Murray Robert Smith
Murray Robert Smith was a New Zealand politician of the [New Zealand Fourth Labour Government of New Zealand|Labour Party|Labour Party].
Biography
Smith was born in Hamilton in 1941. He became a civil servant and later a member of the Whangarei Adult Education Committee.Political career
He joined the Labour Party and was secretary of both the Marsden and Hamilton Labour Representation Committees. He unsuccessfully contested Piako in 1966 finishing third and Marsden in 1969 finishing second.He was elected for the Whangarei electorate with the swing to Labour in the 1972 general election. Smith was also assisted by the National Government's decision to contract the construction of naval patrol craft overseas, which impacted local workers in Whangarei's ship building industry. In his maiden speech to Parliament Smith called for greater protection of the coastline by banning the construction of houses on the seaward side of coastal roads. He was seeking to ensure better public access to the coastal areas.
Smith was defeated in the next election in 1975 which saw a significant swing back to National. In early 1977 he contemplated standing as a candidate for the Labour Party nomination in the Mangere by-election, however he ultimately decided to withdraw from the candidacy race.