James McDowall

McDowall was born in Pukekohe in 1988.

McDowall studied management at the University of Waikato and Maastricht University and graduated from Waikato in 2018 with a PhD in marketing. His doctoral thesis was titled The Future of Marketing – An Investigation into Disruption and Innovation and it presented possible scenarios for how technological innovations, such as big data and machine learning, could impact the marketing discipline by the year 2050.{{Cite thesis |title=The Future of Marketing – An Investigation into Disruption and Innovation |url=https://researchcommons.waikato.ac.nz/handle/10289/11709 |publisher=The University of Waikato |date=2018 |type=PhD thesis |language=en |first=James Samuel |last=McDowall}}{{cite web |last1=Doyle |first1=Katie |date=1 August 2020 |title=Top five contenders who could join ACT leader David Seymour in Parliament |url=https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/422475/top-five-contenders-who-could-join-act-leader-david-seymour-in-parliament |access-date=31 July 2020 |website=Radio NZ}}

He lives in Hamilton with his wife Sushan, a lawyer. Before McDowall's political career, they owned an immigration law firm together.{{Cite web |last=Rowland |first=Tom |date=7 October 2020 |title=Vote 2020: Act Party on track to have Waikato list candidate in Parliament |url=https://www.nzherald.co.nz/waikato-news/news/vote-2020-act-party-on-track-to-have-waikato-list-candidate-in-parliament/27K4KRHN442ILJ2XN3K4I62FHQ/ |access-date=2020-10-21 |website=The New Zealand Herald |language=en-NZ}} McDowall has also worked for the Wise Group, one of the largest providers of mental health and wellbeing services in New Zealand.{{Cite web |date=2020-10-18 |title=Election 2020: Nine new ACT members are about to enter Parliament |url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/123128660/election-2020-nine-new-act-members-are-about-to-enter-parliament |access-date=2022-01-31 |website=Stuff |language=en}}

McDowall is a vegetarian and has one daughter. He is a Cantonese speaker due to it being his wife's mother tongue.

McDowall became politically involved with the ACT Party after the 2005 general election. He stood for ACT in the Hamilton East electorate in the 2017 general election, but received only 140 votes. He was also placed 13th on the ACT party list, but ACT did not win enough party votes to be entitled to any list MPs.{{cite web |title=Party Lists of Successful Registered Parties |url=https://www.electionresults.govt.nz/electionresults_2017/statistics/party-lists-of-successful-registered-parties.html |access-date=31 January 2021 |publisher=Electoral Commission}}

McDowall led the development of ACT's firearm policy in response to the Government's 2019 Arms Amendment Act.{{Cite web |last=Blommerde |first=Chloe |date=2020-09-21 |title=Election 2020: Waikato candidates for local MP |url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/waikato-times/122670837/election-2020-waikato-candidates-for-local-mp |access-date=2022-01-31 |website=Stuff |language=en}}

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{{NZ parlbox footer}}In the 2020 general election, McDowall was placed 6th on the ACT party list and ran for the electorate of {{NZ electorate link|Waikato}}.{{cite web|last1=Wade|first1=Amelia|date=5 August 2020|title=Election 2020: Party of 6? Meet the Act team who could soon become MPs|url=https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12353695|access-date=10 August 2020|website=New Zealand Herald }} He focused on raising awareness of ACT rather than his own individual electorate. McDowall came third in Waikato,{{Cite web|title=Waikato – Official Result|url=https://electionresults.govt.nz/electionresults_2020/electorate-details-56.html|access-date=2020-11-06|website=Electoral Commission}} while ACT won 7.6% of the party vote, entitling it to ten MPs including McDowall.{{cite web|date=2020-11-06|title=2020 General Election and Referendums – Official Result|url=https://electionresults.govt.nz/electionresults_2020/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230621001306/https://www.electionresults.govt.nz/electionresults_2020/|url-status=dead|archive-date=21 June 2023|access-date=2020-11-06|website=Electoral Commission}}{{cite web |title=2020 General Election and Referendums – Official Result Successful Candidates |url=https://electionresults.govt.nz/electionresults_2020/successful-candidates.html |publisher=Electoral Commission |access-date=5 February 2021 |url-status=dead |archive-date=7 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201107204759/https://electionresults.govt.nz/electionresults_2020/successful-candidates.html }} During the Commission Opening of the 53rd New Zealand Parliament, McDowall repeated his oath in Cantonese, attracting significant attention – "over a million views" – in Hong Kong.{{cite web|date=1 December 2020|title=Praise heaped on ACT MP James McDowall for swearing allegiance in Cantonese|url=https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2020/12/praise-heaped-on-act-mp-james-mcdowall-for-swearing-allegiance-in-cantonese.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221103055215/https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2020/12/praise-heaped-on-act-mp-james-mcdowall-for-swearing-allegiance-in-cantonese.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=3 November 2022|access-date=10 December 2020|website=Newshub }}{{cite web|date=27 November 2020|title=感動港人｜新西蘭議員廣東話宣誓獲網民激讚 謙虛自嘲：不是故意讀成「雞成人」|url=https://hk.appledaily.com/international/20201127/2AZQZA2XP5BM5LSIVPHSMZWWLA/|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201127091715/https://hk.appledaily.com/international/20201127/2AZQZA2XP5BM5LSIVPHSMZWWLA/|archive-date=27 November 2020|access-date=10 December 2020|website=Apple Daily}} In 2022, he read the parliamentary prayer in Cantonese in recognition of New Zealand Chinese language week,{{Cite web |title=Prayers/Karakia - New Zealand Parliament |url=https://www.parliament.nz/en/pb/hansard-debates/rhr/combined/HansDeb_20220929_20220929_04 |access-date=2023-10-25 |website=www.parliament.nz |language=en}} and in 2023 he read the parliamentary prayer in Ukrainian.{{Cite web |title=Election 2023: Audrey Young's best and worst of the week in politics - National goes big with tax plan ... and creative costings |url=https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/politics/election-2023-audrey-youngs-best-and-worst-of-the-week-in-politics-national-goes-big-with-tax-plan-and-creative-costings/MOEBYLYP5FCGHETCZPMHUHLEGI/ |access-date=2025-01-01 |website=www.nzherald.co.nz |language=en}}

