Nicholas Sheppard

Nicholas Sheppard is a freelance journalist and fiction author. He lives in Auckland, New Zealand.

Will New Zealand ever become a republic?

From our UK edition

New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Monday that her government will not be pursuing any moves toward changing New Zealand to a republic following the death of Queen Elizabeth II. Ardern admitted she thought New Zealand would eventually become a republic, and it would probably happen within her lifetime, but that there were

New Zealand’s bailout blunder is Jacinda Ardern’s latest error

From our UK edition

This week more than two million New Zealanders are expected to receive roughly $116 (£60) in their bank accounts as the government paid out the first instalment of its cost-of-living payment. A further two instalments over the next two months have been promised to those earning below $70,000 (£36,000). These payments are part of a

New Zealand’s economic woes will come back to bite Jacinda Ardern

From our UK edition

New Zealand has been voted the second worst country in the world to move to, according to a survey of immigrants encompassing most regions of the world. The survey, by the expatriate networking organisation InterNations, collated the responses of nearly 12,000 immigrants, living in 181 countries. It found that Mexico tops the list of the

Jacinda Ardern’s tricky China policy

From our UK edition

New Zealand’s Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern, has had a busy week on the international circuit. On Friday she appeared in front of a packed audience at London’s Chatham House to discuss New Zealand’s international outlook and to laud what she described as a ‘gold standard free trade agreement’ signed with the UK. And though New

Jacinda Ardern is New Zealand’s Gorbachev

From our UK edition

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is currently leading a trade mission to the United States, with a meeting between her, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris pencilled in for later this week. Her appeal on the world stage is evident – the New York Times over the weekend hailed her ‘inspiring’ – but there is a considerable disconnect now

The cruelty of Jacinda Ardern’s immigration policy

From our UK edition

‘Kindness and not being afraid to be kind,’ says New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern, is the key to her leadership. Try telling that to the family of a 12-year-old from the Philippines, who has been banned from moving to New Zealand due to potential costs to the country’s healthcare system associated with her autism. For half of her

‘Jacinda mania’ is over

From our UK edition

Jacinda Ardern, once the golden girl of New Zealand politics, is in trouble. The country’s main opposition party, National, is edging ahead of the prime minister’s Labour government in the polls for the first time in two years, having opened up a two point lead. And while Adern is still the favoured pick to be PM her personal

Jacinda Ardern’s Labour landslide

From our UK edition

Jacinda Ardern’s Labour party has won re-election in a landslide. Her government improved its vote-share by around 12 per cent from the last election in 2017, its best result since 1938. New Zealand’s political system is proportional, allowing minor parties garnering more than 5 per cent of the vote to enter Parliament. Jacinda Ardern’s victory

Jacinda Ardern’s coronation seems all but certain

From our UK edition

When New Zealanders head to the polls this weekend, Jacinda Ardern seems all but certain to secure a resounding victory. So is this proof of the popularity of Ardern’s zero-Covid strategy? There is no doubt Ardern’s approach to the pandemic has been popular in New Zealand. Early on in the outbreak, the Labour party leader presented