2024 in New Zealand

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Decades:	2000s 2010s 2020s
See also:	History of New Zealand List of years in New Zealand Timeline of New Zealand history

The following lists events that have happened or are expected to happen during 2024 in New Zealand.

Incumbents

Regal and vice-regal

• Head of state – Charles III
• Governor-General – Cindy Kiro

• 
  Charles III
• 
  Cindy Kiro

Government

Legislature term: 54th New Zealand Parliament.

The Sixth National Government, elected in 2023, continues.

• Speaker of the House – Gerry Brownlee
• Prime Minister – Christopher Luxon
• Deputy Prime Minister – Winston Peters
• Leader of the House – Chris Bishop
• Minister of Finance – Nicola Willis
• Minister of Foreign Affairs – Winston Peters

• 
  Gerry Brownlee
• 
  Christopher Luxon
• 
  Winston Peters
• 
  Chris Bishop
• 
  Nicola Willis

Other party leaders in parliament

• Labour – Chris Hipkins (Leader of the Opposition)
• Green – James Shaw until 10 March then Chlöe Swarbrick, and Marama Davidson
• ACT – David Seymour
• NZ First – Winston Peters
• Te Pāti Māori – Rawiri Waititi and Debbie Ngarewa-Packer

• 
  Chris Hipkins
• 
  James Shaw
• 
  Marama Davidson
• 
  Chlöe Swarbrick
• 
  David Seymour
• 
  Winston Peters

Judiciary

• Chief Justice – Helen Winkelmann
• President of the Court of Appeal – Mark Cooper
• Chief High Court judge – Sally Fitzgerald
• Chief District Court judge – Heemi Taumaunu

• 
  Helen Winkelmann
• 
  Mark Cooper

Main centre leaders

• Mayor of Auckland – Wayne Brown
• Mayor of Tauranga – Anne Tolley (as chair of commissioners)
• Mayor of Hamilton – Paula Southgate
• Mayor of Wellington – Tory Whanau
• Mayor of Christchurch – Phil Mauger
• Mayor of Dunedin – Jules Radich

• 
  Wayne Brown
• 
  Anne Tolley
• 
  Paula Southgate
• 
  Tory Whanau
• 
  Phil Mauger

Events

January

• 3 January – The Waitangi Treaty Grounds and its museums are evacuated following a bomb threat received in an email.
• 6 January – Learner license driver tests are changed in order to drop high wait times. Testees must wait 10 days until attempting another test if they fail twice in a day.
• 9 January – A seven-year legal battle concludes, marking three and a half hectares of Titirangi bush to be removed for a water treatment plant.
• 10 January – Train lines in Wellington lose power at around 3pm. Power is restored about six hours later.
• 11 January – 10 hectares of scrub in Tītahi Bay, Porirua is lit on fire, starting at around 11pm. It is contained the following day.
• 14 January – The Auckland Light Rail project is cancelled by the government. The project oversaw building light rail system in Auckland.
• 15 January
  • Train stations on Auckland's Eastern Line between Ōrākei and Sylvia Park reopen after being closed for 10 months to allow tracks to be rebuilt.
  • Prime Minister Christopher Luxon meets with the Māori King, Kīngi Tūheitia. Their discussions include the government's plans to remove Māori names from public organisations.
• 16 January – Golriz Ghahraman announces her resignation as a Green Party Member of Parliament following three accusations of shoplifting in Auckland and Wellington.
• 17 January
  • Wellington enters level two water restrictions due to its ageing infrastructure during summer demand spikes. Almost half of Wellington's water is lost to over 3,000 pipe leaks. The restrictions enact a ban of residential sprinklers and irrigation sprinklers in Wellington City, Porirua City, Hutt City and Upper Hutt City.
  • 2023 NCEA results are revealed, showing a drop in secondary school pass rates for the third year in a row. This is attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • MetService issues a heat alert in Auckland due to night temperatures forecasted at 20–21 degrees.
• 19 January
  • Four separate wildfires break out in Amberley and Loburn, Canterbury, reaching an estimated area of 10 hectares. The fires are contained in the evening by over 100 firefighters. Three homes and a church are lost in the fires.
  • Celia Wade-Brown is declared elected a list MP for the Green Party following the resignation of Golriz Ghahraman.
  • Westland declares a state of emergency due to heavy rain.
• 20 January
  • A national hui is held at Tūrangawaewae Marae, called by the Māori King Tūheitia Paki, which has several thousand attendees.
  • A second wildfire on the north side of the Waimakariri River, by Swannanoa breaks out, reaching an estimated area of 12 hectares. Forty firefighters and four helicopters are used to fight the fire.
• 21 January – A pod of 40 false killer whales and bottlenose dolphins were euthanised after becoming stranded on a reef near Māhia Peninsula in the Hawke's Bay region.
• 22 January – The Commerce Commission launches investigations into pricing and promotional practices of the two supermarket chains Woolworths New Zealand and Foodstuffs.
• 24 January
  • Albert Park in Auckland is evacuated along with surrounding streets after a man made "concerning comments".
  • Waipukurau water supply drops to 26% due to a leak. Level four water restrictions are put in place, banning outdoor water use, and residents are asked not to use dishwashers or washing machines.
• 26 January
  • Local Government Minister Simeon Brown says that the government does not want to decrease the voting age to 16, after a similar comment was made on 16 January. This ends the previous government's intention to decrease the age.
  • Members of the Ngāti Kahu iwi (tribe) block access to Taipa ahead of the Doubtless Bay Fishing Competition to protest the Government's proposed Treaty of Waitangi Principles legislation and overfishing. Protesters vowed to continue their blockade over the weekend (27–28 January).
• 30 January
  • James Shaw, co-leader of the Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand announces his resignation, effective March.
  • New Zealand suspends its aid contribution to UNRWA (the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East) following allegations that at least 12 UNRWA workers had participated in the 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel.
• 31 January
  • The government announces that the ending of providing free COVID-19 rapid antigen test kits will be extended to 30 June.
  • A heat alert is issued for Auckland, and outdoor fires are banned in Canterbury.

