29.4 C
Delhi
Saturday, July 19, 2025

NZ transport minister steps down on airport shares

Date:

Share post:

Donate-GC-Razorpay

Wellington: New Zealand Transport Minister Michael Wood resigned on Tuesday due to controversy of his Auckland airport shares.

Wood did not declare his shares immediately when he became a member of Parliament (MP) or when he became the transport minister, according to local media.

Prime Minister Chris Hipkins spoke to Wood on Tuesday on the issue and advised him that he step down as transport minister while any remaining issues around his conflicts are appropriately resolved.

The minister purchased the shares of the Auckland International Airport, worth about 13,000 NZ dollars (7,900 U.S. dollars) when he was a teenager in the 1990s.

He declared the shares to the Cabinet Office when he became a minister in 2020. However, he failed to declare them in the public register of MPs’ assets and other interests until 2022, local media reported.

Wood said he did not disclose them as he thought the shares had been sold.

Hipkins said Wood would sell the shares of Auckland International Airport “as soon as possible” and will work with the Registrar of Pecuniary Interests to resolve the issues around his past declarations.

Kieran McAnulty will be the acting transport minister.

Related articles

Missiles in the Monsoon: India Tests Its Arsenal, But Who Should Fear?

A Thunderclap Over the BayIt was a humid monsoon morning at Chandipur, Odisha. A lone myna bird...

Bangladesh on the Brink: A Nation Struggles with Its Past, Present, and Future

A Land Stirred by Memory and MovementIn the heartland of Gopalganj, where the scent of jute fields...

Creating history, Indian astro and three other AX 4 ISS mission crew set for splashdown

Chennai: As the entire world is waiting with bated breadth, the four member crew of Axiom Mission AX-4...

Yogi sets 10% contribution to national economy target by 2026

Lucknow:  Describing the state's economic journey as a transition from "possibilities to results," Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi...