National MP Ian McKelvie says he never really wanted to be in Parliament and says he’ll only stay if the party still wants him there come the next election.
“My role in Parliament has been much more to moderate and make sure we do stuff and what we do is sustainable for future generations. I’ve been fortunate, in my view, to be reasonably respected … there are people who are very good at dealing with policy stuff but there are others who need to keep an eye on what is going on.”
He says his contributions, such as a bill designed to expedite the time it takes for charges to be heard under the Dog Control Act, may be quite simple but is needed.
“It’s all about the contribution you make as you go along, and my contribution is bringing my agricultural experience to Parliament. It is different from when I was young, and half the MPs were farmers. Now there are probably only five or six of them.”
The bulk of the McKelvie family wealth comes through agricultural properties, with the Rangitikei MP’s family having lived in two kilometres of his home since 1850. The McKelvie family has been farming on the Manawatu coast for six generations and more than 130 years.
Nowadays, the family sheep and beef farm is run by McKelvie’s two sons, Cameron and Angus and their families. McKelvie’s daughter, Diana, is a teacher in Hawke’s Bay. Brother Bruce now runs the dairy operation.
“I’m fortunate to have a couple of sons who are into farming and so it’s a privilege. I think land ownership is a privilege. I don’t treat it like it’s mine. On the weekend we have 300 motorbikes and 200 horses riding around our farm – that’s most weekends.”
McKelvie says public access to rural New Zealand is important because most families now don’t have farming relative. “We should be proud of rural New Zealand and we need to make sure people see what we do – we’re not a model farm or a flash farm – we’re just a farm.”
McKelvie was Manawatu’s mayor in 2011 when then Rangitikei MP Simon Power resigned and he was asked by the National Party to stand. Although he won’t say when he will retire, he has ruled out a return to local politics in favour of perhaps some governance roles, some farming and “planting some of Shane Jones’ trees.”