For subscribers
New Zealand's people-person PM
Jacinda Ardern talks about partnering S'pore, Covid-19 experience, geopolitics, leadership
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
It doesn't take long after first meeting New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to discover that she seems to be all that she is reputed to be: vivacious, relatable, disarming, informal, masterful at putting people at their ease, a politician who wears her authority lightly.
As we settle down to the interview in a meeting room at the Parkroyal Collection Pickering hotel this week during her visit to Singapore, she invites me to pour myself some water so I can take off my mask. She takes hers off too, reaching for a cup of tea. To break the ice, she begins with small talk.
