Author

Phil Goff is a born and bred Aucklander. He put himself through school and the University of Auckland working at the Westfield Freezing Company for seven seasons. He has a first class Masters in Politics from the University of Auckland and had won a scholarship to do postgraduate study at the University of Oxford. In parliament Phil represented Mt Roskill for 10 terms. He became New Zealand’s youngest ever cabinet minister in 1984. In his 15 years in cabinet, he covered a number of portfolios including housing, environment, and education. In the Clark government, he was responsible for foreign affairs, justice, trade and defence. He was also Associate Finance Minister. He served as the leader of the Labour Party and the leader of the opposition. As Minister of Education, Phil initiated New Zealand’s international education industry which is now worth over $3 billion. He was also the first Minister of Trade of a developed country to negotiate a free-trade agreement with China and initiated the TPP trade agreement. Phil is married to Mary and lives on a small farm in Ardmore. He has three adult children who live in Auckland. He enjoys motorbike riding, fishing, hunting and farming. He follows rugby and league.