Dr Michael Bassett
Political Historian
The Honourable Dr Michael Bassett is a former Member of Parliament and an academic and historian who was appointed a Companion of the Queen’s Service Order in 1992.
Since that time Dr Bassett has resumed his academic career and made further contributions in governance roles. He was a Professor of History at the University of Western Ontario and taught at the Auckland University Medical School for three years. He was a Fulbright Scholar of New Zealand Studies at Georgetown University in Washington D.C. in 2002.
Dr Bassett is the author of 15 books, primarily political histories and biographies, and he published his most recent book ‘New Zealand’s Prime Ministers: From Dick Seddon to John Key’ in 2017. He was a member of the Waitangi Tribunal for ten years, and a Board member of the Museum of New Zealand, Te Papa Tongarewa. Dr Bassett has been a regular columnist for Fairfax newspapers and in 2004, won the Quantas Media Award for Best Political Columnist in New Zealand.