Christopher Luxon

Christopher Luxon (born July 19, 1970, Christchurch, New Zealand) is the prime minister of New Zealand (2023– ). Luxon led the center-right National Party to an electoral victory in October 2023 and formed a coalition government with the support of the conservative ACT New Zealand Party, and the populist New Zealand First Party. Luxon succeeded Chris Hipkins of the Labour Party, who had led the country for only nine months after the resignation of the previous prime minister, Jacinda Ardern. The National Party’s victory marked the end of six years of liberal Labour Party rule in New Zealand. Luxon previously worked as an executive at Unilever and as CEO of Air New Zealand.

Early life and business career

Luxon was born in a middle-class family to Graham Luxon, a businessman, and Kathleen Luxon, a psychotherapist and counselor. He is the eldest of three brothers. Luxon went to school in Christchurch and Auckland and started a window cleaning business at age 12 for extra pocket money. He finished school in Christchurch and then studied at the University of Canterbury, receiving a master’s degree in commerce with a major in business administration. He and wife Amanda Luxon, whom he married when he was 22, have two children.

In his business career Luxon earned a reputation as someone who came from the outside to introduce change to an organization. In 1993 he was hired by Unilever as a management trainee and rose through the ranks, working in Australia, England, and the United States. He eventually became president and CEO of Unilever’s Canadian operations. In 2011 Luxon moved to a leadership role with Air New Zealand, although he had no experience in the airline industry, and became the company’s CEO in 2012. He was also a board member of Virgin Australia by virtue of Air New Zealand’s stake in that company. In addition, he worked with other industry leaders on climate change issues. Under his leadership Air New Zealand’s profits soared, and it became one of the most trusted brands in New Zealand. However, critics pointed out that he had achieved some of the profits by downsizing, reducing the number of domestic flights and routes, and increasing prices for customers.

Political career

Luxon left Air New Zealand and entered politics as a member of the National Party in 2019. Luxon was chosen by the National Party to stand for election as a member of Parliament in the 2020 elections from the Botany seat in East Auckland. He won his race with 50.2 percent of the votes. He identified himself publicly not only as a social conservative but also as an Evangelical Christian, the latter a rarity in a country where almost half the population identifies as non-religious. In November 2021, just a year after first being elected into public office, Luxon became the leader of the National Party after the exit of Judith Collins. In his new role, he also became New Zealand’s leader of the opposition during Ardern’s Labour government.

Luxon has favored low taxes and strong anti-crime measures and opposed abortion as well as co-governance with the Māori people. After being elected the head of the National Party, he reassured voters that although he was personally against abortion, he would not call for measures to restrict abortion in New Zealand. He eventually voted for a measure that established “safe zones” around abortion clinics to protect workers and clients from protesters. He supported the Conversion Practices Prohibition Legislation Bill, which made it illegal to perform religious conversion on a minor or someone with impaired ability to make decisions, put forward by Labour in 2022.

Prime Minister of New Zealand

Luxon led the National Party in New Zealand’s October 2023 general elections, with a campaign slogan promising to get the country “back on track.” The National Party won the highest number of electorate seats, with Luxon retaining his seat in Botany. Luxon was sworn in as New Zealand’s 42nd prime minister on November 27, 2023, heading a coalition government that combined the National Party’s 48 seats with ACT New Zealand’s 11 seats and New Zealand First’s 8 seats to make up a majority in the 123-seat Parliament.

Luxon started his tenure with an aggressive 100-day plan, focusing on a 49-point agenda. The plan included economic measures to reduce taxes and tackle inflation, as well as steps to improve public services, including law and order. A similar 36-point plan was announced for the second three months of the government’s tenure, prompting accusations that Luxon was running the country as if it were a company. He announced funding for areas that had been impacted by Cyclone Gabrielle in February 2023. In November 2024 Luxon made a formal apology to victims of abuse suffered when in state care or faith-based centers, as a result of the work of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State Care that found evidence of such abuse in state care facilities. New Zealand halted its funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) during Luxon’s tenure, after allegations surfaced linking some UNRWA staff members to Hamas attacks.

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Luxon is also known for his wealth. He is one of New Zealand’s richest prime ministers to date. His numerous properties reportedly earn him several times as much as his salary as the nation’s leader.