Fran Wilde The courageous politician who helmed the passing of the Homosexual Law Reform bill, freeing New Zealand's gay men of the fear of criminal prosecution for being sexually intimate with each other, has been recognised in the New Year's Honours. Fran Wilde has been made a Companion of the NZ Order of Merit. In the lead-up to the landmark Parliamentary vote on Law Reform in 1986 Wilde was the target of vitriolic abuse from church groups and others who wished to see gay men continue being jailed for same-sex relations. She liaised with the many and often fractious gay groups throughout the country until, after a long struggle, the bill was passed. Wilde left Parliament after eleven years as a Labour MP and went on to become Wellington's mayor. She has subsequently sat on the boards of many public organisations and is currently the Chairwoman of the Greater Wellington Council.