Former minister steps down from chairing committee to let ‘young people take over’

Author: Jamie Ensor ,
Publish Date: Thu, 2 Jul 2026, 10:51am

Small Business Minister Andrew Bayly. Photo / Mark Mitchell

Former National minister Andrew Bayly has stepped down as chairman of Parliament’s Justice Select Committee just months out from the election.

The Herald approached Bayly earlier this week about the move, with the former minister saying it had been his decision.

“[I] thought it was good to let some young people take over,” he said.

First-term National MP Tom Rutherford announced on Thursday morning he had been elected the new chairman of what he said was a committee with “one of the busiest workloads”.

While Bayly called it “pretty standard stuff”, it means the committee has a new chair with less than three months to go until the end of the current parliamentary term, at a time when the Government will be wanting to get legislation over the line.

There is a range of business currently before the committee, including legislation on changing the Policing Act, trespass laws and introducing the Government’s move-on orders.

“It’ll be a good opportunity for a person to have a go at trying to manage the committee. It’s a busy committee,” Bayly said.

Bay of Plenty MP Tom Rutherford is the new chairman. Photo / Ayla Yeoman

Bayly has now moved to the Petitions Select Committee. He is replaced on the Justice Committee by National’s Paulo Garcia.

He said he had received complimentary comments in the House on Tuesday about his performance as chair, including from Green MP Lawrence Xu-Nan and NZ First’s Jamie Arbuckle.

With the election scheduled for November 7, Parliament is expected to wrap up for this term on September 24.

The Herald revealed last month that Bayly had decided not to stand for Parliament at the election after previously saying he would consider seeking a list-only position for National.

He and his wife had decided he would not seek a list position, after previously also deciding he wouldn’t seek re-election in his Port Waikato electorate.

Bayly was a minister in Christopher Luxon’s Government until a series of issues led him to resign.

Jamie Ensor is the NZ Herald’s chief political reporter, based in the press gallery at Parliament. He was previously a TV reporter and digital producer in the Newshub press gallery office. He was a finalist in 2025 for Political Journalist of the Year at the Voyager Media Awards.