Incoming Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has had his first weekly media round on Monday morning, including on Three's AM.
Hipkins, who was elected Labour leader on Sunday, will be sworn in as New Zealand's 41st Prime Minister on Wednesday.
Follow Newshub's live updates below. App users click here.
8:25am - That brings to an end Hipkins' first Monday morning media around. Thanks for following along.
8:15am - Hipkins won't say whether a Capital Gain Tax would create a more equitable society, but says the tax system needs to be fair. A larger and larger part of the workforce feel they are working more, but not getting ahead, Hipkins says.
He says Ardern and Labour will honour the promise around tax for this term and the public will be very clear about Labour's tax intentions going into the election. Other than the 39 percent tax rate, Labour has promised not to implement any new taxes this term.
Hipkins also wouldn't say whether the age of superannuation could be raised. The debates around superannuation can be too simplistic, he says.
Asked if he is too Wellington or too beltway to represent New Zealand, Hipkins comes back to being a "boy from the Hutt". He says he goes to the Cossie Club and hears that some people are not engaged in politics of the week, which is a grounding for him.
He promises to set out before the election what parties Labour can and cannot work with in government.
8:10am - Hipkins tells Tova O'Brien on TodayFM everyone looks at the top job of Prime Minister and thinks, can I do that. But it hasn't been his main aim to be Prime Minister.
He wanted to be the Education Minister, Hipkins says. Hipkins didn't expect a change in leadership would come along so quickly, but when the opportunity came along he had to take stock and ask himself if he was the right person for it.
He wouldn't get into whether the TVNZ-RNZ merger or the social insurance scheme are priorities right now, but they are on the list of the Government's policies that ministers will discuss.
He acknowledges the "anxiety" around co-governance and believes people don't know what it means. It can look and feel different in different contexts, he says. But the Crown should consistently be working with tangata whenua, Hipkins tells O'Brien.
8:05am - Claims outgoing Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern was driven to resign because of online hate and vitriol are ridiculous and melodramatic, says AM host Ryan Bridge.
"Some of the headlines have been ridiculous. There was one headline I saw the other day about the Prime Minister being driven from office by online trolls. I mean, that is so melodramatic," Bridge said on AM on Monday.
7:55am - We should always look at how we can make the tax system fairer, Hipkins says. If you work hard, you should be able to get ahead, he says.
Some people are working multiple jobs, but they feel they aren't getting ahead, he says. We need a tax system that recognises that, he says. Hipkins says incomes also need to be increased.
Hipkins says the Government will be making haste in deciding what policies to focus on and which to put to the side.
The number of public servants has caught up with population growth, Hipkins says. He objects to the use of the word 'bureaucrats', noting that public servants also includes the likes of Corrections Officers.
The Government will be working constructively with business, he says. Business success will be New Zealand's success, Hipkins says.
He says there are thousands of young New Zealanders not in training, employment or education that need to be engaged. But Government can't do that alone and business needs to help.
Hipkins denies he is a caretaker Prime Minister. He says he will make the most of the nine months leading up to the election and is looking forward to the next three years as he is confident Labour can be re-elected.
He says his record shows that when he has made a mistake, he has owned it. That's his expectation for other ministers.
7:50am - Hipkins says he has been committed to public service for his whole life and wants to leave New Zealand in a better place than how he found it.
He says Labour will win at election 2023 and Kiwis will want to learn what he is about and what his priorities are.
2022 was a tough year, Hipkins says, and the world has changed. That means the Government's priorities need to change, he says.
He won't say at what polling point his leadership might be under threat from his colleagues.
Hipkins also won't say what decisions made by Jacinda Ardern he wouldn't have made.
Ryan Bridge puts it to Hipkins that maybe the Government hasn't changed quick enough to keep up with the changing world. Hipkins replies, "well maybe".
Hipkins confirms there will be no change to the October 14 election date.
7:45am - Hipkins tells AM that his "feet are still getting back down on Earth again after a pretty whirlwind three or four days". He says it feels like weeks since Jacinda Ardern resigned.
He says he and Ardern have discussed her future "over a period of time", but she confirmed her intentions with him about a week before her announcement.
He knew last year that Ardern was considering if she had enough energy to keep going, Hipkins says.
Hipkins says he took a break over summer as he knew if he was "going to take on a bigger challenge this year that I wanted to make sure I was coming back energised and refreshed".
Labour has a "proud economic track record as a Government", he says. Hipkins says Grant Robertson will remain Finance Minister.
He says his work as a minister shows he can "grip up a policy brief quite quickly when I need to", but Robertson will lead the economic strategy.
Hipkins says he brings an understanding of the day-to-day lives of Kiwis and what they will be concerned about, like petrol and food prices.
He wants to make sure his Government is focused on those bread and butter issues.
7:40am - Newshub Political Editor Jenna Lynch told AM the job for National at the election has got harder.
The change in Labour leader has blown fresh air into the party's campaign and MPs appear genuinely excited about the year ahead, Lynch said.
"The game has completely changed," she said.
Lynch said the idea of resigning would have been in Ardern's mind at the end of last year, but then she dug in during Christmas interviews with media that she was here to stay. But over the summer, she's realised she doesn't have the energy.
That's a difficult thing to do and takes leadership, Lynch told AM.
It would be difficult to make changes to Three Waters as legislation has already passed through Parliament, Lynch said. It's very unpopular with voters, councils and businesses, however, she said.
But the Government may delay the social insurance scheme as it may be risky to hike taxes during a cost of living crisis, Lynch said.
