Editing Michael Laws (section)

==Early life==
Laws was born in [[Wairoa]] on 26 June 1957.<ref>{{cite book|last=Temple|first=Philip|title=Temple's Guide to the 44th New Zealand Parliament|publisher=McIndoe Publishers|year=1994|isbn=0-86868-159-8|location=Dunedin|page=70}}</ref> He moved with his parents to [[Whanganui]] where he received his pre-tertiary education at Tawhero Primary School, Whanganui Intermediate School, and [[Whanganui City College|Whanganui Boys' College]]. His father, Keith Laws, a schoolteacher, became rector (principal) of [[Waitaki Boys' High School]] in [[Oamaru]] and then of [[Scots College, Wellington]].

On leaving school, Laws worked at the [[Whakatu, Hawke's Bay|Whakatu]] freezing works before entering the [[University of Otago]], graduating with first-class honours in history and won an Otago University [[Blue (university sport)|sporting blue]].<ref name="ODT_222142">{{cite web|date=13 September 2008|title=Celebrating century of excellence|url=http://www.odt.co.nz/on-campus/university-otago/22214/celebrating-century-excellence|access-date=22 September 2011|work=[[Otago Daily Times]]}}</ref> He later obtained a [[Master of Arts]] from [[Victoria University of Wellington|Victoria University]]. During his time at Otago, he attracted controversy as a key member of a student organisation that supported the [[1981 Springbok Tour]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Fisher|first=David|date=2010-03-07|title=Police called to mayor Michael Laws' home|url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10630415|publisher=[[New Zealand Herald]] }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://newsroom.co.nz/2025/02/26/a-brief-history-of-michael-laws-war-on-the-sarjeant-gallery/ |title=A brief history of Michael Laws’ war on the Sarjeant Gallery |author=Martin Edmond |date=2025-02-26 |publisher=Newsroom }}</ref> He also became a public speaker and captained both the New Zealand Universities and New Zealand [[debating]] teams in the early-mid-1980s.