By Mike Bain/cvnznews.com
Former senior Labour minister Michael Wood says he “lost balance” during his time in Cabinet and accepts full responsibility for the airport‑shares saga that forced his resignation in 2023.
Speaking in an interview on TVNZ’s Q+A programme, Wood said he had begun the process of selling his Auckland Airport shares by instructing his broker, but admitted he failed to ensure the sale was completed.
“I was a hard‑driving Cabinet minister, working 80 to 90 hours a week and pushing major reforms,” he told Q+A. “In parts of my life, I lost balance — and sorting out the shares was one of them.”
Wood resigned from all his ministerial roles — transport, immigration, workplace relations and safety, and Minister for Auckland — after repeated reminders from the Cabinet Office to resolve the conflict of interest.
He told Q+A the episode created difficulties for then‑Prime Minister Chris Hipkins and said he has since apologised to several colleagues.
Labour has selected Wood to contest Mount Roskill again, a seat he held from 2016 until 2023, when National’s Carlos Cheung flipped the long‑held Labour electorate by 1564 votes.
Many of Wood’s flagship initiatives have been dismantled by the current government.
He noted on Q+A that:
- The Clean Car Discount, which subsidised electric vehicles, ended in December 2023 after costing more than $300 million.
- Auckland Light Rail was cancelled before construction began, despite around $228 million already spent on planning and design.
Wood criticised the government’s approach to climate policy, saying it was difficult to build long‑term frameworks “when you have a party that wants to play culture‑war games and label anything to do with climate as woke.”
Wood, who sits on Labour’s Policy Council, told Q+A the party will release further policy after the Government’s Budget on May 28