7:35am - Speaking earlier on AM, National's Christopher Luxon said he doesn't believe the Labour leadership means much change for his party.
"The reality is Chris Hipkins has been part of the holy trinity of Jacinda Ardern, Grant Robertson and himself driving this Government over the last five-and-a-half years," Luxon said .
Luxon said it's easy for Hipkins to say his focus will be on the economy, but he has been part of the Government that's oversaw rising inflation and interest rates.
"He has been such a big part of that Government that has really not delivered."
7:30am - Hipkins says a challenge of being the Education Minister is that changes in the sector can take a while to become evident. This can be longer than a minister's time in office.
He wouldn't discuss what pressure there was from Labour's Maori caucus for there to be a Maori member of the Labour leadership. Kelvin Davis remains in the Labour deputy role.
Hipkins wouldn't discuss who will be moving into Cabinet roles under him. He still needs to talk to colleagues, he says.
7:25am - Hipkins tells Newstalk ZB his main priority over the next few days will be assembling his Cabinet and then running the ruler over the Government work programme to ensure the focus is where it needs to be.
Inflation is a big challenge for New Zealand, he says. New Zealand's inflation rate is below the OECD average, but Kiwis know their prices are going up, Hipkins says.
In a global pandemic of inflation, New Zealand will get knocked around by international headwinds, Hipkins says. He doesn't directly respond to the question of what the Government can do to get inflation under control.
He says the Government will be "even more focused" on issues like inflation under him than it was under Jacinda Ardern.
Kiwis will accept that barely a day into the job he will need some time to work through options before announcing any specific policies, Hipkins says.
Reopening the border has helped restart the economy, he says.
7:15am - What can the Government do to rein in inflation and will he commit to a form of tax relief? Hipkins replies that he won't make up policy on the fly and the Government will go through a Budget process.
He doesn't want to see Government actions make inflation worse. This means ensuring the Government is focused on the right things and prioritising spending.
Hipkins says those on the lowest income often feel the pinch of high inflation more than most. There is a decision coming up soon on minimum wage hikes, he says. No conversation has happened on this yet.
He says while a minister he has made a priority to get out and speak to business leaders. He doesn't want to see New Zealand just rely on immigration to sort skills shortages when there are young people looking for jobs or could be in training.
Hipkins intends to be a Prime Minister who gives straights answers.
He wouldn't say if he is to the right of the Labour Party and Jacinda Ardern. He says he is a Labour politician and believes in the party's values.
7:10am - Speaking to RNZ, Hipkins says he is committed to giving strong and stable leadership to New Zealand.
He reiterates his Government will focus on bread and butter issues, like the "global inflation pandemic". This is where he wants to put his resources.
It is an acknowledgement you cannot do everything all at once, Hipkins says.
"We have a very big work programme," he says.
Hipkins says phrases like co-governance and co-management don't mean much to people or may mean different things.
The Government should honour the Treaty of Waitangi and ensure Maori involvement in governance, but that doesn't mean separate systems of government, Hipkins says.
He wants to see the Government slow down and explain to New Zealanders why they are implementing policies.
6:55am - Hipkins will very shortly be taking to the airwaves on his first weekly media round. We'll bring you some of his comments as they come.
6:50am - The new leader of the Labour Party has asked New Zealanders to respect his family's privacy as he prepares to be sworn-in as New Zealand's 41st prime minister next week.
At a media conference this afternoon Chris Hipkins revealed that he and his wife had made the decision a year ago to live separately but to "do everything we can to raise our children together".
"Being a politician's partner and being a minister's partner ... when you're in the public spotlight as I have been - particularly during the COVID-19 response - it's bloody hard," he said.
"Families come under an enormous amount of pressure."
6:40am - Incoming Prime Minister Chris Hipkins wasn't able to name all three of the Treaty of Waitangi articles during his first press conference as the incoming Prime Minister.
Speaking on Sunday after successfully being elected by the Labour caucus as the party's new leader, Hipkins was asked to name the three articles of the Treaty of Waitangi.
After briefly umming and ahhing, he successfully named two out of the three articles - but not the third.
6:30am - AM's Ryan Bridge, back on-air for the first time this year, said he was not surprised in the slightest to learn Ardern was resigning last week.
"I was surprised about the timing. I thought it was going to happen before Christmas. Turns out it happened just after," he said.
He said the suggestion Ardern was driven out of office by online trolls is "so melodramatic, it is bizarre".
"It assumes she is reading all of the online troll messages from the misogynists and the whoever, and second of all it kind of undermines the fact that the polls weren't going well for Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern."
Labour has fallen from around 50 percent at the 2020 election to the low-30s in recent polling.
Bridge said any smart politician would look at that and question whether they had another campaign in them and how it might affect their reputation.
AM's Melissa Chan-Green said the summer break has allowed Ardern to reflect. It also allows Labour to ditch policies without it looking like a U-turn.
"It is wrong to say that all of Jacinda Ardern's criticis have been online trolls... but it is wrong also to say that she hasn't been subjected to that. I think that would have come into her decision."
6:20am - Kia ora, good morning, and welcome to Newshub's live updates of Chris Hipkins' first media round. We will bring you comments the incoming Prime Minister makes across his first official media appearances as the new Labour leader.
Hipkins will be on AM at 7:40am on Monday morning, while National leader Christopher Luxon and Newshub Political Editor Jenna Lynch will be on-air at about 7:10am. You can watch AM in the video above or on Three.
