| 44th Parliament of New Zealand | |
| Body: | New Zealand Parliament |
| Election: | 1993 New Zealand general election |
| Government: | Fourth National Government |
| Term Start: | 21 December 1993 |
| Term End: | 27 August 1996 |
| Before: | 43rd Parliament |
| After: | 45th Parliament |
| Chamber1: | House of Representatives |
| Chamber1 Image: | File:44th New Zealand Parliament Seating.png |
| Membership1: | 99 |
| Chamber1 Leader1 Type: | Speaker of the House |
| Chamber1 Leader1: | Peter Tapsell |
| Chamber1 Leader2 Type: | Leader of the House |
| Chamber1 Leader2: | Don McKinnon |
| Chamber1 Leader3 Type: | Prime Minister |
| Chamber1 Leader3: | Jim Bolger |
| Chamber1 Leader4 Type: | Leader of the Opposition |
| Chamber1 Leader4: | Helen Clark |
| Chamber2: | Sovereign |
| Chamber2 Leader1 Type: | Monarch |
| Chamber2 Leader1: | Elizabeth II |
| Chamber2 Leader2 Type: | Governor-General |
| Chamber2 Leader2: | Michael Hardie Boys — Dame Catherine Tizard until 21 March 1996 |
The 44th New Zealand Parliament was a term of the Parliament of New Zealand. Its composition was determined by the 1993 elections, and it sat until the 1996 elections.
The 44th Parliament was the last to be elected under the old FPP electoral system, with voters approving a change to MMP at the same time as they voted in the 1993 elections. As such, the 44th Parliament saw a considerable amount of positioning for the change - at the beginning of the term, there were four parties in Parliament, but at the end, there were seven parties and one independent. The National Party, which had begun the term with a majority, was forced by the end of the term to form a coalition with several smaller parties to remain in power. Despite the various maneuverings, however, the National Party remained in government for the duration of the 44th Parliament, which comprised National's second term in office. The other three parties present at the start of the 44th Parliament, being the Labour Party, the Alliance, and New Zealand First, all remained in opposition.
The 44th Parliament consisted of ninety-nine representatives, two more than the previous Parliament. All of these representatives were chosen by single-member geographical electorates, including four special Māori electorates.
From 1991 to 1996—including the entirety of the 44th term of Parliament—MPs met in a debating chamber in Bowen House while Parliament House was being refurbished.[1]
The table below shows the number of MPs in each party following the 1993 election and at dissolution:
| Affiliation | Members | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| At 1993 election | At dissolution | |||
| 50 | 41 | |||
| – | 7 | |||
| – | 1 | |||
| – | 1 | |||
| – | 1 | |||
| Government total | 50 | 51 | ||
| 45 | 41 | |||
| 2 | 5 | |||
| 2 | 2 | |||
| Opposition total | 49 | 48 | ||
| Total | 99 | 99 | ||
| Working Government majority | 1 | 3 | ||
Notes
There was one by-election held during the term of the 44th Parliament.