Ann Hercus

Who is Ann Hercus?

Dame Margaret Ann Hercus DCMG, best known as Ann Hercus, is a New Zealand politician and diplomat. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature from the University of Auckland and a law degree from the University of Kent at Canterbury.

Born in 1942 to Horace and Mary Sayers, Hercus was the Member of Parliament for Lyttelton from 1978 to 1987, and the Minister of Social Welfare, Police and Women's Affairs from 1984 to 1987, the first woman to hold the Police portfolio.

In the New Year Honours 1988, Hercus was appointed a Dame Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George, for public services.

From 1988 to 1990, she was Ambassador and Permanent Representative of New Zealand to the United Nations. In 1998, she was appointed Deputy Special Representative and Chief of Mission of the United Nations operation in Cyprus. She resigned for family reasons in 1999.

In 2005, information on salary rates of senior TVNZ staff was leaked, Hercus was named as the source.