Rex (Ngāti Porou ki Harataunga ki Mataora, Te Rarawa) brings a wealth of experience from the public sector, having held various roles across several government departments throughout his long career. His expertise covers a broad range of areas, including Statistics, Education, Contract Management, and IT Systems Management.
Beyond his public sector achievements, Rex played an important role as Coordinator during the 2005 Foreshore and Seabed negotiations between Ngāti Porou ki Hauraki and the Crown. In addition to this, Rex has successfully owned and managed two small businesses and currently operates a small property investment business with his wife. He is a published author, having written two novels, and is a member of the New Zealand Society of Authors.
Rex has a keen interest in Māori history and its connections to broader Polynesian cultures, particularly around human migration patterns across the Pacific. An avid reader and enthusiastic traveller, he enjoys researching whakapapa (Māori and Pakeha), which deepens his understanding of cultural and historical ties. Through his mother, Rex is a descendant of Te Rarawa Rangatira, Moe Ngaherehere, who signed Te Tiriti o Waitangi in 1840 in the Bay of Islands.