49th New Zealand Parliament

49th Parliament of New Zealand
← 48th Parliament 50th Parliament →
Parliament House, Wellington
Overview
Legislative body	New Zealand Parliament
Term	8 December 2008 – 20 October 2011
Election	2008 New Zealand general election
Government	Fifth National Government
House of Representatives
Members	122
Speaker of the House	Lockwood Smith
Leader of the House	Gerry Brownlee
Prime Minister	John Key
Leader of the Opposition	Phil Goff
Sovereign
Monarch	Elizabeth II
Governor-General	Anand Satyanand

The 49th New Zealand Parliament was elected at the 2008 election. It comprised 122 members, including an overhang of two seats (an increase of one from the 48th Parliament) caused by the Māori Party having won two more electorate seats than its share of the party vote would otherwise have given it. The Parliament served from December 2008 until the November 2011 election.

New Zealand uses the mixed-member proportional (MMP) system to elect its parliaments. Seventy of the members of the 49th Parliament represented geographical electorates: sixteen in the South Island, 47 in the North Island (one more than for the 48th Parliament) and seven Māori electorates. The remaining 52 (increased from fifty by the overhang) were elected from nationwide party vote candidate lists to realise proportionality.

There were 10 resignations leading to Electoral Commission replacement selections for new list candidates from four parliamentary parties. Lockwood Smith was the Speaker in the 49th Parliament.