February

• 4 February – A wildfire along the banks of the Waimakariri River near Kirwee reaches 80 hectares in size, leading to evacuations and the closure of Old West Coast Road.
• 5 February – Rangiora High School closes for one day due to a high COVID-19 infection rate among its staff.
• 6 February – Large crowds gather outside Treaty House in Waitangi, Northland to protest against the Government's Māori language policies and proposed Treaty Principles legislation.
• 7 February – Supreme Court rules that iwi leader and climate activist Mike Smith can sue seven companies for pollution including Fonterra, Z Energy and Genesis Energy Limited.
• 8 February – Local state of emergency declared in the Southland township of Bluecliffs due to erosion caused by heavy rain and sea swell.
• 10 February
  • Westpac experiences an outage in which customers are unable to withdraw funds and use eftpos cards for more than 12 hours.
  • A South Dunedin Countdown supermarket closes for at least a week, after suffering a rodent infestation.
• 11 February – The government announces a $63 million funding increase for Cyclone Gabrielle recovery, to remove sediment and debris.
• 12 February – The Ministry of Primary Industries starts an investigation at a Christchurch Countdown supermarket, after a mouse is spotted running across uncovered a deli-made salad.
• 13 February – A memorial service is held at Muriwai to remember the death of two firefighters during Cyclone Gabrielle. A plaque was also unveiled.
• 14 February
  • 2024 Port Hills fire: A state of emergency is declared in Christchurch and Selwyn, as firefighters battle to control a bushfire in the city's Port Hills region.
  • Six residents of a rest home in Whitianga have died after a third of residents and staff were infected with Influenza A over a 12-day period.
  • Parliament repeals under urgency the Three Waters programme.
• 20 February – Labour Member of Parliament and former cabinet minister Grant Robertson announces his resignation from politics to take up the position of Vice-Chancellor of the University of Otago commencing July 2024.
• 21 February – Green MP Efeso Collins collapses and dies during a charity event.
• 24 February – The new Kaeo Bridge in Northland opens after starting in 2021 and being unveiled in 2015.
• 25 February – Food labels now must contain potentially life‐threatening allergens bolded in the ingredients list.
• 26 February – State Highway 1 over Brynderwyn Hills closes for repairs until 27 March.
• 28 February
  • The official cash rate is kept at 5.5%.
  • Warner Bros. Discovery releases a proposal to shut down television news broadcaster Newshub by 30 June 2024.
• 29 February
  • Petrol stations Z, Allied Petroleum, Gull, Waitomo, etc experience nationwide self-service pump outages due to a software problem caused by the leap year.
  • New Zealand Blood Service lifts the mad cow disease blood and plasma donation restriction.
  • The entirety of Hamas is designated as a terrorist entity by the government, which follows a 2010 designation of its military as terrorist.