In his maiden statement, McDowall identified himself as a firearms enthusiast and libertarian, stating his political ideology is "that our morals and ambitions are our own and that they should not be forced upon anyone else, not least of all by the Government of the day" and quoting Ayn Rand ("A Government is the most dangerous threat to man's rights"). He spoke about immigration, sharing his parents-in-law's immigration story and describing Immigration New Zealand as inefficient, low quality, and disrespectful. He also criticised New Zealand's "unacceptable levels" of poverty, homelessness, and over-representation of Māori in prisons.

McDowall was a member of Parliament's transport and infrastructure committee and the ACT Party's spokesperson for economic development; research, science and innovation; immigration, defence; and tourism.{{cite web |title=James McDowall |url=https://www.act.org.nz/james-mcdowall |publisher=ACT New Zealand |access-date=22 November 2020}} As ACT's immigration spokesperson, McDowall has often criticised the Labour government, such as its COVID-19 border policies and their impact on access to seasonal workers,{{Cite web|date=2021-04-07|title=Growers 'devastated' as apples rot in Hawke's Bay orchards|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/farming/124768684/growers-devastated-as-apples-rot-in-hawkes-bay-orchards|access-date=2022-01-31|website=Stuff |language=en}}{{Cite web|date=2021-03-19|title=$350k wellbeing support package for horticulture sector announced|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/farming/124598030/350k-wellbeing-support-package-for-horticulture-sector-announced|access-date=2022-01-31|website=Stuff |language=en}}{{Cite web|date=2021-08-02|title=Relief from growers at news RSE workers can soon skip MIQ|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/farming/125948088/relief-from-growers-at-news-rse-workers-can-soon-skip-miq|access-date=2022-01-31|website=Stuff |language=en}} its proposed new "priority" application system{{Cite web|date=2021-04-10|title=Skilled migrant struggle: 'I haven't seen my daughter for over 400 days'|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/124626877/skilled-migrant-struggle-i-havent-seen-my-daughter-for-over-400-days|access-date=2022-01-31|website=Stuff |language=en}} and its proposed law changes intended to prevent migrant worker exploitation, but which McDowall said would actually enable bad employers to exploit migrants more.{{Cite web|date=2021-06-05|title=Employers openly talk about charging migrant 'meat' more for residency|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/125101418/employers-openly-talk-about-charging-migrant-meat-more-for-residency|access-date=2022-01-31|website=Stuff |language=en}} The Green Party's immigration spokesperson, Ricardo Menéndez March, acknowledged the work of McDowall and others to "put immigration on the agenda."{{Cite web|date=2021-09-29|title=National declares win after 'trigger-happy' Immigration NZ leaks policy details|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/126530985/national-declares-win-after-triggerhappy-immigration-nz-leaks-policy-details|access-date=2022-01-31|website=Stuff |language=en}} McDowall said in 2021 that "ACT would dump Labour’s ‘once in a generation’ immigration reset" and that it "would signal a return to the pre-COVID immigration settings as soon as public health concerns allow".{{Cite web|date=2021-07-25|title=ACT proposes private MIQ and ending 'the four horsemen of bad regulation'|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/125859611/act-proposes-private-miq-and-ending-the-four-horsemen-of-bad-regulation|access-date=2022-01-31|website=Stuff |language=en}}

McDowall supported a law which allowed people to change the gender on their birth certificate. Speaking about the bill, which passed unanimously through parliament, he said it “advanc[ed] liberalism and actually reduc[ed] Government interference in people's lives by enabling choice”.{{Cite web|date=2021-12-09|title=Parliament unanimously passes sex self-identification law, simplifying changes to birth certificates|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/127239124/parliament-unanimously-passes-sex-selfidentification-law-simplifying-changes-to-birth-certificates|access-date=2022-01-31|website=Stuff |language=en}}

In November 2022, McDowall was selected as the ACT Party candidate for the 2022 Hamilton West by-election.{{cite web | url=https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2022/11/hamilton-west-by-election-act-party-announces-dr-james-mcdowall-as-candidate.html | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221103052407/https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2022/11/hamilton-west-by-election-act-party-announces-dr-james-mcdowall-as-candidate.html | archive-date=3 November 2022 | title=Stuff }} He came third with ten percent of the vote.

He did not seek re-election at the 2023 general election.{{Cite web |last=Whyte |first=Anna |date=2023-07-16 |title=ACT releases candidate list, MP James McDowall to retire |url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/132554781/act-releases-candidate-list-mp-james-mcdowall-to-retire |access-date=2023-07-16 |website=Stuff |language=en}}

McDowall announced in January 2024 that he had been appointed Head of Advocacy for industry lobby group the [https://mta.org.nz/ Motor Trade Association], which he described as "an organisation that I have long admired and respected as the leading voice for the automotive industry in New Zealand."{{Cite web |last=McDowall |first=James |date=2024-01-20 |title=Announcement: Head of Advocacy at the MTA|url=https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7152912094357544960/ |access-date=2023-01-27 |website=LinkedIn|language=en}}

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Category:1988 births

Category:Living people

Category:ACT New Zealand MPs

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Category:New Zealand list MPs

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Category:People from Pukekohe

Category:Unsuccessful candidates in the 2017 New Zealand general election

Category:Candidates in the 2020 New Zealand general election