Gilbert Myles

Gilbert Colin Myles (born 18 October 1945) is a former New Zealand politician who entered Parliament for the National Party in 1990, then split from the party in 1991 and sat as an independent, before representing the Liberal Party, the Alliance and the New Zealand First party.

Born in Scotland on 18 October 1945 to David Myles and Janet Duncan, Myles came to New Zealand with his family as an infant. He was educated at Papanui High School. In 1971 Myles married Colleen Kirker, and the couple had two children.

He was elected to Parliament for the seat of Roskill in the 1990 election as part of the New Zealand National Party, a previously safe-seat of the previously ruling Labour Party, largely on a platform of opposition to the "Rogernomics" economic reforms that had occurred during the 1980s in New Zealand. He openly identified with the pro-interventionist 'Muldoonist' faction of the National Party, once saying "I joined the National Party because of Sir Robert Muldoon". His campaign slogan was "Let's rescue Roskill".

Myles, however, quickly fell out with the leadership of the National Party (that had simultaneously become the Government) due to the party's own swing toward privatisation and the slashing of the Government's expenditure on social policy enthusiastically implemented by Finance Minister Ruth Richardson (see Ruthanasia). His disgust with the continuation of these reforms by Prime Minister Jim Bolger led to his identification with the rebels within the National Party, like Michael Laws and Winston Peters, who together had major confrontations with the dominant neo-liberals within the party's relatively gargantuan caucus.

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