New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern has said she will continue to work as leader of the nation until she is ‘physically in labour’.
Ms Ardern, 37, is due to give birth on June 17, and said she would remain in the top job for as long as she could.
‘In fact I’ve already made a few contingency plans to be able to keep going until I’m actually physically in labour, because why waste time?’ she told Stuff.
New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern has said she will continue to work as leader of the nation until she is ‘physically in labour’
Ms Ardern, 37, is due to give birth on June 17, and said she would remain in the top job for as long as she could (Pictured: Ms Ardern and Queen Elizabeth II)
Ms Ardern said the Duchess of Cambridge’s immaculate appearance just hours after giving birth to son Louis was a tough act to follow.
‘[It] set a ridiculously high bar that I will not be following myself. No one should expect me to be stepping out onto a balcony and waving,’ Ms Ardern said.
She will take six weeks of leave from the top job after giving birth, with deputy prime minister Winston Peters taking over the role.
Her partner Clarke Gayford will be a stay-at-home dad when Ms Ardern returns to work.
Ms Ardern said she will remain in contact with Mr Peters while she is away from parliament.
She said it felt like ‘ages’ until she was to take leave.
‘It’s a really, really long time and I don’t want to think about it.
In March, Ms Ardern spoke candidly about her struggles to fall pregnant naturally.
Ms Ardern’s partner Clarke Gayford will be a stay-at-home dad when she returns to work
Ms Ardern said the Duchess of Cambridge’s immaculate appearance just hours after giving birth to son Louis was a tough act to follow
She revealed her pregnancy came more of a shock to her than anyone else.
Ms Ardern said discovering she was pregnant while campaigning ahead of an election was ‘an incredibly intense period’.
‘I found out when I was in the middle of coalition negotiations. So here we were, trying to form a government and this news, which I should give some context – surprised me.
‘Because we’d been given a bit of feedback that Clarke and I would struggle to have kids on our own, so that in itself was pretty mind-blowing.
‘But I had this other task that so many people were totally reliant on me to complete. So I just pushed it to the side and focused on that.’
Ms Ardern will take six weeks of leave from the top job after giving birth, with deputy prime minister Winston Peters (second from right) taking over the role