Ian Brooks

Brooks was born in Blenheim on 21 April 1928, the son of Ernest Brooks, and was educated at Marlborough College. He worked in the grocery trade for eight years and was then a senior clerk at the New Zealand Post Office for twenty years.{{cite book | title=Who's Who in New Zealand | edition=11th | editor-first=James Edward | editor-last=Traue |editor-link=Jim Traue | date=1978 | publisher=Reed | location=Wellington | page=69}} He was a part-time farmer,{{cite news |title=In the News |url=http://exhibits1.museums.org.nz/Marlborough_Pictorial/December_1972.pdf |accessdate=29 August 2015 |work=The Marlborough Pictorial |issue=77 |date=December 1972 |page=7 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170409161331/http://exhibits1.museums.org.nz/Marlborough_Pictorial/December_1972.pdf |archive-date=9 April 2017 |url-status=dead }} and his 1940s Allis-Chalmers model C tractor is on display at Marlborough Museum.{{cite web |title=Tractors and Crawlers from the collection of the Marlborough Vintage Farm Machinery Society Inc |url=http://www.marlborough.museums.org.nz/vfm/vewebsite5/exhibit3/e30029a.htm |publisher=Marlborough Museum |accessdate=29 August 2015 }}{{Dead link|date=January 2020 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

In 1954, he married Lowis Rita Terrill, the daughter of Leonard Terrill. They had two sons and two daughters.

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{{NZ parlbox

|start = {{By-election link year|Marlborough|1970}}

|end = 1972

|term = 36th

|electorate = {{NZ electorate link|Marlborough}}

|party = New Zealand Labour Party

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{{NZ parlbox

|start = {{NZ election link year|1972}}

|end = 1975

|term = 37th

|electorate = Marlborough

|party = New Zealand Labour Party

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Brooks unsuccessfully contested the {{NZ electorate link|Marlborough}} electorate in the {{NZ election link|1969}}, but he was beaten by the incumbent, Tom Shand of the National Party.{{cite book |last = Norton |first = Clifford |title = New Zealand Parliamentary Election Results 1946–1987: Occasional Publications No 1, Department of Political Science |year = 1988 |publisher = Victoria University of Wellington |location = Wellington |isbn = 0-475-11200-8 | page=?}} After Shand's death only days after the general election, Brooks had a decisive win against Shand's son in the resulting by-election in February {{By-election link year|Marlborough|1970}}{{cite news |title= Labour wins Marlborough By-election | work=The Dominion |page=3 |date= 23 February 1970}} turning a 2500 vote loss from three months earlier into an 1100 vote winning margin.{{cite news |last1=Lewis |first1=Oliver|title=Labour's last MP for Marlborough Ian Brooks talks records and death threats |url= http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/85549251/labours-last-mp-for-marlborough-ian-brooks-talks-records-and-death-threats |accessdate=1 November 2016 |work=Marlborough Express |date=20 October 2016}} The Police once urged him to cancel an electorate meeting in Hanmer Springs as they had received a death threat against him over his opposition to the Vietnam War. He held the Marlborough electorate until he was defeated in {{NZ election link year|1975}} by National's Ed Latter for what was usually a safe National seat.{{cite book |last= Wilson |first= James Oakley |title= New Zealand Parliamentary Record, 1840–1984 |edition= 4th |orig-year= First ed. published 1913 |year= 1985 |publisher= V.R. Ward, Govt. Printer |location= Wellington |oclc=154283103 |page=185}}

He stood once more in the Marlborough electorate in the {{NZ election link|1978}} but was narrowly defeated by National's Doug Kidd.

In his spare time, Brooks grew bulbs. His parents were in The Salvation Army and Brooks joined them as a child, and remained an active member in Blenheim, playing the bass saxhorn in the Salvation Army band.{{cite news |last1=Duggan |first1=Kat |title=Band plays on for soldier of salvation |url=http://www.stuff.co.nz/marlborough-express/news/10445542/Band-plays-on-for-soldier-of-salvation |accessdate=29 August 2015 |work=Marlborough Express |date=1 September 2014}} Brooks was widowed by the death of his wife, Lowis, in 2016.{{cite news |url= https://deaths.marlexpress.co.nz/nz/obituaries/marlborough-express-nz/name/lowis-brooks-obituary?n=lowis-brooks&pid=177236664 |title=Lois Brooks obituary |date=11 January 2016 |work=Marlborough Express |access-date=21 April 2022}} He died on 20 April 2022 at Wairau Hospital in Blenheim, the day before his 94th birthday.{{cite web |title=Brooks: Ian James |url=https://marlboroughapp.co.nz/funerals/2758 |publisher=Marlborough App |access-date=21 April 2022 }}{{Dead link|date=January 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

{{Reflist}}

• [http://www.marlborough.museums.org.nz/mhs/vewebsite31/exhibit4/e40165a.htm Wedding photo] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304120307/http://www.marlborough.museums.org.nz/mhs/vewebsite31/exhibit4/e40165a.htm |date=4 March 2016 }} hosted by Marlborough Museum

{{S-start}}

{{S-par | nz}}

{{S-bef | before = Tom Shand}}

{{S-ttl | title = Member of Parliament for Marlborough|years=1970–1975 }}

{{S-aft | after = Ed Latter }}

{{end}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brooks, Ian}}

Category:1928 births

Category:2022 deaths

Category:New Zealand Labour Party MPs

Category:Unsuccessful candidates in the 1975 New Zealand general election

Category:Unsuccessful candidates in the 1969 New Zealand general election

Category:Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives

Category:New Zealand MPs for South Island electorates

Category:People educated at Marlborough Boys' College