William Patrick Jeffries (born 19 September 1945)[1] is a former New Zealand politician of the Labour Party. He was elected as the Member of Parliament for Heretaunga and served as Minister of Transport and Minister of Justice.
Bill Jeffries | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 40th Minister of Justice | |
| In office 13 August 1989 – 2 November 1990 | |
| Prime Minister | Geoffrey Palmer Mike Moore |
| Preceded by | Geoffrey Palmer |
| Succeeded by | Doug Graham |
| 15th Minister of Transport | |
| In office 24 August 1987 – 2 November 1990 | |
| Prime Minister | David Lange Geoffrey Palmer Mike Moore |
| Preceded by | Richard Prebble |
| Succeeded by | Rob Storey |
| Member of the New Zealand Parliament for Heretaunga | |
| In office 28 November 1981 – 27 October 1990 | |
| Preceded by | Ron Bailey |
| Succeeded by | Peter McCardle |
| Personal details | |
| Born | William Patrick Jeffries 19 September 1945 Wellington, New Zealand |
| Political party | Labour |
| Relations | John Jeffries (brother) |
| Profession | Lawyer |
Biography
editEarly life and career
editJeffries was born in Wellington in 1945 and he was educated at St Patrick's College. He attended Victoria University and graduated with a Bachelor of Laws, after which he became a lawyer at his brother's legal firm. Later he left New Zealand to work in the United Kingdom, before returning to Wellington and establishing his own law firm.[2]
He was an active athlete in his youth, playing both tennis and rugby. Jeffries married and had six children.[2]
Political career
edit| Years | Term | Electorate | List | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1981–1984 | 40th | Heretaunga | Labour | ||
| 1984–1987 | 41st | Heretaunga | Labour | ||
| 1987–1990 | 42nd | Heretaunga | Labour | ||
Jeffries was a member of the Wellington City Council from 1974 until 1980. From 1977 to 1980 he was leader of the Labour caucus on the council; he was the youngest ever leader.[3][4] Wellington Mayor Sir Michael Fowler later described Jeffries as an "extremely good" councillor.[5] His brother John was previously also a councillor and Deputy Mayor to Sir Frank Kitts.
In 1978 Jeffries unsuccessfully contested the seat of Miramar for the Labour Party.[6]
He represented the Heretaunga electorate from 1981 to 1990, when he was defeated by National candidate Peter McCardle in a swing against Labour. He was undersecretary to the Minister of Transport in 1986 and also to the Minister of Works, and chairman of a parliamentary committee on road safety in 1987. In April 1988 he was appointed chairman of the National Roads Board. He was Minister of Justice from 1989 to 1990 in the Fourth Labour Government.
In 1990, Jeffries was awarded the New Zealand 1990 Commemoration Medal.[7]
Lombard Finance convictions
editOn 24 February 2012 Jeffries was convicted, along with fellow former Justice Minister Sir Douglas Graham and two other men, of breaching the Securities Act by making untrue statements to investors in his capacity as a director of Lombard Finance.[8] Justice Robert Dobson wrote, "I am satisfied that the accused genuinely believed in the accuracy and adequacy of the ... documents", but that the offences were ones of strict liability so there was no need for "any form of mental intent to distribute documents that were false or misleading".[9] Jeffries was sentenced to 400 hours' community service. The Court of Appeal dismissed his appeal against conviction and increased his sentence to eight months' home detention and 250 hours' community work,[10] but the Supreme Court restored the original sentence.[11] Retired Court of Appeal judge Sir Edmund Thomas described his convictions as a "grievous miscarriage of justice", saying of the crucial piece of evidence that "you would never ever convict a dog on the basis of the schedule".[12]
Notes
edit- ^ Lambert, Max (1991) [1908]. Who's Who in New Zealand (12th ed.). Wellington: Reed. ISBN 0790001306.
- ^ a b Who's Who in the New Zealand Parliament 1987. Wellington: Parliamentary Service. 1987. p. 59.
- ^ "Labour leader to step down". The Evening Post. 22 May 1980.
- ^ "Cr Jeffries sets a worthy example". The Evening Post. 24 May 1980.
- ^ Romanos, Joseph (28 May 2009). "The Wellingtonian interview: Sir Michael Fowler". The Wellingtonian. Retrieved 25 May 2013.
- ^ Norton, Clifford (1988). New Zealand Parliamentary Election Results 1946–1987: Occasional Publications No 1, Department of Political Science. Wellington: Victoria University of Wellington. p. 278. ISBN 0-475-11200-8.
- ^ Taylor, Alister; Coddington, Deborah (1994). Honoured by the Queen – New Zealand. Auckland: New Zealand Who's Who Aotearoa. p. 202. ISBN 0-908578-34-2.
- ^ "Former Cabinet ministers guilty of making false statements". Stuff. 24 February 2012. Retrieved 24 February 2012.
- ^ Gaynor, Brian (10 March 2012). "Rulings have raised the bar for directors". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 11 March 2012.
- ^ "Court increases Lombard sentences". Stuff.co.nz. 2 July 2013. Retrieved 14 November 2013.
- ^ Mayer, Kurt (7 May 2014). "Lombard directors' home detention too harsh - Supreme Court". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 11 January 2016.
- ^ "Lombard conviction 'miscarriage of justice'". Stuff.co.nz. 7 November 2013. Retrieved 14 November 2013.