Alec Neill was a member of parliament for the National Party on three non-consecutive occasions between 1990 and 2002 and was later a member of the Canterbury Regional Council from 2003 until 2010.
23 Facts About Alec Neill
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Alec Neill was born in Dunedin, the youngest son of Alf Alec Neill QC, then a prominent barrister practising in Dunedin.
3.
Alec Neill was raised at Allans Beach on the Otago Peninsula, attended the Hoopers Inlet Primary School and then attended St Kevin's College, Oamaru, and the University of Otago where he graduated with an LLB.
4.
Alec Neill commenced his law career with Ross Dowling Marquet and Griffen in Dunedin before shifting to Oamaru in 1974, joining solicitors George Berry and Evan Alty in the firm of Hjorring Tait and Farrell.
5.
Alec Neill became a partner on 1 May 1976 and the firm was rebranded as Berry Alty and Alec Neill.
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Alec Neill remained a partner of the firm until elected to Parliament in 1990.
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Alec Neill is married to Diane and they have a blended family of five children.
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Alec Neill was selected as the new National candidate for the 1990 election.
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Alec Neill defeated Sutton, who was by that time the Minister of Agriculture, by 2,095 votes and was one of 27 National candidates who defeated Labour incumbents.
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Alec Neill was never appointed to a ministerial position in the Fourth National Government, but he was the chairman of the planning and development committee, which oversaw the passing of the Resource Management Act 1991, and of the justice and law reform committee.
11.
Alec Neill sought National's selection for the enlarged Otago electorate but lost to newcomer Gavan Herlihy.
12.
Alec Neill opted not to seek the nomination in the new Timaru electorate, which took in area from Waitaki.
13.
Alec Neill stood as a list-only candidate in 1996 and 1999 but the party did not secure enough votes for his election on either occasion.
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In January 1999, Paul East resigned from Parliament to take up a diplomatic post, and Alec Neill became a list MP until the election that November, where he was again unsuccessful in being re-elected.
15.
In January 2001, Simon Upton resigned; Alec Neill was again the next candidate on the National Party list, allowing him to return to Parliament.
16.
Alec Neill was junior whip under National leader Jenny Shipley until October 2001 and National's spokesperson for local government and conservation under Bill English until the 2002 election.
17.
Alec Neill served seven years on Canterbury Regional Council as a councillor in the Christchurch West constituency, including seven months as chair.
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Alec Neill was re-elected in the 2004 and 2007 local elections.
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Alec Neill was the leader of the right-leaning Independent Citizens grouping and, after the 2007 elections, sought the chairmanship of the council but lost to Sir Kerry Burke by one vote.
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Alec Neill had been elected chair of the council in September 2009, when Burke lost a confidence motion, and remained on the council until it was discharged on 1 May 2010.
21.
Alec Neill has worked as a resource management commissioner and served on the board of the Rata Foundation from 2009 to 2013.
22.
Alec Neill was a director of SBS Bank from 2012 to 2015.
23.
Alec Neill is a commissioner in the Office of the Chief Freshwater Commissioner.