New Zealand Prime Minister John Key resigns
Prime Minister John Key of New Zealand has made an unexpected exit after giving a resignation after 8 years in job. Key stated that he wanted to leave the politics while he was at top of his career and did not wish to contest in his fourth general election next year.
He entered politics in 2002 when he joined parliament and assumed the role of the leader of the centre-right National Party after four years of his service. During his first term as PM he had shown exemplary leadership role in a series of crisis which also includes a highly destructive earthquake in 2011 which had claimed 185 lives. His role during global financial crisis was also acclaimed as he was able to keep the economy afloat without resorting to tough spending cuts. New Zealand’s annual budgetary statement returned to a surplus in financial year 2015-16 for the first time since 2008.
The Deputy Prime Minister of the country Bill English will now replace Key as prime minister in a party vote planned for next week.
John Phillip Key was the 38th Prime Minister of New Zealand and was in office since 2008. He has led the New Zealand National Party since 2006. Some of the notable landmarks of his tenure were implementation of GST rise and personal tax cuts; the formation of Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority in response to the most devastating earthquake which had a major hit on the national economy. His government had also introduced partial privatization of partial state-owned enterprises. He also made a critical announcement of withdrawing of Defence Forces from Afghanistan and also inked the Wellington Declaration with US.