Fran Wilde

Dame Frances "Fran" Helen Wilde DNZM QSO JP (born 11 November 1948) is a New Zealand politician, and former Wellington Labour MP, Minister of Tourism and Mayor of Wellington City. She was the first woman to serve as Mayor of Wellington. She was also chairperson of the Greater Wellington Regional Council, until 2015.

Wilde was a Member of Parliament for the Wellington Central seat, winning it from sitting National MP Ken Comber in the 1981 general election. Wilde retained the seat at the subsequent 1984 general election.

In 1985, Wilde moved what became the Homosexual Law Reform Act 1986, which legalised homosexual acts in New Zealand between consenting men. The 16-month debate about the bill polarised the country, and sparked violent demonstrations and angry rallies at Parliament. Her other main legislative achievement in Parliament was an Adoption Reform Act, which made it possible for adopted people and their birth-parents to contact each other.

Wilde was Labour's junior Parliamentary Whip from 1984 to 1987, and became Minister of Tourism, Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Disarmament during Labour's second term. Between 1990 and 1992 she was Labour's spokesperson for Foreign Affairs and Tourism.

In 1992 she resigned from Parliament to stand for Mayor of Wellington. She won that position, and remained in office until 1995. Her seat was retained by Labour, with Chris Laidlaw winning the 1992 by-election caused by Wilde's resignation.

Since then, Wilde has been appointed CEO of Trade New Zealand (until February 2003) and was elected as a councillor for the Wellington Regional Council. The council has occupied much of her time in recent years. Wilde was re-elected to the Regional Council in 2007. On 30 October, Wilde was elected by her fellow councillors Chair of the Council. She is a strong proponent of the super city proposal for Wellington. When the Local Government Commission rejected the proposal, Wilde received a letter signed by nine of her fellow councillors asking her to stand down as chair. Wilde has announced that she would step down from the chair's position from 30 June 2015, but that she would remain a regional councillor. She was succeeded as Chair by Chris Laidlaw and did not stand for re-election in 2016.

She has three adult children from her first marriage to Geoffrey Wilde. Her husband Christopher Kelly was CEO of Landcorp and a former veterinary surgeon.