37th New Zealand Parliament
The 37th New Zealand Parliament was a term of the New Zealand Parliament. It was elected at the 1972 general election on 25 November of that year.
1972 general election
The 1972 general election was held on Saturday, 25 November. A total of 87 MPs were elected; 58 represented North Island electorates, 25 represented South Island electorates, and the remaining four represented Māori electorates; this was an increase in the number of MPs by three since the, and the gain was all for the North Island. 1,583,256 voters were enrolled and the official turnout at the election was 89.1%.Sessions
The 37th Parliament sat for three sessions, and was prorogued on 10 October 1975.| Session | Opened | Adjouned |
| first | 14 February 1973 | 23 November 1973 |
| second | 4 February 1974 | 8 November 1974 |
| third | 25 March 1975 | 10 October 1975 |
Ministries
The National Party, which had come to power at the, was defeated by the Labour Party at the. Norman Kirk formed the third Labour Government and led the Kirk Ministry until his sudden death on 31 August 1974. After Hugh Watt had been acting Prime Minister for the first few days of September 1974, Kirk was succeeded by Bill Rowling on 6 September. The Rowling Ministry lasted until the end of the parliamentary term, when the Labour Government was defeated by National in the.Overview of seats
The table below shows the number of MPs in each party following the 1972 election and at dissolution:Notes
- The Working Government majority is calculated as all Government MPs less all other parties.
Initial composition of the 37th Parliament
Select committees
For the 37th Parliament, elected from the 1972 general election, there were the following select committees in the House of Representatives, as follows:| Select committee | Portfolios/Jurisdictions | Members |
| Defence | Military affairs, defence matters, disarmament and arms control |
|
| Education | Education, education review, industry training, research | |
| Foreign Affairs | International relations, immigration, overseas trade | |
| House | ||
| Island Affairs | Pacific Islands affairs | |
| Labour | Industrial relations | |
| Lands and Agriculture | Agriculture, biosecurity, fisheries, forestry, lands, and land information | |
| Library | Parliamentary library | |
| Local Bills | ||
| Māori Affairs | Māori affairs | |
| Petitions | Public submissions | |
| Privileges | Parliamentary privilege | |
| Public expenditure | Finance, revenue, taxation, audit | |
| Road safety | ||
| Selection | ||
| Statutes Revision | ||
| Trade and Industry |