List of high commissioners of New Zealand to the United Kingdom facts for kids

The Honourable Phil Goff, the current High Commissioner

The High Commissioner of New Zealand to the United Kingdom is New Zealand's main representative in the United Kingdom. This person is in charge of New Zealand's official office, called the diplomatic mission, in the UK. Their job is to help keep a good relationship between New Zealand and the United Kingdom.

What is a High Commissioner?

A High Commissioner is like an ambassador, but they work between countries that are part of the Commonwealth of Nations. Both New Zealand and the United Kingdom are members of the Commonwealth. This means their diplomatic talks happen between their governments, not just between their heads of state.

A Long History of Friendship

New Zealand and the United Kingdom have a very long history together. Because New Zealand was once part of the British Empire, their diplomatic relationship is the oldest New Zealand has.

New Zealand has had a representative in the UK since 1871. At first, this person was called an "Agent-General." In 1905, the role changed to "High Commissioner." This was even before New Zealand became a Dominion (a self-governing country within the British Empire).

The High Commission of New Zealand is located in London, the capital city of the United Kingdom.

High Commissioner's Other Roles

Sometimes, a High Commissioner might represent New Zealand in more than one country. For example, the High Commissioner to the United Kingdom also serves as the High Commissioner to Nigeria. This is called being "concurrently accredited."

The High Commissioner used to also be New Zealand's ambassador to Ireland. However, since 2018, New Zealand has a separate, permanent office in Dublin, Ireland, with its own ambassador.

New Zealand also started sending High Commissioners to other countries later on. For example, a High Commissioner was sent to Canada in 1942 and to Australia in 1943.

List of High Commissioners

Here is a list of the people who have held this important job:

No.		Name	Portrait	Term of office		Monarch
	1	Isaac Featherston		March 1871	September 1876	Victoria
	2	Julius Vogel		September 1876	December 1880
	3	Dillon Bell		December 1880	September 1891
	4	Westby Perceval		September 1891	December 1895
	5	William Pember Reeves		December 1895	December 1908
						Edward VII
	6	William Hall-Jones		December 1908	August 1912
						George V
	7	Thomas Mackenzie		August 1912	19 June 1920
	8	James Allen		19 June 1920	1 July 1926
	9	James Parr		1 July 1926	9 January 1930
	10	Thomas Wilford		9 January 1930	25 January 1934
	(9)	James Parr		25 January 1934	3 September 1936
						Edward VIII
	11	Bill Jordan		3 September 1936	17 September 1951
						George VI
	12	Frederick Doidge		17 September 1951	26 May 1954†
						Elizabeth II
	13	Clifton Webb		4 January 1955	31 March 1958
	-	Dick Campbell (acting)		1 April 1958	30 September 1958
	-	George Laking (acting)		30 September 1958	20 March 1961
	14	Thomas Macdonald		20 March 1961	31 March 1968
	-	Hunter Wade (acting)		31 March 1968	11 May 1968
	15	Denis Blundell		11 May 1968	22 August 1972
	-	Merv Norrish (acting)		22 August 1972	15 March 1973
	16	Terry McCombs		15 March 1973	22 March 1975
	17	Hugh Watt		22 March 1975	21 June 1976
	18	Douglas Carter		21 June 1976	16 July 1979
	19	Les Gandar		16 July 1979	27 September 1982
	20	Bill Young		27 September 1982	21 February 1985
	21	Joe Walding		21 February 1985	5 June 1985†
	22	Bryce Harland		15 October 1985	3 June 1991
	23	George Gair		3 June 1991	April 1994
	24	John Collinge		April 1994	1 May 1997
	25	Richard Grant		1 May 1997	4 January 1999
	26	Paul East		4 January 1999	4 January 2002
	27	Russell Marshall		4 January 2002	4 January 2005
	28	Jonathan Hunt		April 2005	March 2008
	29	Derek Leask		March 2008	February 2013
	30	Lockwood Smith		25 March 2013	24 March 2017
	31	Jerry Mateparae		24 March 2017	April 2020
	32	Bede Corry		April 2020	8 September 2022
	-	Shannon Austin (acting)		8 September 2022	January 2023
						Charles III
	33	Phil Goff		January 2023	Present