This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2017/oct/19/new-zealand-election-winston-peters-prime-minister-bill-english-jacinda-ardern-live
The article has changed 18 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 11 | Version 12 |
|---|---|
| Jacinda Ardern is next prime minister of New Zealand, Winston Peters confirms – live | Jacinda Ardern is next prime minister of New Zealand, Winston Peters confirms – live |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| 8.19am BST | |
| 08:19 | |
| Ardern on learning her win from TV | |
| Asked if she’d have preferred to find out that she was PM-elect before Winston Peters announced it on television, Ardern laughs: | |
| I enjoyed the theatre … I joined with NZ as we learned the news together. | |
| She says she is “privileged and humbled” to become prime minister. | |
| And on her relationship with Peters, she adds: | |
| We’ll have a partnership, we’ll continue to learn from one another. | |
| 8.15am BST | |
| 08:15 | |
| Four cabinet roles for NZ First | |
| On the Greens, Ardern says she awaits the outcome of the party’s decision on whether it will back the Labour/NZ First coalition. | |
| Tomorrow afternoon the Labour caucus will meet to elect cabinet positions. The coalition agreements with NZ First and the Greens will be published early next week, followed by news of ministerial appointments. | |
| NZ First will hold four cabinet positions and one junior ministerial role. | |
| Peters has been offered the role of deputy PM and is considering whether to take it, she says. | |
| Ardern won’t be drawn on what roles could be offered to Green MPs, but confirms they will have ministerial portfolios. | |
| Updated | |
| at 8.19am BST | |
| 8.12am BST | |
| 08:12 | |
| Ardern says coalition negotiations have been “robust”, but says the parties found more to unite them than divided them. | |
| She says Labour and NZ First are “true allies” when it comes to protecting the rights of New Zealanders. | |
| She says policy agreements are the “solid foundation on which we will now build a coalition government”. | |
| 8.11am BST | |
| 08:11 | |
| Jacinda Ardern speaks | |
| The PM-elect starts by thanking Bill English for his service as prime minister. | |
| She says English has conceded that coalition talks have now concluded. | |
| 8.09am BST | |
| 08:09 | |
| The Australian prime minister, Malcolm Turnbull, says he has sent Ardern a congratulatory text and hopes to speak to her soon. | |
| We’re yet to hear from the Australian foreign minister, Julie Bishop, who during the election campaign said it would be “very difficult to build trust” with a Labour government in New Zealand. It came after news broke that the Australian deputy prime minister held dual Australian/New Zealand citizenship – and that an NZ Labour MP had asked a question about dual citizenship that (apparently unwittingly) contributed to the revelation. | |
| Bishop accused NZ Labour of collaborating in a plot to destabilise the Australian government. Ardern called that “false claims”. | |
| 8.00am BST | |
| 08:00 | |
| Outgoing prime minister Bill English and Green party leader James Shaw will also speak later, after Ardern. Green support – likely through an informal deal, as Winston Peters appeared to rule out a three-party coalition – will be essential for any Labour-led government. | |
| Labour has 46 seats and NZ First nine, not enough to bring them to the 61-seat majority. The eight seats belonging to the Greens will therefore be crucial. | |
| It’s expected that the Greens, who have distanced themselves from National, will fall into line. But nothing is yet certain. | |
| 7.50am BST | |
| 07:50 | |
| Ardern: 'We said we could do this' | |
| The first official pronouncement from NZ Labour – the new government – has landed: | |
| Labour is pleased to have successfully concluded negotiations with New Zealand First as a critical step to forming a Labour-led progressive government, says Labour leader Jacinda Ardern: | |
| I thank the New Zealand First party and leader Winston Peters for agreeing in principle to a coalition arrangement with Labour. | |
| The negotiations have been courteous, constructive and robust. Throughout, we have focused on our shared values and the policies that can take New Zealand forward. | |
| We are both committed to forming a strong and durable government that can deal with the many challenges this country faces. | |
| The Green party is now undertaking its internal approval process before we confirm final arrangements to form a Labour-led progressive government. This too has been an excellent process, which I thank James Shaw and his team for. | |
