Department of Island Territories

The Department of Island Territories was a New Zealand government department that was tasked with administrating New Zealand's three Pacific Islands territories—the Cook Islands (until 1965), Niue, and Tokelau—and the country's League of Nations mandate, Samoa (until 1962). It was established on 3 October 1919 under the "External Affairs Bill" as the Department of External Affairs.[1] In 1943, the Department was renamed the Department of Island Territories after a separate Department of External Affairs was created to conduct the country's external relations. In 1975, the Department was dissolved and its functions were absorbed back into the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the successor to the External Affairs Department.[2]

The Department was headed by a Minister of Island Territories who oversaw the Resident-Commissioners of the Cook Islands and of Niue, and the Administrator of the Tokelau Islands. Until the appointment of John Mathison in 1957, the Minister of Island Territories was contemporaneously the Minister of External Affairs.

The Island Territories Department was responsible for the formulation and development of New Zealand government policy towards its Island Territories. The Department's other functions included transmitting advice and assistance from other New Zealand government departments to local Island governments, operating the ship GMV Moana Roa, and acting as a purchasing agent for the Island Territories. The Department had offices in both the capital, Wellington, and the New Zealand's largest city, Auckland.[3]

## List of ministers

[edit]

The following ministers have held the office of Minister of Island Territories.[4]

Key

Reform   United   Labour   National

No.  | Name  | Portrait  | Term of office  | Prime Minister

|
|
|
|

| 1  | James Allen |  | 24 November 1919  | 28 April 1920  |  | Massey
| 2  | Ernest Lee |  | 17 May 1920  | 13 January 1923
| 3  | Francis Bell |  | 7 June 1923  | 18 January 1926  |
| Bell
| Coates
| 4  | William Nosworthy |  | 24 May 1926  | 24 August 1928  |
| 5  | Gordon Coates |  | 25 August 1928  | 10 December 1928
| 6  | Joseph Ward |  | 10 December 1928  | 28 May 1930  |  | Ward
| 7  | George Forbes |  | 28 May 1930  | 6 December 1935  |  | Forbes
| 8  | Michael Joseph Savage |  | 6 December 1935  | 27 March 1940  |  | Savage
| 9  | Frank Langstone |  | 1 April 1940  | 21 December 1942  |  | Fraser
| 10  | Peter Fraser |  | 7 July 1943  | 13 December 1949
| 11  | Frederick Doidge |  | 13 December 1949  | 19 September 1951  |  | Holland
| 12  | Clifton Webb |  | 19 September 1951  | 26 November 1954
| 13  | Tom Macdonald |  | 26 November 1954  | 12 December 1957
|  | Holyoake
| 14  | John Mathison |  | 12 December 1957  | 12 December 1960  |  | Nash
| 15  | Leon Götz |  | 12 December 1960  | 20 December 1963  |  | Holyoake
| 16  | Ralph Hanan |  | 20 December 1963  | 24 July 1969
| 17  | Duncan MacIntyre |  | 24 July 1969  | 8 December 1972
|  | Marshall
| 18  | Phil Amos |  | 8 December 1972  | 10 September 1974  |  | Kirk
| Rowling

## Notes

[edit]

1. ^ "External Affairs Bill", in New Zealand Parliamentary Debates, Vol. 185 (3 October–5 November 1919), p.337.
2. ^ Malcolm Templeton, ed., An Eye, and Ear, and a Voice, p.1.
3. ^ "Island Territories". Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand. 1966 Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Retrieved 10 March 2015.
4. ^ Wilson 1985, pp. 89–97.

## References

[edit]

* Wilson, James Oakley (1985) [First ed. published 1913]. New Zealand Parliamentary Record, 1840–1984 (4th ed.). Wellington: V.R. Ward, Govt. Printer. OCLC 154283103.

## Further reading

[edit]

* An eye, an ear and a voice: 50 years in New Zealand’s external relations edited by Malcolm Templeton (1993, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Wellington NZ) ISBN 0-477-03725-9.

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