Bruce Beetham
Bruce Craig Beetham QSO (16 February 1936 – 3 May 1997) was an academic and politician from New Zealand, whose career spanned the 1970s and early 1980s.
Bruce Beetham QSO | |
|---|---|
| 5th Leader of the Social Credit Party | |
| In office 14 May 1972 – 23 August 1986 | |
| Deputy | Les Hunter (1972–77) Jeremy Dwyer (1977–81) Gary Knapp (1981–85) |
| Preceded by | John O'Brien |
| Succeeded by | Neil Morrison |
| 27th Mayor of Hamilton | |
| In office 12 May 1976 – 8 October 1977 | |
| Deputy | Derek Heather |
| Preceded by | Mike Minogue |
| Succeeded by | Ross Jansen |
| Member of the New Zealand Parliament for Rangitikei | |
| In office 18 February 1978 – 14 July 1984 | |
| Preceded by | Sir Roy Jack |
| Succeeded by | Denis Marshall |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 16 February 1936 New Plymouth, New Zealand |
| Died | 3 May 1997 (aged 61) Palmerston North, New Zealand |
| Nationality | New Zealander |
| Political party | Social Credit |
| Spouses | Raewyn Natalee Mitchell
(m. 1965; div. 1980)Beverley May Clark (m. 1980) |
| Children | 4 |
| Profession | Teacher |
| Signature | |
A lecturer at Hamilton's University of Waikato and at the Hamilton Teachers' Training College, he was elected leader of the Social Credit Political League (which he had joined in 1969) in 1972, at a time when the party was in disarray and many were questioning its chances of survival. A brilliant organiser and an electrifying speaker, Beetham succeeded in rebuilding the party, and by the late 1970s it was challenging the stranglehold on the two-party system of the long-dominant National and Labour parties.
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