March

• 1 March – Judge Evangelos Thomas imposes a total of NZ$10.21 million in reparations and NZ$2 million in fines on five companies and GNS Science over their involvement in the 2019 Whakaari / White Island eruption.
• 6 March – Lawrence Xu-Nan is elected as a list MP for the Green Party following the death of Efeso Collins.
• 8 March – State-owned television news broadcaster TVNZ proposes eliminating 68 jobs and axing several current affairs programs including Fair Go, Sunday, 1 News' midday and late night news segments due to financial difficulties.
• 9 March – The Hokitika Wildfoods Festival takes place.
• 10 March
  • Chlöe Swarbrick is elected co-leader of the Green Party, following the resignation of James Shaw.
  • Firefighters respond to multiple wildfires in the Waitaki District.
• 11 March – 50 passengers and crew are injured after LATAM Airlines Flight 800 experiences an inflight upset while landing at Auckland International Airport.
• 12 March – Scientists on an expedition to the Bounty Trough discover more than a hundred species previously unknown in New Zealand waters.
• 13 March
  • Golriz Ghahraman pleads guilty to shoplifting.
  • The government gives Ruapehu Alpine Lifts a $7 million bailout.
• 14 March
  • The Wellington City Council approves a plan to increase housing density in Wellington.
  • The Dunedin City Council votes to consult ratepayers on a proposal to sell energy company Aurora Energy in order to pay off the company's forecast debt of NZ$750 million.
• 15 March – World of Music, Arts and Dance takes place in New Plymouth.
• 20 March – The government announces that it will ban disaposable vapes, and increase the maximum fine from selling to under-18s from $10,000 to $100,000.
• 19 March - The Rotorua Lakes Council cancels a scheduled Coco and Erika Flash Drag Queen Story Hour event due to safety concerns.
• 21 March – It is announced that the country has entered a recession, with a GDP drop of 0.1% following a 0.3% drop in the September 2023 quarter.
• 22 March - MediaWorks New Zealand confirms that a hacker has compromised the personal information of 403,000 individuals who had participated in its online competitions.
• 24 March – Two people are killed and three critically wounded following a street brawl involving 100 people in Gisborne.
• 26 March
  • NZ Post confirms plans to lay off 750 workers over the next five years due to declining mail volume.
  • Members of Destiny Church protest against Erika and Coco Flash's Drag Queen reading event at the Gisborne library.
  • The Hastings District Council cancels an upcoming Erika and CoCo Flash Rainbow Story event due to safety concerns.
• 27 March – The 2024 New Zealander of the Year Awards are announced, with climate scientist Jim Salinger named New Zealander of the Year.
• 28 March - The Government halts work on legislation to create an ocean sanctuary around the Kermadec Islands.

April

• 1 April
  • The minimum wage is increased from $22.70 to $23.15 an hour.
  • Pharmacies become permitted to vaccinate children under the age of five.

Predicted and scheduled event

• Six new marine reserves in the southeast South Island are expected to be gazetted.
• 1 May – The government will stop funding public transport fares which make trips free for children, and half price for people under 25.
• 30 May – The 2024 budget will be delivered.
• 3 June – The 2024 King's Birthday Honours will be announced.
• July – Elections for the Tauranga City Council will be held.
• October – King Charles III and Queen Camilla plan to visit New Zealand.
• 31 December – The 2025 New Year Honours will be announced.

Holidays and observances

Public holidays in New Zealand in 2024 are as follows:

• 1 January – New Year's Day
• 2 January – Day after New Year's Day
• 6 February – Waitangi Day
• 29 March – Good Friday
• 1 April – Easter Monday
• 25 April – Anzac Day
• 3 June – King's Birthday
• 28 June – Matariki
• 28 October – Labour Day
• 25 December – Christmas Day
• 26 December – Boxing Day

Sport

Cricket

January

• New Zealand defeats Pakistan 4–1 in a five-match Twenty20 International series.
• The 2024 Women's T20I Pacific Cup is played in Auckland, with New Zealand Māori losing to Papua New Guinea in the final.
• The 2023–24 Women's Super Smash is won by the Wellington Blaze, their eighth title.
• The 2023–24 Men's Super Smash is won by the Auckland Aces, their fifth title.

February

• New Zealand beats South Africa 2–0 in a two-Test series in New Zealand, becoming the inaugural winners of the Tangiwai Shield and winning a Test series against South Africa for the first time.
• Australia defeats New Zealand 3–0 in a three-match T20I series.

March

• Australia defeats New Zealand 2–0 in a two-match Test series.
• The England women's cricket team defeats New Zealand 4–1 in a five-match T20I series.

April

• The England and New Zealand women's teams will complete a three-match ODI series.

