Quick Facts
Biography
Simon Thomas Court is a New Zealand politician. He has been a Member of Parliament for ACT New Zealand since the 2020 general election.
Early life and career
Court went to Auckland Grammar School and then attended Unitec to study civil engineering. At age 17, he was shot in the foot; Court said that this was after a cannabis deal his friend made went badly.
Court has public and private sector experience and worked in Auckland, Wellington and Fiji. For Auckland City Council, he worked as a civil and environmental engineer, and before entering parliament, he was running his own engineering firm.
In 2016 and 2017, Court worked for engineering consultancy MWH Global in Fiji. The consultancy lost its contract with the Fiji Roads Authority on alleged pay disputes, and Court and one other employee were deported from Fiji. According to Court, the deportation was in response to him speaking out about Chinese Communist Party contractors' workmanship. Fiji Roads Authority reportedly "accused MWH of extortion, breaking contract, and damaging the country", but Court disputed this, saying he did not see any evidence of that.
Political career
| Years | Term | Electorate | List | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020–2023 | 53rd | List | 5 | ACT | |
| 2023–present | 54th | List | 8 | ACT | |
Court stated in 2020 that he had supported the ACT Party for just over two decades, but also that he had voted Green twice. He joined ACT after going to a party event in December 2019.
In the 2020 general election, Court was placed 5th on the ACT party list and ran for the electorate of Te Atatū. He did not win the electorate, coming fourth with 1610 votes, but ACT won 7.6% of the party vote, which entitled it to 10 MPs, including Court. In his first term, he was ACT's spokesperson for the environment, climate change, infrastructure, transport, local government, and energy and resources. He was also a member of the Environment Committee.
On 20 June 2023, Court was referred to Parliament's Privileges Committee after he disclosed the Environment Committee's vote relating to the Natural and Built Environment Act 2023. On 26 July, the Privileges Committee found that Court had committed a "clear breach" of select committee confidentiality. Court apologised for his action and the committee recommended that no further action be taken against him.
Court contested Te Atatū for a second time at the 2023 general election. He was unsuccessful, but retained his position as an ACT party list MP.
Following the formation of the National-led coalition government in late November 2023, Court assumed the position of Parliamentary Under-Secretary for the Minister for Infrastructure and RMA reform.
Personal life
Court has three teenage sons, the youngest of whom has Down syndrome. He cites his youngest son as one of the main reasons for entering Parliament.
