Neru Leavasa

Neru Asi Tuiataga Leavasa is a New Zealand politician. He was elected as a Member of Parliament in the House of Representatives for the Labour Party in 2020.
Biography.
Leavasa has lived in south Auckland for over 30 years. He earned his medical degree from the University of Auckland Medical School and was awarded fellowship of the Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners in 2014. Prior to entering Parliament, Leavasa worked for 12 years as a general practitioner in Māngere.
He is married and has one child.
Leavasa survived metastatic bone cancer as a teenager. He has only one lung and has a metal joint in one knee, and walks with a slight limp.
Political career.
Leavasa was elected to the Māngere-Ōtāhuhu Local Board in the 2019 elections.
At the Leavasa stood for parliament for the Labour Party and was ranked 52nd on the party list. He also ran for the Takanini electorate. Leavasa won the Takanini electorate by a margin of 7,724 votes. Many, including University of Auckland political scientist Lara Greaves, had anticipated prior to the election that the seat would be won by National.
Political views.
Dr Leavasa depicts himself as a social conservative with a Christian faith background. He opposed the 2020 decriminalisation of abortion, saying: "I come from a faith background, and so I won't move on my moral convictions. In regards to the abortion legislation, I would have, from a faith background and a conservative view, have voted against it."
Leavasa wants the government to build more housing to accommodate Takanini's growing population and to also reduce the health risks from overcrowding.