Shane Jones

Deputy Leader, Minister for Regional Development, Oceans and Fisheries, Resources

Electorate: Northland

Before Politics

◆Lawyer and businessman
◆Pacific Economic Ambassador — appointed 2014 after leaving Labour

Parliamentary Career

◆Labour list MP 2005–2014
◆Contested Labour leadership in 2013 — lost to David Cunliffe
◆NZ First MP 2017–2020
◆NZ First MP for Northland since 2023
◆Deputy Leader of NZ First since September 2025
◆Minister for Regional Development, Oceans and Fisheries, Resources since 2023

Key Positions

→Regional economic development — roads, infrastructure, industry
→Fishing and ocean resource management
→Resource extraction — mining, oil and gas
→Anti-co-governance
→Immigration control

Accomplishments

✓Provincial Growth Fund — directed billions to regional NZ during 2017–2020 Labour coalition
✓Senior voice for Northland and regional NZ
✓Elected Deputy Leader unanimously by NZ First caucus in 2025

Controversies

!Made remarks about 'sending Mexicans home' targeting Green MP Ricardo Menéndez March — widely condemned as racist
!Accused Green MPs Lawrence Xu-Nan and Francisco Hernandez of imposing 'foreign ideas' on NZ
!Described as deliberately provocative and inflammatory in parliamentary debates
!Crossed the floor from Labour to NZ First — seen by some as opportunistic
!Past allegations regarding use of parliamentary credit card while a Labour MP

Bio Summary

Deputy leader and Regional Development Minister; outspoken champion of provincial NZ and large-scale infrastructure spending.

Neutral disclaimer: Fair Say NZ provides neutral profile data for civic education purposes. Information is based on publicly available sources. Verify via official Parliament and party websites before acting on any detail.