The 1981 New Year Honours in New Zealand were appointments by Elizabeth II on the advice of the New Zealand government to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by New Zealanders. The awards celebrated the passing of 1980 and the beginning of 1981, and were announced on 31 December 1980.
The recipients of honours are displayed here as they were styled before their new honour.
Knight Bachelor
Charles Hilgendorf – of Ashburton. For public services, especially as chairman of the New Zealand Meat Producers Board. Austin George Wilson – of Auckland. For services to commerce and the community.
Order of the Bath
Companion (CB) Military division Air Vice Marshal David Ewan Jamieson – Royal New Zealand Air Force.
Order of Saint Michael and Saint George
Companion (CMG) John Clarke – of Clinton; chairman, New Zealand Wool Board, 1972–80. The Honourable Richard Geoffrey Gerard – of Rakaia. For public services. Noel Vernon Lough – of Eastbourne; secretary to the Treasury, 1977–80.
Order of the British Empire
Dame Commander (DBE) Civil division Whina Cooper – of Auckland. For services to the Māori people.
Knight Commander (KBE) Civil division Dr The Honourable Thomas Robert Alexander Harries Davis – of Rarotonga; premier of the Cook Islands. For services to medicine and the people of the Cook Islands.
Commander (CBE) Civil division James Warne Ardagh – of Christchurch. For services to medicine. Doreen Vera Blumhardt – of Wellington. For services to art, especially pottery. Francis Rei Paul Hamon – of Thames. For services to art. Mary Wilhelmina Margaret Lythgoe – of Waikanae. For services to nursing. Arthur William Baden Powell – of Auckland. For services to marine science. Dr Edwin Ian Robertson – of Tawa; director-general, Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, 1971–80. Dr Frank William Eden Rutter – of Auckland. For services as chairman, Auckland Hospital Board.
Military division
Air Commodore Ian Murray Gillard – Royal New Zealand Air Force.
Officer (OBE) Civil division Harry Herbert Ayres – of Christchurch. For services to mountaineering. Leo George Wellington Carrington – of Stratford. For services to local and community affairs. George Cooper Cruickshank – of Invercargill. For services to the sport of trotting. Murray Charles Day – of Hamilton. For services to squash. Bernard Lancelot Ebbett – of Palmerston North. For services to the dairy industry. Stuart Carlton Hay – of Auckland. For services to the community. Hamish Henry Cordy Keith – of Auckland; chairman, Queen Elizabeth II Arts Council. Nevile Sidney Lodge – of Wellington. For services as a cartoonist. Donald Mitchell McKenzie – of Auckland. For services to physiotherapy and the blind. Lloyd Morgan – of Paraparaumu. For services to Lions Clubs International. Walcott Eyre Wilder Ormond – of Havelock North. For services to Thoroughbred breeding. John Wellesley Evan Raine – of Wellington. For services to medicine. Desmond Bruce Smith – of Christchurch. For services to cycling. William John Watt – of Auckland. For services to anaesthetics and the community. Iona Williams – of Dunedin. For services to the community. Ray Roberts Wilson – of Auckland. For services to music.
Military division
Captain Alexander David Nelson – Royal New Zealand Navy. Colonel Donald Stuart McIver – Colonels' List, New Zealand Army. Wing Commander Te Waaka Hemi Morete – Royal New Zealand Air Force.