| This is an exciting day. We aspire to be a government for all New Zealanders and one that will seize the opportunity to build a fairer, better New Zealand. | |
| We will work hard to ensure New Zealand is once again a world leader, a country we can all be proud of. We said we could do this, we will do this. | |
| I thank Bill English and acknowledge the service he has given to this country as prime minister, and for a hard fought campaign. We both share a commitment to making New Zealand a better place and Bill has left his mark. | |
| 7.45am BST | |
| 07:45 | |
| Jacinda Ardern – who learned she would become prime minister watching Winston Peters’ speech on TV – will face the media for the first time since the announcement in around 15 minutes from now (8pm NZ, 6pm AEDT, 8am BST). We’ll cover it live here. | |
| Press gallery waiting for Ardern pic.twitter.com/L26FFKbt0K | |
| 7.40am BST | 7.40am BST |
| 07:40 | 07:40 |
| A statement from ACT leader – and the party’s sole MP – David Seymour warns that a Labour coalition with Peters is “beholden to a madman on the loose”. | A statement from ACT leader – and the party’s sole MP – David Seymour warns that a Labour coalition with Peters is “beholden to a madman on the loose”. |
| ACT was one of three smaller parties that kept Bill English’s minority National government in power in the last parliament. | ACT was one of three smaller parties that kept Bill English’s minority National government in power in the last parliament. |
| Seymour’s statement reads: | Seymour’s statement reads: |
| With no hints on policy and vague attacks on capitalism, New Zealanders now face a weak leftwing coalition beholden to a madman on the loose. | With no hints on policy and vague attacks on capitalism, New Zealanders now face a weak leftwing coalition beholden to a madman on the loose. |
| Winston Peters’ perverse marriage with Labour and the Greens threatens countless groups: taxpayers, Auckland infrastructure users, millennials, immigrants and the businesses relying on them, and more. | Winston Peters’ perverse marriage with Labour and the Greens threatens countless groups: taxpayers, Auckland infrastructure users, millennials, immigrants and the businesses relying on them, and more. |
| If this coalition governs as it campaigned, then New Zealanders face a big-spending, tax-everything-that-moves, 1970s-protectionist, red-tape-loving government. | If this coalition governs as it campaigned, then New Zealanders face a big-spending, tax-everything-that-moves, 1970s-protectionist, red-tape-loving government. |
| 7.30am BST | 7.30am BST |
| 07:30 | 07:30 |
| A reminder that Jacinda Ardern became leader of the Labour party on 1 August – less than three months ago. Weeks later, she is the prime minister. | A reminder that Jacinda Ardern became leader of the Labour party on 1 August – less than three months ago. Weeks later, she is the prime minister. |
| 7.28am BST | 7.28am BST |
| 07:28 | 07:28 |
| Further congratulations from former Australian Labor prime minister Julia Gillard: | Further congratulations from former Australian Labor prime minister Julia Gillard: |
| Congrats to Jacinda Ardern and the NZ Labour team. After many nail-biting days, a great result! - JG | Congrats to Jacinda Ardern and the NZ Labour team. After many nail-biting days, a great result! - JG |
| 7.23am BST | 7.23am BST |
| 07:23 | 07:23 |
| A quick guide to what you need to know about Jacinda Ardern, Labour leader and New Zealand’s next prime minister: | A quick guide to what you need to know about Jacinda Ardern, Labour leader and New Zealand’s next prime minister: |
| 7.22am BST | 7.22am BST |
| 07:22 | 07:22 |
| Peters says talks between NZ First and Labour have been “extremely constructive” but refuses to divulge what cabinet and ministerial roles have been dished out. | Peters says talks between NZ First and Labour have been “extremely constructive” but refuses to divulge what cabinet and ministerial roles have been dished out. |
| That’s for the prime minister to reveal, he says. | That’s for the prime minister to reveal, he says. |
| And now he’s done. We’re expecting to hear from Ardern soon. | And now he’s done. We’re expecting to hear from Ardern soon. |
| 7.19am BST | 7.19am BST |
| 07:19 | 07:19 |
| Peters did not tell Ardern in advance | Peters did not tell Ardern in advance |
| “No doubt she saw it on the television,” Peters says. | “No doubt she saw it on the television,” Peters says. |
| He confirms he did not tell English first either, saying he thought the New Zealand public had the right to know first. | He confirms he did not tell English first either, saying he thought the New Zealand public had the right to know first. |