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Te hakahaka o Rolleston: The making of Rolleston 2023 - Norman Kirk and Rolleston New Town
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CollectionTe Ara Ātea perimeter exhibition cases, 2023
PersonNorman Kirk
PersonNorman KirkAttribution
‘Big Norm’
New Zealand’s 29th Prime Minister Norman Kirk was known as ‘Big Norm’. He was big in many ways – tall, statuesque, charismatic and determined. He had a big heart and an even bigger appetite for hard work.
A Canterbury working class man of the people, Kirk was committed to social justice, freedom and security for all. He had big plans for Rolleston as a ‘New Town’, a safety valve for the urban sprawl of Christchurch, which he said was being ‘squeezed into an undersized corset’.
Kirk grew up in poverty in Linwood, which he remembered as a grim, joyless ‘filing cabinet’ dormitory suburb from where workers travelled to the city. In contrast, his vision for the New Town of Rolleston was as a thriving community, where families and industry could prosper.
New Zealand’s 29th Prime Minister Norman Kirk was known as ‘Big Norm’. He was big in many ways – tall, statuesque, charismatic and determined. He had a big heart and an even bigger appetite for hard work.
A Canterbury working class man of the people, Kirk was committed to social justice, freedom and security for all. He had big plans for Rolleston as a ‘New Town’, a safety valve for the urban sprawl of Christchurch, which he said was being ‘squeezed into an undersized corset’.
Kirk grew up in poverty in Linwood, which he remembered as a grim, joyless ‘filing cabinet’ dormitory suburb from where workers travelled to the city. In contrast, his vision for the New Town of Rolleston was as a thriving community, where families and industry could prosper.
Image: Norman Kirk, a fan of fizzy soft drink, at the opening the Coca Cola factory in Hillsborough, Christchurch, 11 April 1973. Courtesy of Canterbury Stories/Star Media (CCL-Star-1973-1911-001-011N-04)
Kirk was a man in a hurry. The new Labour Government of 1972 came to power with the slogan ‘It’s Time’ and from the start of his 21 months as Prime Minister, he was 100% focused on delivering the many election promises in his ‘Red Book’. Kirk’s deputy and Minister of Works, Hugh Watt, immediately started planning the New Town of Rolleston, researching all aspects and drawing up a detailed map of its layout.
Image: Cartoon by Eric Heath, November 1972. Newly-elected Labour Prime Minister Norman Kirk and his deputy Hugh Watt celebrate by kicking defeated National Prime Minister Jack Marshall and his deputy Robert Muldoon out of a bar. Alexander Turnbull Library (A-311-4-017). Image courtesy of Maude Heath.
Map by the Ministry of Works, showing the 170 properties across four counties to be taken for Rolleston New Town, 1973. Colour added later to show a mowing schedule. Loaned by Annette Foster.
Bombshell news
The problem was that the plan was made in secret. On 29 November 1973, a bombshell letter to 170 shocked Rolleston landowners informed them that the Government was to buy their land under the Public Works Act. A total of 4,000 hectares would be taken for the proposed city of 80,000 people. Farming within the new boundaries would end, leaving only existing houses. There had been no advice, consultation or warning; even local government and the Christchurch Regional Planning Authority were taken by surprise. The amount of secret research and planning that had gone on behind the scenes was remarkable. One hundred and ten objections were lodged, and the Government was accused of undermining the democratic process, but it pressed on with land purchases.
Bombshell news
The problem was that the plan was made in secret. On 29 November 1973, a bombshell letter to 170 shocked Rolleston landowners informed them that the Government was to buy their land under the Public Works Act. A total of 4,000 hectares would be taken for the proposed city of 80,000 people. Farming within the new boundaries would end, leaving only existing houses. There had been no advice, consultation or warning; even local government and the Christchurch Regional Planning Authority were taken by surprise. The amount of secret research and planning that had gone on behind the scenes was remarkable. One hundred and ten objections were lodged, and the Government was accused of undermining the democratic process, but it pressed on with land purchases.
Newspaper advertisement published in The Press, 14 June 1975. The Rolleston Planning Group, formed in December 1973, set up a public relations campaign to address the initial lack of public discussion about the project and to seek feedback from interested individuals. Loaned by Annette Foster.
Plans scrapped
On 31 August 1974, while still in office, Norman Kirk died suddenly. The National party had never supported the plan for Rolleston and scrapped it immediately after Robert Muldoon won the election on 29 November 1975. By this time 70 properties, over 1,265 hectares, had been bought. This land was then leased, often to people who did not live in the area. Little changed in small rural Rolleston (population 1,000) over the next 20 years. However, in 1989 Rolleston became home to the new Selwyn District Council and by the year 2000 the population had risen to about 2,000. After the Canterbury earthquakes it reached 10,000 and as of June 2022, it stood at 28,000. While Kirk’s vision did not materialise in his time, Rolleston is now the thriving community for families and industry that he envisioned.
Image: Norman Kirk and wife Ruth, holding a cat in her arms, standing in their garden, 1972. Christchurch Star (CCL-Star-1972-1766-002-039N-01)
Image: Norman Kirk and wife Ruth, holding a cat in her arms, standing in their garden, 1972. Christchurch Star (CCL-Star-1972-1766-002-039N-01)
Kei te whakaaturia
On display
On display
"Basically, there are four things that matter to people: they have to have somewhere to live, they have to have food to eat, they have to have clothing to wear, and they have to have something to hope for."
Norman Kirk, 1969
Norman Kirk, 1969
Left to right:
Vinyl 33rpm recording of a series of speeches by, and tributes to Norman Kirk, along with the satirical song ‘Big Norm’ by the group Ebony, 1974. This record was produced by George Andrews for the Norman Kirk Memorial Trust, set up to provide financial help for education.
Illustrated magazine produced by Wilson and Horton after the death of Norman Kirk, 1974.
'We Need to Talk About Norman': Norman Kirk biography by Denis Welch, 2023: available to borrow from Selwyn Libraries.
Illustrated magazine produced by Wilson and Horton after the death of Norman Kirk, 1974.
'We Need to Talk About Norman': Norman Kirk biography by Denis Welch, 2023: available to borrow from Selwyn Libraries.
Te hakahaka o Rolleston: The making of Rolleston 2023 - Norman Kirk and Rolleston New Town. Selwyn Stories, accessed 19/03/2026, https://selwynstories.selwynlibraries.co.nz/nodes/view/5892
