Bill English

Who is Bill English?

Simon William "Bill" English is the Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Finance and Minister of Infrastructure of New Zealand.

English entered parliament in 1990 as a National party MP representing the Wallace electorate. In 1999 English served as Minister of Finance for a brief period until National, under the leadership of Jenny Shipley at the time, lost the election later that year. In October 2001 he replaced Shipley as the leader of the National Party, but after a disastrous result in the 2002 election he was replaced as the leader by Don Brash in October 2003. After Don Brash's resignation in November 2006 he became deputy leader of the party under John Key, becoming the Deputy Prime Minister after a November 2008 election victory. English has announced that he will retire as electorate MP at the 2014 general election, becoming a list-only MP.