1862–1863 Domett Ministry

The Domett Ministry was a responsible government which held power in New Zealand from August 1862 to October 1863.[4] The Domett Ministry was largely provincialist in character, relaxing previous restrictions on borrowing by the Provincial Councils.[5] Domett also introduced a bill giving Provinces the right to legislate on Crown lands within their boundaries, which he admitted was unconstitutional.[7] On one occasion, Stafford carried a vote to make the position of Attorney-General a non-political post outside of Cabinet, forcing Henry Sewell to resign in favour of the less politically outspoken Frederick Whitaker.[8] In 1863, the Ministry collapsed when Bell recommended that the Waitara Block of land be returned to the owners who had possessed it before the First Taranaki War,[9] which caused the more hawkish Thomas Russell to threaten to dissent.