ANI
25 Jan 2023, 12:03 GMT+10
Wellington [New Zealand], January 25 (ANI): Chris Hipkins, 44, has been sworn in as the 41st Prime Minister of New Zealand on Wednesday, reported New Zealand's public broadcaster RNZ.
After the formal handover of the power, Jacinda Ardern left Parliament as prime minister for the final time this morning, heading to Government House to officially tender her resignation and shift to the back benches.
Hipkins and incoming deputy prime minister Carmel Sepuloni arrived there about 11.20 am for the swearing-in ceremony, RNZ reported, adding that Hipkins has signalled tackling the "inflation pandemic" will be a top priority for his cabinet.
Hipkins was first elected to parliament in 2008 and was appointed minister for Covid-19 in November 2020.
He was the minister for police, education and public service.
Jacinda Ardern's surprise resignation sparked a Labour Party leadership contest.The shocking decision from Ardern comes after five and a half years of tenure leading New Zealand through the coronavirus pandemic.
Ardern said she knew what the prime minister's job took and believed she "no longer had enough in the tank to do it justice" but there were colleagues who could.
She said her Government had achieved a lot and she was not standing down because she did not believe Labour could win the next election, but because she thought it could. (ANI)
Get a daily dose of New Zealand Star news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to New Zealand Star.
More InformationWASHINGTON D.C.: The White House said this week that Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk met with John Podesta, a Democratic ...
MANILA, Philippines: In an effort to attract more tourists, President Ferdinand Marcos has approved a value-added tax refund program for ...
TRIPOLI, Libya: Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni held talks on energy and migration in Libya this weekend, which are major ...
MIAMI, Florida: This decade, the US south is expected to see more new residents than any other region in the ...
NEW YORK CITY, New York: After reporting record revenues in the fourth-quarter of 2022, US airlines expect strong travel demand ...
MANILA, Philippines: After a Filipina domestic worker was killed and dumped in the desert in the oil-rich emirate of Kuwait, ...
BEIJING, China: As COVID-19 restrictions and a slowing economy curbed consumer demand in 2022, China's smartphone sales witnessed a record ...
TOKYO, Japan: After struggling for years to promote its products amid protests from conservationists, Japanese whaling company Kyodo Senpaku announced ...
NEW DELHI, India: Marking a year since the Tata Group took control of Air India, the former state-run carrier has ...
NEW YORK, New York - A slowing of wages growth in the fourth quarter, as reported by the Labor Department, ...
NEW YORK CITY, New York: As it sets aside more funds to cover potentially bad loans, American Express announced that ...
LONDON, England: Flybe, a British regional airline, abruptly closed operations on January 28. The airline offered flight to Belfast, Birmingham ...