From the Acting Head

This Sunday is Mother's Day. While the habit of separately celebrating the roles of mothers and fathers seems antiquated in modern-day Australia, I cannot help, just for this week, singling out the truly excellent work of one particular mother - that of New Zealand Prime Minister, Jacinda Arden.

Ms Arden's professional achievements are historically and internationally noteworthy. At the time of her appointment as Prime Minister and as a 37-year-old, she became the world's youngest female head of government and later, only the world's second elected head of government to give birth while in office. Her baby daughter sits with her often in Parliament.

Although elected in 2017, it was while leading her country through the aftermath of the Christchurch mosque shootings, sadly followed by the White Island tragedy, that her profile became truly international. It is not because of her politics that she has become the idol of many, although her move to introduce strict gun laws rapidly was applauded, but because of her ability to find the way and the words for a whole nation to grieve and to provide reassurance at moments when it is desperately needed.

There is much about the way that Ms Arden carries herself, treats others and conducts business that leaves a distinct impression that she is the 'real deal'. The politics and the person seem aligned. Her government is focussed on the New Zealand housing crisis, child poverty and social inequity. It is clear that she does not view herself through the eyes of others, but has a sense of self that is not hostage to the outcome of battles or perceptions of popularity. Her father was a police officer, and her mother worked in a school as a catering assistant. Her repeated default to a position of genuine care suggests that she grew up with grounded values that have stayed with her into adulthood.

The New Zealand response to the Coronavirus pandemic is being held up globally as a positive example of what can be achieved when leaders act quickly and can genuinely and objectively listen to a range of perspectives. Ms Arden has been praised for her clear messages throughout the crisis, and the New York Times has described her leadership as "a master class in how to respond."

In yet another historic first, Ms Arden on Tuesday this week joined the Australian Government's National Cabinet meeting (by video conference) to discuss the possibility of permitting some level of travel between Australia and New Zealand in the near future. Our own government would do well to listen to what is being said by the person who is currently leading a nation through a pandemic in a way that is the envy of the world for its success in flattening the curve and almost entirely eradicating the virus.

As a leader, a mother and a politician, Jacinda Arden is a positive role model to many, and for that, I respect her enormously.

This Sunday, I will be celebrating the inherent love and care of my own mother as well as the independence that my father gave me the courage to find. I will also be reminding myself of the power and importance of role models - both mothers and fathers, aunts and uncles, brothers and sisters - because that is where the real magic of parenting and leading lies.

Happy Mother's Day.

Dr Emma O’Rielly

Acting Head