Jacinda Ardern ‘driven from office’ by unprecedented hatred and constant abuse, politicians say
Jacinda Ardern said she “slept well for the first time in a long” after announcing she was stepping down as prime minister.
The New Zealand leader revealed she was resigning from the role on Thursday telling reporters she had “nothing left in the tank”.
Ms Ardern said: “I’ll have to admit I slept well for the first time in a long time last night. But yes… still a range of emotions. So of course I feel, you know sad, but also I do have sense of relief.
“I actually feel deeply humbled by the response that I’ve received. To have those messages of gratitude has been really moving for me and for my family.
“I’ll go home for a little bit and just pack, get ready for a bit of time in Wellington. Focus for the team obviously is on selecting a new leader of the Labour Party and therefore a new prime minister for New Zealand.
“It’s an incredibly important decision and the team is very, very focused.”
And some political allies in New Zealand have suggested she took the decision to leave due to the level of abuse she received during her time in power.
Former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark said she felt “deep sadness” on learning of the resignation.
“The pressures on Prime Ministers are always great, but in this era of social media, clickbait, and 24/7 media cycles, Jacinda has faced a level of hatred and vitriol which in my experience is unprecedented in our country,” she said.
“Our society could now usefully reflect on whether it wants to continue to tolerate the excessive polarisation which is making politics an increasingly unattractive calling.”
Debbie Ngarewa-Packer, Maori party co-leader, thanked Ms Adern for her service, but said she had faced “ugly attacks”.
“It is a sad day for politics where an outstanding leader has been driven from office for constant personalisation and vilification,” she said.
“Her whanau [family] have withstood the ugliest attacks over the last two years with what we believe to be the most demeaning form of politics we have ever seen.”
Ms Ardern has received widespread praise from leaders around the world after announcing she would be stepping down but has faced mounting political pressures at home in recent months.
Her Labour party has been struggling in the polls, with a Taxpayers Union-Curia poll released on Friday using data before Ms Ardern stepped down saw the party’s popularity fall to 31.7%, down from 1.4% last month, with the opposition New Zealand National Party on 37.2%.
Nevertheless, Ms Ardern’s announcement that 7 February would be her last day as prime minister after five and a half years in office came as a shock to the nation of five million people own.
Asked if misogyny played a role in her decision to leave, Ms Ardern said: “No, it did not, and my strong message to women in leadership, and girls who may be considering leadership in the future is: This is a place where foundations have been laid long before me to make it possible for us to be in these roles in a way that in the past it just wasn’t in the same way.
Read more on Jacinda Ardern:
Jacinda Ardern may be dodging humiliation by quitting now
From Jacindamania to an empty tank, how NZ PM’s empathy defined her role
Why Jacinda Ardern’s ‘rare’ admission about her mental health matters
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Ardern breaks down as she announces resignation
“You can have a family and be in these roles, you can lead in your own style. Is there more work to do? Yes, but that was not the cause for my departure.”
Lawmakers in her Labour Party will vote for a new leader on Sunday.
If no candidate gets at least two-thirds support from the caucus, then the leadership contest will go to the wider party membership.
Ms Ardern has recommended the party chose her replacement by the time she steps down.
The next general election in New Zealand is scheduled for 14 October.
World
Trump criticises Putin after potentially ‘historic’ meeting with Zelenskyy before Pope’s funeral
Donald Trump has criticised Vladimir Putin and suggested a shift in his stance towards the Russian president after a meeting with Volodymyr Zelenskyy before the Pope’s funeral.
The Ukrainian president said the one-on-one talks could prove to be “historic” after pictures showed him sitting opposite Mr Trump, around two feet apart, in the large marble hall inside St Peter’s Basilica.
The US president said he doubted his Russian counterpart’s willingness to end the war after leaving Rome after the funeral of Pope Francis at the Vatican.
Follow live updates: 200,000 mourn at Vatican
In a post on his Truth Social platform, he said “there was no reason” for the Russian president “to be shooting missiles into civilian areas, cities and towns, over the last few days”.
The two leaders held talks before attending the Pope’s funeral
He added: “It makes me think that maybe he doesn’t want to stop the war, he’s just tapping me along, and has to be dealt with differently, through ‘Banking’ or ‘Secondary Sanctions?’ Too many people are dying!!!”
The meeting between the US and Ukrainian leaders was their first face-to-face encounter since a very public row in the Oval Office in February.
