Edward Latter

Edward Gale Latter (29 February 1928 – 29 August 2016) was a New Zealand politician of the National Party.

Biography

Latter was born in 1928 at Waiau. His parents were Edward Circuit Le Clere Latter and Moana Latter (née Gale). He received his education from Hapuku Primary, Kaikoura District High School, and Christ's College. He married Anne Morton Ollivier, a daughter of Arthur Ollivier, in 1952. Later he returned to New Zealand and was the Director of Civil Defence. During his tenure he coordinated the relief response to Cyclone Bola which hit the North Island in 1988.

Latter is the author of Marching onward: a history of the 2nd Battalion (Canterbury, Nelson, Marlborough, West Coast) Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment, 1845-1992, about the Nelson Battalion of Militia. In the 1964 New Year Honours, he was appointed a Member of the Military Division of the Order of the British Empire. In 1977, Latter received the Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal, and 13 years later he was awarded the New Zealand 1990 Commemoration Medal.

Latter died on 29 August 2016.