Michael Cullen (politician)

Michael John Cullen, KNZM ( born February 5, 1945 in London) is a New Zealand politician. The member of the Labour Party has currently (2008) both held the position of party vice- chairman and the Deputy Prime Minister. Since 1999 he is also Minister of Finance, Minister of Tertiary Education, Attorney General and Chairman of the New Zealand Parliament.

Career

Youth

Even in his youth, immigrant, born in London and attended Cullen to New Zealand in Christchurch Christ's College. He later earned a master's degree in history from the University of Canterbury. Since he got a scholarship from the Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship plan, he was finally able to purchase at the University of Edinburgh PhD in Social and Economic History. From 1971 to 1981 he was a lecturer at the University of Otago, where he spent a year as a visiting lecturer at the Australian National University from 1975 to 1976.

In 1974, the Labour Party joined and was from 1976 to 1981 a member of the managing committee. In 1981 he was elected for the electoral district of St. Kilda in Dunedin the New Zealand Parliament.

Fourth Labour Government

When the Labour Party formed the government in 1984, Cullen was appointed leading Whip. Because he was well versed in economic issues, he became more and more involved in the debate about the then Finance Minister Roger Douglas, who ran a rigorous policy of tax cuts and privatization, which was contrary to the true principles of the Social Democratic Labour Party and many party members were, the public angry. When the then Prime Minister David Lange tried hard, the influence Douglas to limit ' on New Zealand politics, he found an ally in Cullen. After re-election in 1987, Cullen was a " finance associates " as well as ministers for social assistance; both to restrict Douglas ' influence.

After a short time, both the radical Finance Minister Douglas, and Cullen's ally, Prime Minister Lange had to pull her hat, Cullen was appointed " associate health minister " to the liberal financial policy by David Caygill, successor of Douglas counteract.

Time in opposition

When the Labour Party lost the 1990 election, Cullen became the party spokesperson for social concerns. A year later he took over the post of party spokesman for finance policy by David Caygill. When this retired in 1996 from the policy, Cullen took over his position as Deputy Leader of the Labour Party. Before the poll ratings for the party began to improve, he tried in vain to repress Helen Clark as party chairman. Nevertheless, there seems to be no more discord between the two. He himself, and commentators often suggest that he was a typical " number -two person ", where his qualities subject more in the field of management instead of leadership.

Fifth Labour Government

With the election of the Labour Party from 1999 Cullen was finance minister. After the coalition partner of the Labour Party, the Progressive Party, surprisingly poor section at the 2002 election, was to their contribution to the coalition too small that its chairman Jim Anderton again should hold the office of Deputy Prime Minister and one about handing Michael Cullen this post.

2005 Cullen was appointed Attorney General. This step exclaimed some controversy, since he was only the second Attorney General, who was not a judicial expert and because he recently criticized the judiciary. His term ended with the 2005 elections, he said after the resignation of David Parker this office occupied repeated in 2006.

With his appointment as Minister of Finance, a large part of the economy was concerned that Cullen would take unrealistic positions for his political leanings. Slowly, however, these fears are lost and it turned out that Cullen is a competent administrator. However, his political stance, he never abandoned what is. Against the nationalization of privatized in the early 1990s railway Under its auspices, was announced in May 2008 to buy out railway operations of Toll Rail, an offshoot of the Australian Toll Holdings.