Prior to entering politics, Shanks worked as a self-employed accountant. She had previously worked as a project accountant for Westpac, in retail client services for Newton Investment Management in the United Kingdom, and as a senior auditor for Audit New Zealand.[7] Shanks has three children.[8]
Shanks joined the New Zealand National Party in 2001 as a member of the Karori branch and was a member of the party's executive committee for the Wellington Central electorate until 2004, when she joined the Ohariu-Belmont branch.
Shanks was the National Party's candidate in Ohariu-Belmont at the 2005 general election.[9][10] She did not defeat incumbent Peter Dunne but performed more strongly than National's 2002 candidate Dale Stevens. At 46th on the party list, Shanks was the highest-placed National list candidate not to be elected (indeed, the election night result projected that she would be elected but the final result saw National's result drop by one seat).[11] She eventually joined Parliament in February 2007 when former leader Don Brash resigned.[12][13]
Shanks became her party's associate spokeswoman for commerce and economic development and sat on the social services committee for the remainder of the term.[14][15]
In the 2008 general election, Shanks contested the new Ōhariu electorate but did not intend to win. National ran a "party vote only" campaign in that seat to ensure ally Dunne's re-election.[16][17][18] She was placed again at 46th on the party list and National's stronger party vote result meant that she returned to Parliament. National, with Dunne's support, formed a new minority government. Shanks was a member of the commerce committee as well as deputy chair (2008–2009) and later chair (2009–2011) of the social services committee.[14]
Shanks was elected as a list MP for a final time in 2011. She announced her intention to retire from Parliament at the 2014 general election but instead retired early at the end of 2013.[19][20] She was succeeded as a list MP by Jo Hayes.[20]
After leaving Parliament, Shanks became chief executive of the New Zealand Funeral Directors Association.[20] She held this role until 2018 when she became the inaugural chief executive of Financial Advice New Zealand.[21] In 2023 she left that organisation and relocated to Melbourne to become chief executive of the Australian and New Zealand Institute of Insurance and Finance (ANZIIF).[4]
^ abNormally, list MPs do not have individual predecessors or successors, but Brash resigned during a sitting parliament and therefore was succeeded by Shanks, who later resigned herself and was succeeded by Hayes.
^"New MP fulfilling dad's dream". New Zealand Herald. Auckland: APN News & Media. 1 December 2006. Retrieved 19 July 2008. She is fulfilling a dream of her father, Graham W E Hislop, who stood for Parliament when he was 36 - the same age Mrs Shanks was during the election campaign last year.
^Norton, Clifford (1988). New Zealand Parliamentary Election Results 1946-1987: Occasional Publications No 1, Department of Political Science. Wellington: Victoria University of Wellington. p. 305. ISBN0-475-11200-8.
^
Heyward, Tony (21 December 2004). "National selects Dunne challenger". Scoop. Retrieved 29 October 2008. Katrina Shanks is a self-employed accountant. She has previously worked as a Project Accountant for the Westpac Banking Corporation, in Retail Client Services for Newton Investment Management in the United Kingdom and as a Senior Auditor for Audit New Zealand.