Lianne Dalziel

In the new government formed by Labour, Dalziel became Minister of Immigration, Minister for Senior Citizens, and Minister for Disability Issues. When Labour won re-election in the 2002 election, Dalziel also became Minister of Commerce (while ceasing to be Minister for Disability Issues). In 2003, she ceased to be Minister for Senior Citizens. As Minister of Immigration, Dalziel was often in the spotlight. In particular, she often clashed with Winston Peters, leader of the anti-immigration New Zealand First party.

After the 2005 election, Dalziel was re-elected by her caucus colleagues to Cabinet and was given the portfolios of Commerce, Small Business, and Women's Affairs.

Mike Williams, President of the Labour Party from 2000 to 2009, states that he was surprised by Clark appointing Dalziel Minister of Commerce and thought of it as an "odd choice". But she worked herself into the portfolio, paid attention to detail, and within a year had "proved herself". Williams believes this is due to her high intelligence and her ability to listen.[3] Tim Barnett, MP for Christchurch Central from 1996 to 2008, and today General Secretary of the Labour Party (equivalent to CEO), credits her training as a lawyer and "having a bigger brain than most of us" for her success.[3] Williams states that as Minister of Commerce, Dalziel worked closely with National's Simon Power and built "cross-party unity on various issues".[3]

Dalziel's position became difficult after she was accused of giving certain documents to the press to bolster the case for a decision her Associate Minister had made. The decision, concerning the deportation of a Sri Lankan teenager who was seeking asylum but who had originally lied about the reasons, was controversial, and Dalziel leaked the notes of the teenager's lawyer to TV3, attempting to discredit the teenager's case for asylum.[7] Dalziel tried to avoid admitting to being the source of the documents, but was forced to admit that the leak had been at her direction. There was also significant controversy about how Dalziel had obtained the documents in the first place. Dalziel offered her resignation which Prime Minister Helen Clark accepted.

After Labour was defeated in the 2008 general election, Dalziel became the Opposition spokesperson on Justice and Commerce and, from 2011, the spokesperson for the Christchurch Earthquake Recovery, Civil Defence & Emergence Management, Consumer Rights & Standards, and associate spokesperson for Justice.[8]

Rumours of Dalziel standing as Mayor of Christchurch go back to at least 2009.[3] Since the February 2011 earthquake, the rumours that Dalziel would contest the 2013 Christchurch mayoralty became more consistent. In May 2012, Dalziel tried to put an end to these rumours by announcing: "The job I really want is Gerry Brownlee's, rather than Bob Parker's."[9] Brownlee is Earthquake Recovery Minister, and Parker was the Mayor of Christchurch at the time.[9] In the February 2013 reshuffle of opposition portfolios, Dalziel dropped out of the top 20 (only the first 20 positions are ranked by the Labour Party).[10] An editorial in The Press presumed that her strong support for David Cunliffe was part of the reason for her demotion. The editorial also speculated that she might reconsider her political future:[11]

The demotion is bound to concentrate Dalziel's mind on whether she should run for the Christchurch mayoralty. As things stand, a place for her in a Labour cabinet as minister for the earthquake recovery looks unlikely, but she would be a strong candidate for mayor.

Following months of speculation, The Press reported on 20 April 2013 that Lianne Dalziel would challenge Parker for the mayoralty, and that she had asked 24-year-old Student Volunteer Army organiser Sam Johnson to be her running mate, with a view of Johnson becoming deputy mayor. The newspaper expressed surprise by this pairing, given that Dalziel was a Labour Party member, and Johnson a member of the Young Nats, the youth arm of the National Party.[12] Saying that: "It was a really difficult decision to make, but I don't think it is the right thing for me right now", Johnson eventually decided against running.[13] On 19 June, Dalziel formally confirmed that she would contest the mayoralty, also announcing that she would resign from Parliament, which would trigger a by-election in the Christchurch East electorate.[14][15] Dalziel delivered her resignation letter on 17 September and delivered her valedictory speech the following day with her resignation taking effect on Friday, 11 October; the day before the local body election[16] so that the by-election campaign did not interfere with the local body election.[15] In a later interview, Dalziel confirmed that she would have left Parliament even if Shearer had put her onto the front bench.[3]

Although some expressed concerns about Dalziel's Labour Party background, including central city property developer Antony Gough, who talked of her "red apron strings" getting in the way of working with local business owners,[3] she also nevertheless open support from the political right for her mayoral ambitions:[3] Christchurch City Councillor Tim Carter, son of Christchurch property developer Philip Carter and nephew of Speaker David Carter, encouraged her to stand for the mayoralty;[17] former National Party cabinet minister Philip Burdon was one of her nominees when she lodged her nomination for the mayoralty with the returning officer;[18] and blogger Cameron Slater, by many considered a "conduit for factions of the National Party"[3] wrote:[3][19]

Christchurch needs a uniter, not a divider, and the word is that National would far rather deal with Lianne and the competent councillors she is bringing with her than Bob Parker.

Dalziel's Earthquake Recovery portfolio in Labour's shadow cabinet was split and given to Ruth Dyson and Clayton Cosgrove.[20]