March 28, 2018
Government of
New Zealand
THE SYSTEM OF GOVERNMENT
New Zealand is a constitutional monarchy with a
parliamentary system of government. The head of
state is currently Queen Elizabeth II. As queen she
is represented by Governor-General Dame Patsy
Reddy.
New Zealand uses a Mixed Member Proportional
voting system which makes it unlikely that one
political party will win majority of the seats I the
house.
New Zealand’s government can only be made up of
ministers who are first elected members of the
House of Representatives. The government can
only stay in power while it has confidence in the
house. This means majority of the members of the
House of Representatives must be present.
The image above is of Queen Elizabeth II, the
executive of New Zealand.
The Image to the right is of Dame Patsy Reddy,
the Governor-General of New Zealand.
THREE BRANCHES OF
GOVERNEMNT
The Legislature (Parliament)
The legislature consists of the House of
Representatives. It includes select committees. The
role of the house is to supply the government with
Members of parliament, make new laws and update
old ones by carefully looking at and talking about
bills that when passed become laws, represent New
Zealanders by giving a voice to different idea from
people and organizations, examine and approve the
governments taxes and spending, and to check the
actions of the executive.
The Executive Branch
The Executive Branch is the actual government. This
branch runs the country and makes the day to day
decisions on how and what New Zealand should
spend its money on. It brings proposed laws to the
parliament and decides policies that get put into
practice by government departments.
The Judiciary Branch
The judiciary branch are the judges who interest the
law in cases that come before them. They hear and
decide cases and can review decisions made by the
government.