Former New Zealand PM and WTO Director General Mike Moore dies at 71

Former New Zealand Prime Minister Mike Moore died early this morning at the age of 71, said his wife Yvonne Moore. Moore was at his home in Auckland when he passed away. Moore was the Prime Minister of New Zealand for 59 days before the October 1990 general elections. Moore was also the leader of the opposition for three years following the Labour Party's defeat in the election. Despite not receiving formal education, Moore went on to become the Director-General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO). 

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Look back at Mike Moore's life

Moore was born in Whakatane, Bay of Plenty, New Zealand, in 1949. He was educated at Bay of Islands College and Dilworth School. Moore, however, left school at the age of 14 to find a job and worked as a labourer and then a printer. Moore became an active trade unionist and at the age of 17, he was elected to the Auckland Trade Council. Moore entered electoral politics and began his parliamentary career at the age of 23 when he became the youngest MP for Eden in 1972. Moore then moved to Christchurch and eas elected MP for the north Christchurch until his retirement in 1999. 

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Moore has also served as the Commissioner for the United Nations Commission on the Legal Empowerment of the Poor and Commissioner for Global Commission on International Migration. Moore then became the Director-General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in 1999 and he oversaw the entry of China into the global rules-based trading system in 2001. Moore also oversaw the entry of Jordan, Oman, Croatia, Lithuania, Estonia, Albania, Georgia and Moldova into the global rules-based trading system. Moore was credited for launching the Doha Development Round in 2001 which was aimed at lowering trade barriers globally. 

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After his stint at the WTO, Moore became New Zealand's ambassador to Washington from 2010 to 2015. Moore reportedly suffered a stroke in 2015 following which he retired from his post and returned to New Zealand. His health started to deteriorating and he started staying indoors with limited public appearances. According to Moore's wife, he wanted to spend the rest of his life in New Zealand's Northland region but he had to return to Auckland because of his health and further treatment. 

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