As she prepares to retire after 18 years in Parliament, National's Jacqui Dean has a knack for straight talk, and doesn't mince her words about the work of an MP.
After being in Parliament for 18 years, Jacqui Dean has a knack for straight talk, and doesn't mince her words about the work of an MP.
So when I asked the National Party MP what advice she might have for new MPs or those colleagues who stay on after she retires at this year's election, her response cut to the chase: "Work hard, do your job properly, turn up to select committee well prepared, get off your phones."
There was a touch of Dean's style as Assistant Speaker in that response. As a presiding officer these past few years, she has often been in the big seat when the House is sitting in the evenings, maintaining order when the speeches of tired MPs wander or nerves fray. She joins in the spirit of things easily and is ready to have a laugh, but won't tolerate nonsense.
"I guess it comes down to a matter of style, what I'm trying to do is have the trust of the house so that when I do need to rule, I only have to do it once."
After entering parliament in 2005 to reclaim the Otago seat for National, Dean then held the Waitaki seat since it was re-established in 2008 as one of the country's biggest electorates. Dean has also been a commerce and consumer affairs minister and has chaired select committees, with spells in opposition and government.
"I had a bob each way," she said. "I really enjoyed our time in government. I was the minister for the last year of that, which was a huge, huge honour. And I relished it completely. I've never read so much material in my whole life.
"I was really beginning to find my feet until the 2017 election, when of course we went out of power again."
Rolling with the punches
"You win some you lose some, right," explained Dean, sitting on a couch in her parliamentary office, opposite a wall completely covered in her own OIA artwork installation: dozens of white A4 sheets invariably fully redacted in black.
A lot of these roadblocks were encountered as part of Dean's role as opposition spokesperson for conservation, an area she is passionate about.
"The highs and lows are part of the deal. You come into Parliament, representing your community, you're not really here to better your own achievements, you're here to represent your community."
What was it like coming into Parliament in 2005 as part of a male-heavy crew like the Nationals under Don Brash?…