Monitoring Desk
ISLAMABAD/WELLINGTON: Forty-four-year-old Chris Hipkins was formally appointed as the new prime minister of New Zealand on Wednesday, a week after Jacinda Ardern stepped down in Wellington.
According to the BBC, Ardern had said that she no longer has “enough in the tank” to lead New Zealand. The country’s governor-general Cindy Kiro accepted her formal resignation. Hipkins built a reputation as the minister who led New Zealand’s Covid policy.
In the ruling Labour Party’s caucus over the weekend, Chris received unanimous support to be promoted to lead the country, and now faces the uphill task of retaining power in the upcoming general elections in the country. Opinion polls suggested that his party is trailing its conservative opposition, the National Party, in popularity.
The country of 5 million was among the first to shut down borders. This move won plaudits for keeping New Zealand virus-free in the pandemic, but frustration set in later among Kiwis tired of the zero-tolerance strategy, which saw countrywide lockdowns over a single infection.
Chris Hipkins as minister
Chris Hipkins early conceded that strict lockdowns should have been scaled back earlier. He held the weighty ministerial portfolios of education, public service, and police.
Nicknamed “Chippy”, A father-of-two had said his commitment and politics is to “make sure that we provided opportunities for all kiwi people who want to work hard, to be able to work hard and get ahead and provide the better life for themselves and for their families.
