Early life and career

Born in England in 1939 Brown Merchant Navy and held the rank of Chief Officer and holds a sea captain's certificate.^[1] He left the navy after deciding to settle in New Zealand in 1964.^[2] He managed a stevedoring company and was president and chairman of the New Zealand Stevedoring Employers Association. He then operated his own business, Intercargo Management, doing consultancy work for cargo, shipping and port companies. His consultancy included advising the Port of Tauranga on port reforms that took place in the late 1980s and early 1990s.^[1]

Political career

Brown was a member of the National Party for many years but left the party in 1993, angered by what he regarded as the Fourth National Government's betrayal of its 1990 election pledges. Instead he joined New Zealand First and stood as the party's candidate for the seat of Kaimai at the 1993 election and came a close second, reducing incumbent National MP Robert Anderson's majority from 8,147 to just 372.^[2] He became New Zealand First's spokesperson for transport and communications. At the 1996 election he was elected to parliament as a List MP.^[1] In 1998 Brown was elected deputy leader of the party unopposed to replace Tau Henare who had been dumped from the deputy leadership a week earlier after a personality clash between Henare and party leader Winston Peters.^[3]

In April 2008, Brown – an immigrant himself – drew widespread attention after voicing similar views and expressing concern at the increase in New Zealand's immigrant population, specifically ethnic Asians: "We are going to flood this country with Asian people with no idea what we are going to do with them when they come here."^[4] "The matter is serious. If we continue this open door policy there is real danger we will be inundated with people who have no intention of integrating into our society. The greater the number, the greater the risk. They will form their own mini-societies to the detriment of integration and that will lead to division, friction and resentment."^[5]

Brown left Parliament after the 2008 election in which New Zealand First lost all its seats. He was succeeded in the deputy leader role in 2009 by Tracey Martin.