Quick Facts
Biography
Murray Robert Smith (6 June 1941 – 27 September 2009) was a New Zealand politician of the Labour Party.
Biography
| Parliament of New Zealand | ||||
| Years | Term | Electorate | Party | |
| 1972–1975 | 37th | Whangarei | Labour | |
Smith was born in Hamilton in 1941.
He was elected for the Whangarei electorate with the swing to Labour in the 1972 general election but was defeated in the next election in 1975.
Formerly a Public Trust accountant, he was made managing director of the Development Finance Corporation and executive chairman of New Zealand Railways by Labour. From his time in Parliament, he was a friend of Roger Douglas, and of Michael Bassett who said that his "contribution to New Zealand went well beyond what he managed in three short years to do for the people of Whangarei".
He joined the Bahá'í community in 1989, becoming the chief executive officer in New Zealand in 1991 and deputy secretary-general of the Bahá'í international secretariat in 1994. He died in Raglan on 27 September 2009.