he lost his seat on Christchurch City Council. In December 2009, O'Rourke replaced Marsh as chairman. Since 2008, O'Rourke has been chairman of a recycling plant in Opawa owned by Becon Canterbury that handles demolition waste and other commercial refuse. At times, O'Rourke has owned a wedding chauffeur business with this business partner Stephen James. In 2014 it had come to light that James had left a bogus review of the service on TradeMe which gained attention as O'Rourke had been elected to the Parliament. Personal life In 2014 O'Rourke was investigated by the Speaker of the House David Carter for employing his partner or spouse in a tax-payer funded administrative role. O'Rourke denied that this was occurring, and that the person who lived at the address with him was just a friend and business partner. In August 2021, O'Rourke was charged with causing death by careless driving. O'Rourke was driving a party to a wedding in May 2021 when his car collided with a motorcyclist, who died at the scene. The charges were withdrawn in February 2022, with Crown Law stating that the motorcyclist was speeding and therefore at fault. References 1946 births Living people People from Christchurch People educated at Christchurch West High School University of Canterbury alumni New Zealand First MPs New Zealand list MPs Christchurch City Councillors New Zealand Labour Party politicians 20th-century New Zealand lawyers Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives Unsuccessful candidates in the 1999 New Zealand general election 21st-century New Zealand politicians Unsuccessful candidates in the 2017 New Zealand general election Unsuccessful candidates in the 2020 New Zealand general election