Horse racing

Thoroughbred racing

• Auckland Cup – Mahrajaan
• Wellington Cup – Mary Louise

Olympics

Main article: New Zealand at the 2024 Summer Olympics

New Zealand will compete at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris from 26 July to 11 August.

Rowing

• New Zealand Secondary School Championships (Maadi Cup)
  • Maadi Cup (boys' U18 coxed eight) – St Bede's College
  • Levin Jubilee Cup (girls' U18 coxed eight) – Christchurch Girls' High School
  • Star Trophy (overall points) – Hamilton Boys' High School

Shooting

• Ballinger Belt – Mike Collings (Te Puke)

Tennis

The ASB Classic tournament is held in Auckland from 1 to 13 January:

• Women's singles – Coco Gauff
• Women's doubles – Anna Danilina / Viktória Hrunčáková
• Men's singles – Alejandro Tabilo
• Men's doubles – Wesley Koolhof / Nikola Mektić

Winter Youth Olympics

Main article: New Zealand at the 2024 Winter Youth Olympics

New Zealand sends a team of 22 competitors across seven sports to the 2024 Winter Youth Olympics, held in Gangwon, South Korea, from 19 January to 1 February.

Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
1	2	4	7

Deaths

January

• 1 January – Sandra Blewett, marathon swimmer (born 1949).
• 2 January – Richard Izard, Hall of Fame industrialist and philanthropist (born 1934).
• 4 January – Y. P. Reddy, Fijian businessman, co-founder of the Reddy Group (born 1934).
• 5 January – Mike Cross, rugby union player (Manawatu) and administrator, president of the New Zealand Rugby Football Union (1997–1998) (born 1936).
• 6 January
  • Tony Adeane, lawyer and judge, District Court judge (1993–2020) (born c. 1951).
  • Richard Wallace, Māori Anglican bishop, Pīhopa o Te Waipounamu (since 2017) (born 1945).
• 8 January
  • Michael Brown, Anglican clergyman, dean of Wellington Cathedral of St Paul (1985–2002) (born 1936).
  • Duncan Hales, rugby union player (Canterbury, Manawatu, national team) (born 1947).
• 9 January – Bill Harris, political scientist (University of Otago) (born c. 1952).
• 10 January – Anaru Rangiheuea, Māori leader (Te Arawa) (born 1935).
• 11 January – Hugh Willis, volunteer bush-track builder (born 1934).
• 18 January – Louise Petherbridge, theatre actor, director and producer (born 1931).
• 19 January – Ann Pacey, jazz singer, actress (Send a Gorilla, Dangerous Orphans, Oscar and Friends), and television personality (Beauty and the Beast) (born 1941).
• 22 January
  • Brien Bennett, snooker and billiards player and administrator, chair of the International Billiards and Snooker Federation (1980–1990) (born c. 1937).
  • Jimmy Choux, Thoroughbred racehorse, New Zealand 2000 Guineas (2010), New Zealand Derby (2011), Rosehill Guineas (2011), New Zealand Horse of the Year (2010–11) (foaled 2007).
• 23 January – Bryan Nicholson, lawyer and judge, District Court judge (1967–1987), Chief Justice of Samoa (1976–1980) (born 1929).
• 24 January – Selwyn Muru, artist (Waharoa), broadcaster (Radio New Zealand, TVNZ), actor (Runaway), writer and educator, Te Tohu mō Te Arikinui Dame Te Atairangikaahu (1990) (born 1937).
• 26 January – Peg Moorhouse, weaver (born 1917).
• 29 January – Ronnie Joyner, basketball player (Washington State Cougars, Wellington Saints, Northland Suns), NBL All-Star (1985, 1986) (born c. 1961).
• 30 January
  • Feau Halatau, drummer (The Radars) (born c. 1945).
  • Mary-Annette Hay, promoter of wool (New Zealand Wool Board), and watercolour artist (born 1925).

• 
  Richard Izard
• 
  Richard Wallace
• 
  Bill Harris
• 
  Anaru Rangiheuea
• 
  Louise Petherbridge
• 
  Selwyn Muru
• 
  Mary-Annette Hay

