Victor Billot

NewLabour and the Alliance Party

Billot was a founding member of the NewLabour Party, which was set up in 1989 by Jim Anderton. In 1991, NewLabour was one of four parties to form the Alliance political party.

He was a candidate for the Alliance in 2005 (at number eight on their list), 2008 (three), and 2011 (six), contesting the Dunedin North electorate. In 2005, he was berated by the Prime Minister, Helen Clark, for all the faults of the National Party when she mistook him for a supporter of that party.

At the party's 2006 conference, held in Wellington, no co-leaders were elected. Instead the party decided to concentrate on internal reorganisation; Billot was elected President. At the 2007 national conference, held in Dunedin, two co-leaders were elected, Billot and Kay Murray, with Paul Piesse returning to his former role as Party President. Billot was co-leader for one year.

Billot persuaded his Wellington friend and businessman Jack Yan to stand for the Alliance in 2008; Yan was number 12 on the list, but did not contest an electorate.

Clare Curran, the New Zealand Labour Party MP for Dunedin South since 2008, has repeatedly encouraged Billot to join her party.

He stepped down from his role as Spokesman and occasional co-leader of the Alliance Party in March 2014.

Billot still engages in left wing activism in Dunedin, campaigning against cuts to postal services in 2015.

Professional life

Billot was the National Communications Officer for the Maritime Union of New Zealand between 2003 and 2016.

In January 2017 he began working as publicist for the Otago University Press.