The ethnic diversity of the New Zealand Parliament increased significantly following the 2020 election. At this Beehive ceremony, which was a combination of the Cook Islands Turou and Samoan 'Ava, the new MPs of Pacific descent were welcomed. Re-elected MPs (standing) welcomed those who had just entered Parliament (seated). The five new MPs were (left to right) Terisa Ngobi (Labour), Barbara Edmonds (Labour), Tangi Utikere (Labour), Dr Anae Neru Leavasa (Labour), and Teanau Tuiono (Green). Other MPs newly elected in 2020 included Dr Ayesha Verrall from the Maldives, Vanushi Walters, New Zealand’s first Sri Lankan MP, Naisi Chen from China, Ibrahim Omer from Eritrea, Ricardo Menéndez March from Mexico and Dr Gaurav Sharma from India​.