February

• 2 February – Honor McKellar, operatic mezzo-soprano (New Zealand Opera Company, Glyndebourne Chorus, John Alldis Choir), singing teacher (Jonathan Lemalu, Patrick Power) and lecturer (University of Otago) (born 1920).
• 3 February – Ray Watters, geographer (Victoria University of Wellington), co-developer of the MIRAB model (born 1928).
• 4 February – Desmond Kelly, actor (Smash Palace, The Scarecrow, Dark Knight) (born 1928).
• 6 February – Don McKay, rugby union player (Auckland, national team) (born 1937).
• 8 February – Pat Benson, rugby union player (Hawke's Bay, Junior All Blacks), marathon swimmer, restorer of art deco buildings (born c. 1957).
• 9 February – John Donoghue, musician (Bulldogs Allstar Goodtime Band, The Human Instinct, The Warratahs) (born c. 1948).
• 10 February – Gerald Hensley, public servant and diplomat, High Commissioner to Singapore (1976–1980), Head of the Prime Minister's Department (1980–1987), Secretary of Defence (1991–1999) (born 1935).
• 13 February – Kerry Carman, botanical artist, gardening writer and columnist (New Zealand Listener) (born 1939).
• 14 February – Muru Walters, rugby union player (North Auckland, New Zealand Māori), carver, educator (Dunedin Teachers' College, St John's Theological College) writer, broadcaster (Radio New Zealand), and Anglican clergyman, Pīhopa o Te Upoko o Te Ika (1992–2018), Tom French Cup (1957) (born 1935).
• 15 February – Ellen Ellis, feminist, archivist and researcher (born 1944).
• 18 February – Garry Tee, mathematician and computer scientist (University of Auckland) (born 1932).
• 21 February – Efeso Collins, politician, Auckland Councillor (2016–2022), Green list MP (since 2023) (born c. 1974).
• 24 February – Bill Alington, architect (Wellington High School, Alington House) (born 1929).
• 26 February – Charlie Crofts, Māori leader (Ngāi Tahu) (born 1943).
• 29 February
  • Craig Cary, microbial ecologist (University of Waikato) (born 1954).
  • Ross Garrett, physicist (University of Auckland), yachtsman, writer and conservationist (born 1928).

• 
  Pat Benson
• 
  Muru Walters
• 
  Efeso Collins
• 
  Charlie Crofts

March

• 1 March – Jim Davis, legal academic (University of Canterbury, Australian National University) (born 1936).
• 4 March – Bob Kirk, geomorphologist (University of Canterbury) and local politician, Canterbury Regional Councillor (2004–2010) (born 1944).
• 5 March
  • John Behrent, cricketer (Wellington, Auckland) (born 1938).
  • Jim Ng, general practitioner and Chinese community historian (born 1936).
• 8 March
  • David Gapes, journalist (The Evening Post, NZ Truth), commercial radio pioneer, band manager (Hello Sailor), and magazine editor, co-founder of Radio Hauraki (1966) (born 1942).
  • Jonathan Hunt, politician and diplomat, MP for New Lynn (1966–1996), Labour list MP (1996–2005), Postmaster-General (1984–1987), Speaker of the House of Representatives (1999–2005), High Commissioner to the United Kingdom (2005–2008), Privy Counsellor (since 1989), Member of the Order of New Zealand (since 2004) (born 1938).
• 11 March
  • Brian Fineran, botanist (University of Canterbury) (born 1937).
  • Robin Fraser, pathologist (University of Otago, Christchurch) (born 1933).
• 16 March
  • Michal McKay, fashion and lifestyle editor (Vogue New Zealand, New Zealand Woman's Weekly, Cuisine).
  • Allan Pye, agribusiness entrepreneur (born 1941).
• 18 March – Jocelyn Munro, lawyer and judge, District court judge (2007–2020) (born 1950).
• 19 March
  • Caryll Clausen, local-body politician, Mayor of Manawatu (1989–1995) (born 1931).
  • Rod Oram, journalist and commentator (born 1950).
  • Neil Thimbleby, rugby union player (Hawke's Bay, national team) (born 1939).
• 20 March – Bernadette Farnan, lawyer and judge, District Court judge (since 2015) (born 1956).
• 21 March – Philip Recordon, lawyer and judge, District Court judge (2004–2018) (born 1948).
• 23 March – Harry Percival, soil scientist (Soil Bureau, Landcare Research) (born 1943).
• 26 March – Clare Elliott, singer (Suburban Reptiles).
• 28 March – John Taylor, educator, headmaster of Rathkeale College (1979–1987) and King's College (1988–2002) (born 1941).
• 30 March – Diana Fenwick, arts sector leader, chair of the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra (2006–2009).
• 31 March – Jonathan Bennett, philosopher of language and metaphysics (University of Cambridge, University of British Columbia, Syracuse University) (born 1930).

• 
  David Gapes
• 
  Jonathan Hunt
• 
  Caryll Clausen
• 
  Rod Oram
• 
  John Taylor