Richard was born in West Auckland and grew up in the Waikato. He was educated at Hauraki Plains College and travelled extensively overseas, living in Britain for several years before returning to New Zealand in 1990. After working in a diverse range of real-world occupations including photographic technician, barman, engineering contractor, truck driver and sales rep, Richard went back to school part-time, studying winemaking and viticulture through the Eastern Institute of Technology, whilst working full time and running a firewood business at the weekends. He then spent ten years working in the wine industry in Central Otago, as a viticulturist and winemaker.

Having a life-long interest in alternative therapies, Richard qualified as a Reiki Master in 1994, moving to the South Island in the same year.

Richard has a long association with the rural and farming sector, from selling farm machinery to vineyard contracting, working since 2007 in the agricultural irrigation industry. At present he works as a Business Development Manager for a nationwide irrigation company.

In 2002 Richard began writing a monthly column in Investigate magazine, and he has been a vocal advocate for individual freedoms, and for New Zealand’s Defence Forces and Returned Service people.

Richard was drawn to the New Zealand First Party because of its commonsense policies which he sees as essential for ensuring the sovereignty and economic future of our society, and its unparalleled commitment to the wellbeing of all New Zealanders.

Top 5 Issues

1. We’ll have ONE LAW FOR ALL.
   
   Which means:
   
   • We all own our foreshore and seabed
   • We fly one flag
   • We have one court system
   • We follow one set of laws
   • We have one social welfare system
   • A NZ health system
   • A NZ education system
2. We will rebuild our failing economy with
   
   • Export plans to treble returns
   • Savings plans for economic freedom
   • NZ currency for NZ not Wall ST
   • Tax breaks for real wealth creators
   • Real research and development incentives
   • Rewards for the nation’s builders
3. We stand for a fair tax system, where everyone pays a fair share.
   
   So we are going to rewrite and simplify NZ’s mangle of tax laws so that they are understandable, unavoidable, and fair.
   
   Everyone will pay their fair taxes.
   
   That means:
   • Less personal tax
   • Less company tax
   • Less GST at 12.5 not 15%
   • Removing double tax on savings
   • Removing GST on rates
   • Removing secondary tax
4. Exporters create our real wealth. We have a plan to help them.
   
   New Zealand First will keep our currency pegged to that of our main trading partners.
   
   That way the exporters will be able to expand, increase exports and create new jobs, new wealth for the Family New Zealand
   
   We will stop the sale of state owned assets, and the control of our power stations and the lakes and rivers that feed them.
   Will stop the sale of our prime farmland to foreign interests.
5. We need to support our young people to stay, live and work in New Zealand. Here are just some of our policies:
   
   1) More trade training for our young people
   
   2) We will help pay the wages for apprentices using dole money and an employer top up
   
   3) We will help students pay their loans as long as they qualify and stay here
   
   4) And we’ll throw out fictitious national standards in early education opposed by 90% of the teachers

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