James Meager giving his maiden speech in the House on 6 December, 2023. Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone
The first of the new crop of MPs have made their debuts at Parliament, with two very different maiden speeches from National MPs.
Rangitata MP James Meager and Napier MP Katie Nimon had the privilege of opening the Speech from the Throne's Address in Reply debate.
The debate is expected to span multiple days, with many of the new MPs set to address the House for the first time.
Speaking first, Meager's speech focused on his difficult upbringing, and the winding path that had led him to become a Member of Parliament.
"To my flaws, of which there are many, I acknowledge you. Because without my flaws, I would not be me," he said.
Meager was open about his estrangement from his father, and that the first time his father had ever stepped foot in the North Island was Tuesday, ahead of his son's maiden speech.
"Forgiveness and redemption are words often over-used, but they're words that are fit for this moment. We shouldn't judge people based on who they once were. We can only judge someone on who they are today compared to who they were yesterday. I know my Dad is making up for lost time. I'm so glad he's here today, and I love him dearly," he said.
Meager spoke of growing up in a Timaru state house with a single mother, sharing a bedroom with his brother until he was 18, and how his father had to borrow money from his children's school savings account to pay the bills.
"I know what it's like to have your very first memory be of the police trying to coax you to come out from under the bed, telling you that everything would be okay."
Christopher Luxon hugs James Meager after giving his maiden speech in the House on 6 December, 2023. Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone
But he said his mother took responsibility for her situation, driving home the importance of education, and making sure her children never missed a day of school. Meager eventually became Dux and Head Boy at Timaru Boys High.
With all of that, Meager acknowledged some would see him as a walking contradiction.
"A part-Māori boy raised in a state house by a single parent on the benefit. Now a proud National Party MP in a deeply rural farming electorate in the middle of the South Island."
But he told the parties on the left that they did not own Māori, the poor, or workers, and National represented a broad church.
"What unites us is our fundamental belief that it's the individual family unit that knows what's best for their family, not the state, not the government, and not us."
He said the state should be a safety net, but as a last resort, and one "which then gets out of the way when we're back on our feet and lets us get on with our lives."
Meager is a new MP, but he is not new to Parliament. He worked as a press secretary to Paula Bennett, and was an advisor to Sir Bill English and Simon Bridges.
Katie Nimon giving her maiden speech in the House on 6 December, 2023. Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone
That time working with Sir Bill may have been what influenced Meager's strong belief in social investment, which he said would turn around broken families.
"When we see people as having agency and dignity in their own right, rather than as numbers on a spreadsheet, we will have a just society" he said.
The emphasis on a difficult upbringing in Meager's speech was a high contrast to the family history of Katie Nimon's speech.
Nimon's maiden speech leaned heavily on her family's service to the community over the last century, which included journalism, local government, and the bus company for which the Nimon name is famous.
"My surname has always defined me. My family's history is their legacy, and my responsibility," Nimon said.
She said her political values had come from growing up in that family, where work was life, and not a job.
"When you grow up in a house where your landline is the after-hours number for a transport company, and your holidays are bus conferences, you start to see the importance of competitive enterprise and reward for achievement."
Nimon described herself as fiscally conservative, but socially progressive, and a supporter of limited government, with localised delivery of services in partnership with the private sector.
"I don't claim to have all the answers, but you can't spend your way out of every problem, nor can you regulate your way out of it. All you get is debt and dependency," she said.
Katie Nimon hugs Prime Minister Christopher Luxon after her maiden speech in the House on 6 December, 2023. Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone
Nimon explained her business background, and how it had influenced her political views. But she explained there was not one day where she realised she was going to be a politician.
"I have been on a journey of self-awareness and understanding my whole life. My brain is my favourite feature," she said.
Nimon failed to win the Napier seat in 2020, but continued to serve the community as transport manager at Hawke's Bay Regional Council. After being selected as the Napier candidate again for 2023, she was an active figure in the recovery from Cyclone Gabrielle. She felt the provinces had been left behind.
She made special mention of Wairoa, which was cut off for a period of time.
Describing it as the "heart" of the Napier electorate, Nimon said the town had endless potential.
"What I want for Wairoa, is for Rangatahi to not have to leave to find opportunities. Wairoa will achieve this for Wairoa, but we can meet them halfway with health, infrastructure, and services that make life there not just possible, but enviable."
Nimon also referenced astrology, saying she frequently used to check out a book from the Wellington Library called the Secret Language of Birthdays. She said her birthday was the day of the bridge, and her job was now to be the bridge between the government and the needs of Napier.
"Whether it's written in the stars, or because I grew up as the middle daughter with parents less like Venus and Mars, and more like Mercury and Pluto, I'm known to help people see eye to eye."
Speaking later on in the Address in Reply debate, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon acknowledged the differences in the two MPs' speeches.
"James and Katie's paths to this House have been very different, but their values, I believe, are very similar," he said.
