Laila Jane Harré is a New Zealand politician and trade unionist. Joining the Labour Party at 15, she left in 1989 to join the left-wing splinter party NewLabour, later the Alliance. She was elected to the New Zealand Parliament in 1996 and re-elected in 1999. In her second term, she served as Minister for Women in the Fifth Labour Government, overseeing the introduction of paid parental leave. After long-time leader Jim Anderton split from the Alliance in 2002, Harré replaced him as leader. With the party's fortunes in steep decline, it failed to win any seats in that year's election.

The Alliance was a left-wing political party in New Zealand. It was formed at the end of 1991 by the linking of four smaller parties. The Alliance positioned itself as a democratic socialist alternative to the centre-left New Zealand Labour Party. It was influential throughout the 1990s, but suffered a major setback after its founder and leader, Jim Anderton, left the party in 2002, taking with him several of its members of parliament (MPs). After the remaining MPs lost their seats in the 2002 general election, some commentators predicted the demise of the party.