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The 40th New Zealand Parliament was a term of the Parliament of New Zealand. Its composition was determined by the 1981 elections, and it sat until the 1984 elections.
The 40th Parliament was the third and final term of the third National Party government. Robert Muldoon, who served as both Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, remained in power. The Labour Party, led by former Prime Minister Bill Rowling, had made significant gains (actually winning the largest portion of the popular vote), but remained in opposition. The Social Credit Party was the only other opposition party in the 40th Parliament, holding two seats.
The 40th Parliament consisted of ninety-two representatives, the same as in the previous election. All of these representatives were chosen by single-member geographical electorates, including four special Māori electorates.
Initial composition of the 40th Parliament
The tables below shows the results of the 1981 general election:
Key
National Labour Social Credit Mana Motuhake Independent
Table footnotes:
There were no by-elections held during the term of the 40th Parliament.