Taito Phillip Field
From Open Encyclopedia
Taito Phillip Hans Field, a New Zealand politician, currently represents the Labour Party in the New Zealand Parliament.
Born in Apia, the capital of Samoa, he gained the title of Taito (paramount chief) of the village of Manase on Savai'i, Samoa, in 1975. He has Samoan, Cook Island, German, English, and Jewish ancestry; and has functioned as a pioneering figure for Pacific Islanders within the Labour Party.
Field first became a Member of Parliament when elected by the South Auckland seat of Otara in the 1993 elections. From the 1996 elections he has served as MP for Mangere, in succession to David Lange. He currently holds the position of Minister outside Cabinet, with the portfolios of Associate Minister for Pacific Island Affairs, Associate Minister for Social Development and Employment, and Associate Minister for Justice.
In the 2002 election, Field won a majority of 15,375 over his nearest opponent.
