The following year he was elevated to party presidency.

He was the first person to be elected to their first term as president unopposed in Labour history.

While Labour was in opposition under Labour leader Norman Kirk Rowling was spokesperson for several portfolios including Overseas Trade, Marketing, Broadcasting, Mines, Planning Development and natural resources.

Not long after entering parliament Rowling began to rise through Labour's internal hierarchy, and he was Party President from 1970 to 1973.

He was serving as Minister of Finance (1972–1974) when he was appointed Prime Minister following the death of the highly popular Norman Kirk.

Rowling was to hold the Buller seat until the election of 1972, when the seat was dissolved – Rowling then contested successfully the new seat of Tasman, which he did travelling up and down the electorate by Commer campervan, which he lived in for the time.

Not long after entering parliament Rowling began to rise through Labour's internal hierarchy.

In the lead up to the 1972 election Kirk tried to persuade Rowling to transfer from the more marginal Tasman seat to the safe Christchurch seat of Avon.

Kirk feared Rowling (by then party president) might lose his seat and did not want to lose his economics expertise.

Rowling refused on the grounds that such a self interested move would not be befitting of a party president.

When the Labour Party won power under Norman Kirk in the 1972 election, Rowling was appointed Minister of Finance.

This could be seen as a considerable promotion for someone without prior ministerial experience, though the government was inexperienced as a whole with Labour's deputy leader Hugh Watt the only minister with prior cabinet experience.

His allocation of the finance portfolio was contrary to expectation, given Bob Tizard had been the spokesperson when in opposition.

Both Warren Freer and Hugh Watt had favoured Tizard for Finance, but Kirk thought he was not steady enough for the role and was suspicious of him as an "intellectual".

As finance minister Rowling imbued nationalistic sentiments, declaring his goal to make sure the country was developed by New Zealanders for New Zealanders and warned that New Zealanders were in danger of losing control of their own country and its industries.

The Labour government enjoyed a record budget surplus in its first year and revalued the currency accordingly.

The remainder of Rowling's term as Minister of Finance was somewhat turbulent; from late in 1973, a series of externally generated crises, of which the 'oil shocks' were the most serious, destabilised the New Zealand economy.

These added to other problems, such as growing overseas debt and falling export prices.

A major financial policy during Rowling's tenure was a comprehensive superannuation scheme.

However, the slowing global economy, an unprecedented rise in oil prices and a rapid rise in government expenditure led to soaring inflation by 1974.

When Norman Kirk died unexpectedly in 1974, Hugh Watt, his deputy, served as acting prime minister for several days while the Labour Party caucus chose a new leader.

His Labour Government's effort to retrieve the economy ended with an upset victory by the National Party in November 1975.

Rowling continued to lead the Labour Party but lost two more general elections.

Upon retiring from the party's leadership in 1983, he was knighted.

He served as Ambassador to the United States from 1985 to 1988.

Rowling was born in a country suburb of Māriri neighbouring the town of Motueka, near Nelson.

He was a member of a long-established farming family.

He was educated at Nelson College and the University of Canterbury, gaining a degree in economics.

He also attended the Christchurch College of Education (currently, University of Canterbury), qualifying as a teacher.

After completing his education, Rowling taught at several schools around the country, including at Motueka, Christchurch, Waverley and in Northland.