Mr Zelenskyy said he had a good meeting with Mr Trump in which they talked about the defence of the Ukrainian people, a full and unconditional ceasefire, and a durable and lasting peace that would prevent the war restarting.
Other images released by the Ukrainian president’s office show Sir Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron were present for part of the talks, which were described as “positive” by the French presidency.
Mr Zelenskyy‘s spokesman said the meeting lasted for around 15 minutes and he and Mr Trump had agreed to hold further discussions later on Saturday.
The world leaders shared a moment before the service
Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy meet in the Basilica
But the US president left Rome for Washington on Air Force One soon after the funeral without any other talks having taken place.
The Ukrainian president’s office said there was no second meeting in Rome because of the tight schedule of both leaders, although he had separate discussions with Mr Starmer and Mr Macron.
The French president said in a post on X “Ukraine is ready for an unconditional ceasefire” and that a so-called coalition of the willing, led by the UK and France, would continue working to achieve a lasting peace.
There was applause from some of the other world leaders in attendance at the Vatican when Mr Zelenskyy walked out of St Peter’s Basilica after stopping in front of the pontiff’s coffin to pay his respects.
Donald Trump and the Ukrainian president met for the first time since their Oval Office row. Pic: Reuters
Sir Tony Brenton, the former British ambassador to Russia, said the event presents diplomatic opportunities, including the “biggest possible meeting” between Mr Trump and the Ukrainian leader.
He told Sky News it could mark “an important step” in starting the peace process between Russia and Ukraine.
Professor Father Francesco Giordano told Sky News the meeting is being called “Pope Francis’s miracle” by members of the clergy, adding: “There’s so many things that happened today – it was just overwhelming.”
The bilateral meeting comes after Mr Trump’s peace negotiator Steve Witkoff held talks with Mr Putin at the Kremlin.
They discussed “the possibility of resuming direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine”, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said.
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Russia and Ukraine have not held direct talks since the early weeks of the war, which began in February 2022.
Mr Trump has claimed a deal to end the war is “very close” and has urged Mr Zelenskyy to “get it done” in a post on his Truth Social platform.
He has previously warned both sides his administration would walk away from its efforts to achieve a peace if the two sides do not agree a deal soon.
Meanwhile, the Polish armed forces said a Russian military helicopter violated its airspace over the Baltic Sea on Friday evening.
“The nature of the incident indicates that Russia is testing the readiness of our air defence systems,” they said in a post on X.
On an extraordinary day, remarkable pictures on the margins that capture what may be a turning point for the world.
In a corner of St Peter’s Basilica before the funeral of Pope Francis, the leaders of America and Ukraine sit facing each other in two solitary chairs.
They look like confessor and sinner except we cannot tell which one is which.
Leaning forward hands together in their laps, Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy stare at each other in one photo.
In another, the Ukrainian president seems to be remonstrating with the US president. This is their first encounter since their infamous bust-up in the Oval Office.
The two leaders held talks before attending the Pope’s funeral
Other pictures show the moment their French and British counterparts introduced the two men. There is a palpable sense of nervousness in the way the leaders engage.
We do not know what the two presidents said in their brief meeting.
But in the mind of the Ukrainian leader will be the knowledge President Trump has this week said America will reward Russia for its unprovoked brutal invasion of his country, under any peace deal.
Mr Trump has presented Ukraine and Russia with a proposal and ultimatum so one-sided it could have been written in the Kremlin.
Kyiv must surrender the land Russia has taken by force, Crimea forever, the rest at least for now. And it must submit to an act of extortion, a proposed deal that would hand over half its mineral wealth effectively to America.
The world leaders shared a moment before the service
Afterwards, Zelenskyy said it had been a good meeting that could turn out to be historic “if we reach results together”.
They had talked, he said, about the defence of Ukraine, a full and unconditional ceasefire and a durable and lasting peace that will prevent a war restarting.
The Trump peace proposal includes only unspecified security guarantees for Ukraine from countries that do not include the US. It rules out any membership of Ukraine.
Ukraine’s allies are watching closely to see if Mr Trump will apply any pressure on Vladimir Putin, let alone punish him for recent bloody attacks on Ukraine.
Or will he simply walk away if the proposal fails, blaming Ukrainian intransigence, however outrageously, before moving onto a rapprochement with Moscow.
If he does, America’s role as guarantor of international security will be seen effectively as over.
This could be the week we see the world order as we have known it since the end of the Second World War buried, as well as a pope.
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