Jacinda Ardern: I'm human, absolutely I suffer from parental guilt

Prime Minister and mum Jacinda Ardern has revealed the impact her job has on the time she gets to spend with her daughter, Neve, who recently celebrated her first birthday.

In an interview with Simon Barnett and Phil Gifford on their Newstalk ZB afternoon show, Arden was asked via a text from a listener if she gets much time with Neve.

"That is one of the hard parts of this job," admitted Ardern. "There's just an acceptance I guess from Clarke and myself that I won't perhaps get as much time as otherwise I might. But most nights, I get to put her to bed. And you know, some parents don't have that."

Barnett responded, "Most of us have parental guilt if that happens. Do you suffer from parental guilt?"

Ardern replied, "Oh absolutely. But name me someone who doesn't. That just makes me human, actually."

Despite feeling that guilt, Ardern seems to be balancing running the country with raising her daughter well.

Most recently she shared her cake-baking efforts for Neve's birthday.

Arden posted her cake efforts on Instagram with the caption, "I may be smiling but about an hour earlier I was not enjoying the first birthday cake making experience (like just about every parent I know!)" Photo / Instagram

Beyond parenting, the trio talked about the pressures of being the Prime Minister, relationships within the collation, and Ardern's response to the Christchurch mosque attacks in which she was globally praised for her displays of compassion and swift response to gun laws.

Barnett asked, "How much is instinct and how much is advice?"

"Generally in the job, there's always a mixture," said Ardern. "You want to be guided by a good evidence base when you're making decisions on behalf of the country.

"But when you're in a situation where things are happening moment by moment and you just have to make decisions quite quickly, as you'd imagine, a lot of that does come down to just your individual instincts.

"Of course you want to be informed when you're making those calls but sometimes there's very little time available. You hope you're never in that position though."

• Listen to the full interview here.