It was an abrupt end to the political career of a rising star: Kiri Allan – New Zealand’s justice minister and tipped by many to one day lead the country – first quit as a minister then said she would not seek re-election, after she was charged with careless driving following a car crash and amid weeks of news reports about her mental health.
Her sudden departure has prompted questions in New Zealand about the toll of working at parliament on politicians’ wellbeing. It also provoked fraught and uncertain debate about how to discuss the mental health struggles of public figures – particularly those of a senior cabinet minister, three months before a national election.
Allan allegedly crashed her car into a parked vehicle in Wellington, New Zealand’s capital, on Sunday night, and also failed a breath alcohol test – but not at the level of a criminal charge, receiving instead an infringement notice. She had recently returned to work after divulging she had briefly taken leave for mental health reasons.
News of the episode was first met with concern and well-wishes, including from Allan’s political opponents, in a country that prides itself on social progressivism across the political spectrum and where the public has traditionally declared a disinterest in politicians’ private lives.
“I’ve found what has gone on over the last few days for her really distressing,” said Todd Muller, a National party lawmaker, on Monday. Muller quit as leader of his party in 2020 after 53 days in the job, later explaining he had experienced panic attacks – a revelation that was praised on both sides of the aisle.
Chloë Swarbrick, of the Green party – who has spoken publicly about having depression and ADHD – cited multiple reviews of parliament’s culture that had concluded the “environment doesn’t get the best out of people”.
“Parliament is not an easy or forgiving place, and sadly it’s getting worse,” Gareth Hughes, a former Green party lawmaker, wrote in the Post this week. Hughes said he had been “depressed, stressed” and lonely during his last term in office. He added: “Politicians are generously rewarded but there’s a real mental health cost to pay.”
On Tuesday, Allan wrote on Instagram that she would not contest her seat at October’s election, although she did not rule out a return to politics. “I am so, so sorry,” she said, referring to the “anger towards myself” and “remorse” she felt.
‘I believed she was OK’
Allan’s resignation followed a recent reversal of fortunes for a lawmaker who swiftly attained a high public profile with down-to-earth remarks and a quick wit after she entered parliament in 2017. In March 2021, Allan – as civil defence minister – drew praise for her management of a nationwide tsunami threat, and later revealed she had received a diagnosis of stage 3 cervical cancer on the same day.
Then prime minister Jacinda Ardern referred to her as “remarkable”. Allan declared she was cancer-free in December 2021.
The tone of headlines had changed recently. In April, Allan was forced to apologise after a speech she made at the farewell function for her then-fiancée – a reporter at New Zealand’s national public broadcaster, which is government-funded – in which she was critical that her partner had been passed over for promotion.
In June, Allan wrote on Instagram that she had been “really struggling with mental health and wellness” and had taken time off work.
“After taking some time out I believed she was OK and was assured by her she was,” Hipkins said on Monday. In a statement, he highlighted Allan’s “extreme emotional distress” at the time of the car crash – while also calling her actions “indefensible”. The incident was “evidence there are not always quick fixes when it comes to mental health.”
Personal v political
Allan’s stature and the proximity of October’s election appeared to present a dilemma for lawmakers about how they should respond to her downfall. It culminated in extraordinary scenes in parliament on Tuesday as lawmakers debated the resignation in speeches that were at times deeply personal about Allan – and at others highly partisan about the perceived failures of her government.
After a volatile year in politics, polls show a tight contest between the two major parties ahead of October’s election, and it is not clear how the former justice minister’s departure might affect it.
Christopher Luxon, the leader of the opposition and centre-right National party, decried Hipkins’ management of the situation.
“We want support for Kiri, that’s absolutely important,” he told reporters. “But we also need to say look, this is a government, that again, yet again, we’re having another set of conversations for the rest of the week when the New Zealand people want us focused on them, not focused on themselves which is what this government is doing.”
By Tuesday, the lure of making Allan’s predicament a point of politics appeared to have grown and David Seymour, the leader of the libertarian ACT party, requested an urgent debate on her resignation in parliament.
“While it is a human tragedy, it is also the case that it comes after a cascade of missteps and administrative bungles by this government,” Seymour told lawmakers.
Allan’s political colleagues on the left derided the discussion.
“I can’t imagine a workplace anywhere else in the country where someone clearly makes a mistake, they acknowledge their mental health challenges and then there is a discussion and a debate that is televised on TV for the whole country to see,” said Megan Woods, a Labour cabinet minister.
Rawiri Waititi, the co-leader of Te Pāti Māori, was scornful of his opponents’ approach to the episode, listing names of Māori female lawmakers – Allan among them – who he said had received disproportionate criticism for their actions.
“Instead what we should be debating is the institution of parliament that continues to uphold a misogynistic culture that was imposed by British men,” he said. “Everyone sitting in this house is responsible for upholding that culture.”
The Green party’s Swarbrick told 1News she hoped the Allan incident “spurs some greater and broader reflections on how to build an environment that’s more sustainable and conducive to humanity”.
