National list MP Tau Henare confirmed he was retiring from Parliament at the end of this term.  This was an expected announcement. He did this via Twitter.

West Side Tory ‏@tauhenare 

Well, I’m on my way to caucus to inform my colleagues of the @NZNationalParty that I intend to retire at the upcoming General Election.

It’s been a pleasure and a privelige and a very humbling experience. #NZPOLS Thanks heaps folks.

Best friends and comrades have been wife and kids. #EoS

There’s been a few reactions from MPs.

@hollyrwalker

Strangely sad to wake to the news that @tauhenare is retiring. One of Parliament’s true free thinkers and a great champion of LGBT rights.

Big Gerry Brownlee ‏@BigGerryB

Still @tauhenare at least you’ll be free now to speak your mind on twitter

Metiria Turei ‏@metiria

@tauhenare Gonna miss you.

West Side Tory ‏@tauhenare 

@metiria You too sis. Good luck.

Others:

@MikePuruNZ 

Best of luck with everything .. Your a good bloke and I’ve quite enjoyed the yarns we’ve had over the years .

@nzyoungnats 

Tau, we’ll miss your wicked sense of humour and your huge support of us & our causes. Best of luck for the future 🙂 

@_idarima 

@tauhenare the very best of luck on the next adventure. On a personal note, holy heck I’m looking forward to seeing what you tweet now haha

@LewSOS 

But more seriously, with Tau retiring w’ll have lost something important — an MP who’s willing to speak his mind. Kia ora 

@NilJManning 

Sorry to hear that Tau, you were always my favourite in National’s ranks. Congrats on your legacy, & best of luck for the future!

And Ruminator brings up a guest post written by Henare last year:

Tau Henare: Culture – all the good stuff

National Party MP Tau Henare writes on what he feels Maori Culture is, and how it can help society as a whole.

With all the talk of recession and how to get out of it, I remember only too well the last one. The 80s downturn for us in Otara was like a bald-faced gate crasher who arrived early, wrecked the place and wouldn’t leave.  Sixth form certificate wasn’t enough to get me a job. 30 years of service on the railways wasn’t enough to protect my father from redundancy. Yet as bad as things may have appeared to others, it was still one of the most upbeat times of my youth. I owe this to the rise of Maori culture. A culture largely forgotten by many of my father’s generation as they settled into the gentle pace of urban life. But its timely revival in rough times had given my own generation enthusiasm mixed with hope.

He concludes:

As someone that has traversed the full spectrum of political thought, and indeed started a party based on this very concept of culture, I have come to the conclusion that it has no natural political home but that culture should be woven into the fabric of all ideologies, because its true worth, particularly in times of crisis and uncertainty, is that it encourages the energy, enterprise and intellect in people to aspire to a greater cause or as my old uncle would say “all the good stuff”.

Tau Henare: “the PM’s got a team to run, if I don’t like it I can leave.” Says he likes everyone in Parl and won’t go kicking & screaming.

Tau also rules out returning to Parliament with another party.

Audrey Young: Memories of Henare