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Damien Francis Smith is a former New Zealand politician. He was a Member of Parliament for ACT New Zealand from 2020 until 2023.

Early life and career

Smith was born in Northern Ireland and grew up in Enniskillen during The Troubles. His parents were Frank and Agnes; he is one of four siblings.

His early career was in corporate sales in the fast-moving consumer goods industry, in banking, and in governance and advisory. He came to New Zealand in 2002. He previously worked for Virgin Group and ASB Bank, and runs his own consulting business.

He lives in Auckland and has one daughter.

Political career

During the 2020 New Zealand general election, first-time candidate Smith contested the Botany electorate for the ACT Party, where he came third. He had been placed at 11 on the initial ACT Party list but was moved up to 10 after ninth-ranked Stephen Berry withdrew three months before the election. ACT received sufficient support for 10 of its members to be elected to Parliament, including Smith.

Smith was ACT's spokesperson for land information, commerce and consumer affairs, state owned enterprises, revenue, racing, arts, culture and heritage, and sport and recreation, and associate spokesperson for finance. He was also a member of the Finance and Expenditure Committee.

In his maiden speech, Smith described his political views as liberal and centre-right. He called for increased productivity, quoting quoted American economists Paul Krugman (from The Age of Diminished Expectations) and Murray Rothbard. He also called on the government to reduce its spending and debt, and for more houses to be built. In later speeches, he became outspoken on foreign direct investment; he considered increased foreign direct investment would support a more productive and competitive New Zealand economy and, in July 2022, described New Zealand as "like North Korea but without the nukes" in respect of its foreign investment laws.

Smith proposed legislation to exempt investors from OECD countries from the need to receive Overseas Investment Office approval to invest in New Zealand, except in respect of investments in residential land. The Overseas Investment (Exempt Investment from OECD Countries) Amendment Bill, a private member's bill in Smith's name, was introduced into Parliament in August 2021. Its first reading failed 43–77 on 21 September 2023.

Smith did not stand for re-election in the 2023 election. He did not give a reason for not seeking to stand again. His expected valedictory statement was cancelled due to illness and his final parliamentary speech was in opposition to the government's Fair News Digital Bargaining Bill. In that final speech, he defined his political views as "anarcho-capitalist" and promoted self-regulation of the media industry in a free market.

References

1. "Candidates". ACT. Retrieved 18 October 2020.
2. "Smith, Damien". Hansard. New Zealand Parliament. 25 November 2022. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
3. ^ "Address in reply debate". Hansard. New Zealand Parliament. 10 February 2021. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
4. ^ "ACT Party candidate profiles: Who might join David Seymour in Parliament?". RNZ. 15 October 2020. Retrieved 29 May 2021.
5. Harrowell, Chris (29 September 2020). "Damien Smith: 'Gap between doers and talkers'". Times. Retrieved 18 October 2020.
6. "Botany – Official Result". Electoral Commission. Retrieved 6 November 2020.
7. "ACT candidate Stephen Berry resigns due to 'exhaustion' from campaign preparation". Newshub. 6 July 2020. Archived from the original on 6 July 2020. Retrieved 6 July 2020.
8. "ACT list candidate Damien Smith could be heading for parliament". RNZ. 9 October 2020. Retrieved 18 October 2020.
9. "Election results: David Seymour's new Act". The New Zealand Herald. 17 October 2020. Retrieved 17 October 2020.
10. "2020 General Election and Referendums – Official Result Successful Candidates". Electoral Commission. Retrieved 6 November 2020.
11. ^ "Smith, Damien - New Zealand Parliament". www.parliament.nz. Retrieved 24 October 2023.
12. "Productivity | May 3rd 2008 Edition". The Economist. ISSN 0013-0613. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
13. Smith, Damien (31 August 2022). "Overseas Investment (Exempt Investment from OECD Countries) Amendment Bill — First Reading". www.parliament.nz. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
14. Ensor, Jamie (21 July 2022). "ACT MP Damien Smith says New Zealand is 'like North Korea without the nukes' in terms of foreign investment". Newshub. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
15. ^ "Overseas Investment (Exempt Investment from OECD Countries) Amendment Bill". bills.parliament.nz. Retrieved 24 October 2023.
16. "Parliament rejects move to free up overseas investment rules". NBR | The Authority since 1970. 22 September 2022. Retrieved 24 October 2023.
17. Trevett, Claire (12 July 2023). "Act MP opts out of standing for re-election ahead of party list ranking". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
18. Damien Smith - ACT List Member of Parliament (22 August 2023). "We've had to cancel my Valedictory Speech as I have a severe chest infection (recovering). Apologies. Gutting. But that's Life. Health first. Thanks for all your messages of support today and over the last 3 years". www.facebook.com. Archived from the original on 25 October 2023. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
19. ^ Smith, Damien (30 August 2023). "Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill — First Reading - New Zealand Parliament". www.parliament.nz. Retrieved 25 October 2023.

• Living people
• 21st-century New Zealand politicians
• New Zealand list MPs
• ACT New Zealand MPs
• Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives
• People from Enniskillen
• Emigrants from Northern Ireland to New Zealand
• Candidates in the 2020 New Zealand general election