Jacinda Ardern’s former chief of staff says she taught him ‘a different kind of politics’

Before Neale Jones started working for Jacinda Ardern, she said she had never met a politician who refused to play dirty.

Ardern announced his resignation as prime minister of New Zealand on Thursday. My last day in office is February 7th.

“I know what this job takes, and I know that I no longer have enough in the tank to do justice. It’s that simple,” he told reporters during his emotional withdrawal speech.

“I hope … I leave you believing that you can be kind, yet strong. Empathetic, yet determined. Optimistic, yet focused. You can be your own leader—one who knows when it’s time.”

Jones is a former Labor adviser and Ardern’s chief of staff during the 2017 election campaign. He is now a political commentator and managing director of public relations firm Capital. Here is part of the conversation with As it happens host Nil Koksal.

This was clearly an emotional decision, and a surprise to many. Is that what you heard? [Ardern’s resignation speech]?

I found it a little surprising, to be honest. I’ve heard some rumors that he’s leaving, but you’d think he’d see out until the 2023 election.

I took the Prime Minister at his word when he said he had nothing left in the tank, he was just tired. And I think most people I talk to understand that.

He knows that he has taken New Zealand through a history that may have been more stressful and tumultuous than any prime minister has had to deal with since the Great Depression and World War II. So I think people understand and want the best, usually.

From your conversations since the resignation announcement, what have New Zealanders made of what they’ve said? Because these statements are very different than what we often hear from politicians.

It’s no secret to me that he has been working long hours. I mean, the response to COVID in New Zealand, in particular, has been overwhelming.

Another thing that I think people have reflected on is that they have been victims of some pretty bad misogyny and abuse by some quarters. I find that, man, quite disappointing as a New Zealander. I thought we would go beyond that. But I think sometimes his criticism goes beyond the legitimate criticism we expect from the prime minister and becomes personal and polarizing.

We have the same conspiracy and movement of COVID in New Zealand, as in other parts of the world. And some of them have taken quite a threatening, violent character. So he had some real security threats which, you know, I don’t think they were the primary motivation, but they would have weighed in on him, I’m sure.

The first time I heard a politician say: I don’t want to do cheap and negative attacks on my opponents. I want to talk about values.– Neale Jones, Jacdina Ardern’s former chief of staff

There is a segment of the population in New Zealand that is angry about how they have handled the pandemic. One voter told the Herald he “ran before he was thrown” and blamed them for other things, including increased crime and the rising cost of living in New Zealand.

He said in his speech yesterday that he felt his party had done too well to win. But I wonder if the things I mentioned, or what the voters said to the Herald, may have been part of their decision – are they concerned about their ability to get the party to the finish line?

See, his popularity has fallen from the peak of the pandemic in the 2020 election, where he won an absolute majority in Parliament, unprecedented in New Zealand’s system of proportional representation.

But the size of the alarming anti-COVID noise is quite small. Most people still think they are doing a good job in the pandemic.

And I think that people who value their work in a pandemic, they have banks and they go ahead and say: “Well, what’s next?” And the big challenge they face is the cost of living.

Like most other countries in the world, New Zealand has high inflation. That hurts people in the pocket, and that leads to the popularity and popularity of their government.

The most recent poll before he resigned Labor has been up to five points behind the opposition National Party. It’s not an insurmountable amount to make up in an election year, but of course I think the possibility of Labor’s election becomes harder with him leaving.

You … work very closely together, obviously, and I wonder: Did they teach you about leadership?

One of the things I learned from him was a different kind of politics.

One of the first memories with him as our leader did a classic thing where I was the chief of staff and the research unit came to me and said: We found some embarrassing stories about one of our enemies.

And I went and looked at him and said: “I’m going to release this through the media.” And he said, “No, please don’t.”

And I said, “Oh, don’t worry. It’s not going to be the name of our party. We’re just going to give it to journalists and it’s going to come out anonymously.” And he said, “No, I’m not going to do that kind of politics, Neale. I want a different kind of politics.”

The first time I heard a politician say: I don’t want to do cheap and negative attacks on my opponents. I want to talk about values.

Is there more room today for such politicians?

I’d like to think there is, but I just don’t think our political and media environment is set up for that kind of politics. It needs, I think, a politician with a certain charisma, like Jacinda Ardern, who can communicate above the noise of everyday politics. And I’d like to think that’s a legacy that we leave behind, but I’m not sure if it will be picked up in the future.

How will the history books describe his time in office?

I think he will be remembered in New Zealand as an important prime minister, and also around the world.

[After] the Christchurch mosque attack, where terrorists were shot dead [51] Muslims when they pray, you know, the response in New Zealand to unite the country and make the Muslim community in New Zealand feel loved and protected and part of our community, and this is an attack on all of us – I think this is a big piece of the nation- building from him in a very difficult time.

And I think, clearly, the COVID pandemic, New Zealand’s response, while there’s been some disruption and controversy, as there has been around the world, most New Zealanders know that the prime minister could have saved 20,000 lives by protecting New Zealand through the worst part. pandemic.

There are a variety of other domestic policies that I think he has advanced very well. But those two things for me – the Christchurch mosque attack and the pandemic – are his legacy.